In episode 27 of The Downtime, WTWH Media’s weekly manufacturing podcast, co-hosts Sarah Wynn and Sheri Kasprzak talk with Cathy Rinne, co-founder and president of Flex-Line Automation.
The trio discusses conveying Halloween candy, material handling trends, how Rinne became the “Conveyor Cougar,” and Flex-Line’s 41-year journey, from starting out as a farm shop in southern Illinois to evolving into robotics for end-of-line packaging.
From farm shop to factory floor: Flex-Line Automation’s journey
Flex-Line’s journey began more than four decades ago when Rinne co-founded the company with her husband, Rhett, and her in-laws. They started in a barn “in the middle of a cornfield” with a focus on selling Flex-Line conveyors.
Since then, Flex-Line has evolved into a third-generation family business, expanding into end-of-line robotics for palletizing, case packing, and case erecting.
“Several years ago, it became evident to me that the future of manufacturing was really moving toward robotics. Conveyance was being treated more like a commodity,” said Rinne. “We understood at that point that we were going to have to expand our business if we were going to stay relevant.”
Flex-Line began offering robotic systems, including its boxEZ case erector, which was developed in-house. Rinne added that the company adopted an “Amazon-like business model,” offering a variety of conveyors from notable OEMs like Bosch Rexroth and mk North America.
“You go to Flex-Line, you don’t just get one kind of conveyor. You can get whatever kind of conveyor you want,” she said.
Rinne emphasized that this approach is about being adaptable and meeting customer needs. Rather than being locked into a single product line, her goal is to provide a one-stop solution where manufacturers can find exactly what they need.
Conveying delicate Halloween candy and treats
Rinne joined The Downtime for its Halloween special to discuss material handling for chocolate and confectionery products. She added that Flex-Line designs conveyance systems to protect these delicate products, while maintaining strict hygienic standards as needed for food packaging.
“Nobody wants to have icky chocolate,” she said. “You can’t crush candy. You can’t crush cookies.”
Rinne noted that many confectionery packaging boxes are used as display boxes in stores. This requires extra care. “You go to pick out your Halloween candy, you want to be the cool person on your block, you don’t want to give really nasty candy wrappers,” she said.
She also shared a funny and memorable experience involving a Milk Duds production line. Listen to the full story on The Downtime.
Trends driving material handling
Looking towards the future, Rinne sees artificial intelligence (AI), predictive maintenance, and equipment accessibility as key trends shaping the next era of material handling.
“I think especially right now with all of the tariffs and the big push to reshore manufacturing here in the US, I think a lot of that falls on the shoulders of the small, midsize, rural manufacturing,” she said.
Her career philosophy keeps it all in perspective. “Have fun in what you’re doing. I’m at the point in my career where that’s what I’m all about,” she said.
Social media success for Flex-Line: Becoming the “Conveyor Cougar”
Rinne discussed her infamous social media nickname: the “Conveyor Cougar.” It was affectionately given to her by her millennial daughter, Lauren Van De Mark, after a sales meeting when Rinne said she felt out of place among younger engineers.
“I’m like, I feel like a cougar trying to sell to these young kids,” said Rinne. Her daughter jokingly replied, “Ah, yeah, Mom, you are a cougar. You’re a conveyor cougar.”
The name stuck, and Rinne embraced it on social media, creating a TikTok account with the moniker and seeing her LinkedIn following surge from roughly 100 followers to over 7,000 today.
Van De Mark joined in on the fun, creating merchandise with the nickname and driving website traffic. “Our web traffic has gone up over 300%,” said Rinne.
She added that people often recognize her from her nickname and social media videos, showing that what started as a joke ultimately became a memorable personal brand for Rinne and an unexpected way to boost visibility for Flex-Line.
Episode 27: Taking Candy From Strangers | Show notes & time stamps
00:17 – The co-hosts begin the show
01:20 – Wynn discusses packaging trends and research examining growth in end-of-line automation
01:52 – Kasprzak shares a Plant Engineering story about new OSHA guidelines, written by Herbert Post, VP at TradeSafe
02:40 – Wynn highlights the engineering newsletters from WTWH Media, including how to subscribe to Packaging OEM’s newsletter
03:15 – The dynamic duo transitions to Halloween and this week’s interview segment about material handling for confectionery items
03:50 – The co-hosts introduce Cathy Rinne, co-founder and co-owner of Flex Line Automation
04:50 – Interview with Rinne begins
05:11 – Rinne shares Flex-Line Automation’s history
06:30 – Rinne explains Flex-Line’s journey from providing conveyance to end-of-line robotics
09:30 – Rinne shares how Flex-Line specializes in end-of-line packaging, including case packaging, erecting, and sealing
13:44 – Rinne discusses material handling challenges for candy and chocolates
16:06 – Rinne addresses trends shaping the future of material handling
22:11 – The Flex-Line co-founder shares a humorous story involving a prank about Milk Duds
24:28 – Discussion of “Conveyer Cougar” nickname and how it’s helped Rinne grow her social media following
32:17 – The co-hosts and Rinne start the “Slay or Convey” game segment
36:08 – Interview and game time segment with Rinne ends
36:37 – The co-hosts wrap up the show
About The Downtime podcast and co-hosts
The Downtime is a weekly manufacturing podcast from WTWH Media that features insights from its automation and controls publications. It’s co-hosted by Wynn, who serves as the senior editor (digital) for Packaging OEM, and Kasprzak, who is the executive editor for Plant Engineering, Control Engineering, and Consulting-Specifying Engineer.
Check out The Downtime’s recent episodes
Episode 22: Schneider Electric on open, software-defined automation for packaging
Episode 23: Hoosier Feeder’s centrifugal system for coffee pods
Episode 24: Leadership lessons from an engineer in sustainable design
Episode 25: Inside WTWH Media’s “Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop” B2B content strategy
