In Kalamazoo, Michigan, there’s a rebel in the cannabis game: Rare Michigan Genetics.
This isn’t your average grow op. They’re all about crafting strains that stand out in a crowd and maintaining a quality that blows minds, not just smoke.
Leading this charge is Jay VanderLaan, a master-of-all-trades who’s got his hands in everything from picking the right genes to making sure their pre-rolls don’t just roll – they rock.
However, meeting pre-roll demand wasn’t always so easy. This labor-intensive process required a lot of man hours, and consistency of production and quality was a constant stressor.
The challenge was real: how do you ramp up making those killer pre-rolls without dropping the ball on quality?
Enter the game-changer, the Aura Pre-Roll Machine from Hefestus.
This beast turned their old-school, manual hustle into a sleek, efficient pre-roll factory.
Before Hefestus: The Grind
Before taking a leap of faith with Hefestus pre-roll automation, it was all hands on deck.
Four team members, grinding out 2,500 pre-rolls per shift. It was hardcore, but it wasn’t smart.
And with some team members rolling slower than others, meeting those retail deadlines was a constant headache.
They needed to level up without selling out.
The Hefestus Game Plan: Smart Meets Craft
With the Aura, it’s like they’ve got a pre-roll wizard in the mix – a reliable, automated solution.
Now, one person can crank out 6,000 to 8,000 pre-rolls in a single shift.
“So I’m getting three times what I was getting before and I’ve reduced my labor by 75 percent, which more than pays for the machine on a monthly basis,” VanderLaan notes.
“And once the machine is paid off in full, all that money is additional profit – not to mention the fact that we’re keeping up with production instead of falling behind like we previously were.”
What about the quality of pre-rolls coming out of the machine?
VanderLaan himself says the new pre-rolls are perfect, rivaling hand-rolled if not better.
Support from Hefestus: The Backbone
All machines – no matter how well designed – are prone to the occasional breakdown from wear and tear.
The real issue here is downtime. Cannabis operators pay a lot of money for these machines; they expect to keep them running, and every hour counts.
VanderLaan notes his Hefestus machine has gone down a few times, but never for long.
“One of the best things I can say about Hefestus is their customer support is impeccable,” he says. “Anytime I’ve had any kind of issues or downtime, I’ve been able to get on the phone with somebody immediately, and I’ve had replacement parts overnighted to me right away.”
Any replacement parts typically arrive within 24 hours, VanderLaan says. And with the guidance of Hefestus’s support team, VanderLaan can replace the part himself and have the machine back up and running within 10 minutes.
“So the customer support anytime we have any issues is just great.”
More Bang for Your Buck
Thanks to the Aura, Rare Michigan Genetics is setting the pace, churning at quality pre-rolls at speed while clearing up bandwidth to focus on other aspects of the business.
In essence, the lower production costs mean they can throw down with pricing and get their goods out faster, all while keeping their signature craft quality.
As for VanderLaan’s favorite aspect of the machine? The Dutch Crown Fold finish, he says. Instead of the typical twisting you see with every other pre-roll machine on the market, the Dutch Crown Fold keep his pre-rolls looking as good as they hit.
Riding the Wave with Hefestus
VanderLaan’s got his eye on the horizon, and he’s betting on Hefestus to keep leading the charge.
In fact, he’s already eyeing Hefestus’s latest Aura machine, which can produce multiples pre-roll sizes with just one paper size.
In other words, he would only have to purchase one size of rolling paper for both his dogwalker pre-rolls and his 1-gram pre-rolls.
This is ideal since the smaller papers cost more, VanderLaan notes.
“I’d also be eliminating the labor of having to change out equipment, changing out tooling pieces, adjusting the machine to run out the different sizes, and cleaning all the different sizes as I change them out,” he says.
So their advancement with their newest machine is awesome.
VanderLaan: Going with Hefestus is a No-Brainer
For anyone mass producing pre-rolls, VanderLaan’s message is loud and clear: get yourself an Aura. Cut the slack, cut the errors, and keep your crew tight. It’s a no-brainer for quality and consistency.
Rare Michigan Genetics gives Hefestus a solid 10 out of 10. It’s about the machine as well as the incredibility efficiency it brings to the business. If you’re serious about pre-rolls, VanderLaan says, you need Hefestus in your corner.
