Isle Of Ely Produce
Processing Line Design & Integration Support
Isle of Ely Produce — Optical Grading, Weighing & Palletising Line
“Charlie first worked with Isle of Ely back in 2007, installing and supporting our original processing machinery as a service engineer. We stayed in close contact as his career progressed through Tong Engineering and into his own consultancy, RPS Machinery.
We have always valued Charlie’s honest, practical advice and deep understanding of produce handling and processing systems.
When we began planning our next development phase, we struggled to get mainstream machinery manufacturers to fully understand both our current operational needs and our long-term plans. Charlie took the time to translate our ideas into clear layouts and practical line concepts focused on throughput, efficiency, and future expansion.
We had already invested in key equipment — including a Flikweert quality grading camera system, a Manter weighing and bagging system, and a Verbruggen VPM-8 palletiser. RPS Machinery designed and installed an auxiliary processing line so we could integrate and run this equipment immediately while finalising our main line supplier.
This allowed us to gain early value from our investment, maintain production, and build operator experience instead of waiting idle.
Charlie’s ability to understand our business and turn ideas into practical, workable processing solutions has been invaluable.”
Oliver Boutwood, Isle of Ely Produce
Velcourt
Velcourt had a problem crop with specific defects that needed removing, and we required advice on a system capable of dealing with the issue effectively. Matt Gregory contacted Charlie knowing his background and experience within the industry.
Charlie inspected the crop, identified the problem, and sourced a suitable rental camera system capable of removing the defect which in this case was a Visar Sortop machine. He then assisted in designing and putting together an auxiliary line to enable the crop to be sorted efficiently.
Matt has known Charlie since his harvesting days, when Charlie worked as a mechanic for Scotts Potato Machinery, supporting Grimme machinery that Velcourt regularly rented at the time.
That relationship continued over the years, with Velcourt later purchasing a full grading system from Charlie in 2011 during his time at Tong Engineering. With such a long working history, it was only natural to contact Charlie again when this issue arose.
Charlie made the whole process straightforward, practical, and efficient. The auxiliary line is now installed and fully operational, allowing us to deal with the problem crop quickly and effectively.”*
— Matt Gregory
Mill House Farm
“I contacted Charlie when we were having difficulty completing the installation of a Haith intake and wash line, which included a Newtec Celox camera grading system.
Charlie came to site, reviewed the installation, identified the issues, and made clear, practical recommendations. He then took over communication with the engineers and manufacturers, which completely removed the burden from me and allowed me to focus on running the business while the line was finalised and commissioned.
Charlie’s professionalism, technical knowledge, and straight-talking, no-nonsense approach were exactly what was needed to get the line completed and fully operational. I would have no hesitation in recommending Charlie and RPS-Machinery.”*
— Gareth Franklin, Owner