Softrim Reinvents High Throughput Cannabis Trimming with Silicone Fingers

Stop trimming your bud with machines that operate like rock tumblers and potato peelers.

CEN Staff

Sep 4, 2025

Platform Robotics Inc.

In a suburban Detroit facility known for cultivating premium, organic cannabis, an unexpected innovation in post-harvest technology was born. Back in 2019—when cannabis flower fetched as much as $3,000 to $4,000 per pound—an eclectic leadership team of business strategists, financial analysts, and automotive executives saw an opportunity in cannabis. They anticipated the Green Rush, but what they encountered during their first harvest inspired a revolutionary solution.

Platform Robotics Inc.During that initial production cycle, the general manager invited a board member with automotive manufacturing experience to assess operations. What he saw was jarring: 17 people hand-trimming buds. "How long does it take to trim a pound?" he asked. "Three to four hours," replied the GM. "This is not sustainable," the board member responded. "It's a long-term labor risk, and the cyclic motion has potential for injury."

Efforts to automate quickly followed, but when a drum-style trimmer was introduced, the outcome was disappointing: 100 pounds of flower yielded only 50 pounds of saleable bud—compared to 80 pounds through manual trimming. Not only was 30% of product lost, but the flower's aroma turned acidic and the color was faded. That was the moment Platform Robotics Inc. (PRI) was born.

Engineering a New Kind of Trimmer

Formed just a month later, PRI brought together machine-building engineers with decades of expertise in high-precision sectors like aerospace, automotive, and consumer products. Though few had seen a cannabis plant before, they were no strangers to building reliable, scalable machinery.

The first prototypes mimicked robotic scissors and incorporated 3D image recognition. But after scanning over 50,000 flower images, the team concluded that trimming by cutting simply wasn't scalable without damaging the buds.

A Breakthrough in the Dry Room

The turning point came not in the lab, but in the dry room. "We noticed the leaves became brittle while the buds stayed dense," recalls John Baldiga, PRI's Vice President. "When we rolled the dried buds in our hands, most leaves flaked right off—about 90% of them." The question emerged: Why cut when you can simply crack off the leaves?

That insight led to the development of Softrim™, a trimming process that gently massages the brittle leaves away without harming the flower. PRI designed micro silicone fingers to mimic hand-trimming, using a proprietary engineered food-grade material strong enough to remove leaves, yet flexible and resilient enough to protect fragile trichomes over millions of cycles.

Beyond Tumblers: The Precision of Single-Piece Flow

Most trimming machines on the market today operate like rock tumblers or potato peelers—random and rough. PRI, in contrast, applied the automotive principle of single-piece flow, ensuring every bud receives the same, consistent treatment. Their solution? A servo-controlled vertical conveyor system in which the flower passes between two silicone-fingered belts—one moving quickly, the other nearly stationary, with the ability to oscillate back and forth. The belts adjust to the size of each bud and gently "massage" off the leaves, preserving the integrity and shape of the flower.

Platform Robotics Inc.Managing Cannabis' Stickiest Problem: Trichomes

One of the bigger engineering challenges turned out to be trichome buildup. Compressed trichomes form a sticky resin that gums up machinery. Most competitors deal with this by using vacuum exhaust systems—but those come with higher maintenance and downtime. Softrim's proprietary process resists trichome compression and buildup, eliminating the need for exhaust systems and minimizing machine wear.

Industrial Strength Performance

The first production Softrim unit ran continuously for 10 weeks, processing 1,500 to 2,000 pounds of outdoor flower daily—nearly 80,000 pounds total. "It never went down for more than a couple hours," says Baldiga, underscoring the industrial-grade reliability built into every machine.

Redefining the Economics of Trimming

Platform Robotics Inc.For producers handling more than 800 pounds per month, the ROI is undeniable. Traditional drum or blade-based methods yield about 65% flower and 35% trim, Softrim users report 75% to 85% flower yield, raising per-pound yield 10% to 20%.

Labor savings are equally impactful. With minimal cleanup required after Softrim processing, clients report 50% to 85% reductions in post-harvest labor.

Standard Wellness Shifts to Softrim Automation

Matthew Feltner, Director of Ohio Operations at Standard Wellness, has seen firsthand how transformative the right technology can be. With a background at BASF, a global chemical company known for precision and control, he brought a high bar for performance and consistency when he joined Standard Wellness—a vertically integrated cannabis company with operations in Ohio, Missouri, and Utah.

For years, the Ohio team relied on traditional blade tumbler trimming machines. While functional, the equipment fell short in preserving flower integrity and achieving efficiency. Everything changed when the company discovered Softrim's advanced de-leafing technology.

Platform Robotics Inc."It's a blade-free, quality-first piece of equipment… with the ability to produce 1,000 pounds a day," Feltner said. "We're now able to complete a harvest and move it into final cure within two days—which is a huge win for us. With Softrim, turnaround time shrank dramatically—freeing up labor and speeding up production without compromising quality."

What truly stunned Feltner was the level of bud preservation. After reviewing buds under a microscope, the difference between Softrim and conventional blade trimming methods was striking. "You could immediately see the quality—especially in the bud structure and trichomes. They looked just as they should right after harvest," he said.

Platform Robotics Inc.Within the first few days of implementation, the facility processed several hundred pounds of flower using Softrim. The results were immediately noticeable: consistently structured buds with minimal damage—a significant improvement over traditional mechanical methods. Operators fine-tune the system based on strain needs, allowing for a more tailored approach across different flower types. Trim quality also saw a noticeable uptick, with cleaner material and reduced loss. "Let's just say we saw a meaningful boost in overall recovery within the first month," said Feltner. "It's been great to have more product available for the sales team."

The Standard team also praised the ease of maintenance. Following SOPs provided by Softrim, the team uses a commercial dishwasher for routine cleaning, with minimal prep required.

"This Softrim team is passionate about cannabis; they challenged the typical trimming status quo and made a robust, top-quality product," he said. "It delivered on everything—yield, efficiency, quality, and maintenance. We are very happy with the Softrim experience thus far."

Softrim is more than a trimming machine—it's a complete rethinking of cannabis post-harvest processing, engineered with industrial precision and horticultural care. For producers, it offers a way to scale operations, protect product quality, and elevate the bottom line.