Production lines that use flow packing machinery are often challenged by the very limited space for the integration of labelling and printing equipment.
Method:
If your products are processed in a flow packer, we recommend having the labels dispensed onto the flat stretch wrap. This results in the best application by far – without air bubbles under the label and with a uniform placement on your products.
This is why we have developed a separate unit that unwinds the stretch wrap first. Then it dispenses the labels onto the stretch wrap – and finally guides the stretch wrap into the flow wrapper.
The unwinder table is at an ergonomic height for replacing both label and film rolls and in many cases we manufacture the unit with a film turner so the equipment can be mounted at right angles to the production line.
We ensure the establishment of signal exchange so that when the label roll runs out, the packing machine receives a stop command.
Options:
If you print information on stretch wrap, we recommend a unit that dispenses one label for each photo code. If your stretch wrap is transparent, the label is attached for each cycle/sealing bar.
Another solution option is to have the equipment dispense labels at a specific distance – and then index your packing machine accordingly.
If your item needs to have labels applied to both the front and back, such as a decoration or logo on the front and a list of ingredients on the back, you should select a device that dispenses two labels next to each other on the stretch wrap.
To optimise your production uptime, you could consider supplementing your unit with automatic sealing: when the label roll runs out, the end of one roll is spliced to the start of the new roll to ensure that labels continue to be applied.
Control:
The dispenser is controlled by a lightning-speed motion controller, whose settings are entered on an HMI touchscreen. The settings for the respective products are saved as recipes, which enables quick change-over for different types of stretch wrap and labels on the same line.
The unit can also be controlled by selecting external recipes and it can be incorporated into the general line control.
Dispenser advantages:
- Stable and reliable, even in harsh manufacturing environments (IP66 rating)
- Touchscreen for which all user settings are set and saved as recipes
- Two servomotors can be mounted for electronically adjustable web tension for plastic labels. This maintains constant tension on the label roll while taking account of the fact that the backing paper can give way during rapid acceleration
- Simple to operate during format changeover and it manages 99 recipes
- Maximises uptime
- Guarantees high capacity and unparalleled precision
Master/backup:
If you need to be able to replace a label roll while the line keeps running, you can choose a master/backup solution fitted with two identical dispensers. While the roller is being replaced on one dispenser, the other takes over the labelling process.
There are other benefits of having a backup dispenser, because it can ensure that labels are applied to all products, if it detects a label is missing on the label web, for instance. By having fluorescent material in the labels and a luminescence sensor mounted on the machine, for instance, the secondary dispenser will apply labels to any items that were skipped by the master dispenser.
Printing solution:
Another popular solution is to mount a printing solution on the dispenser for printing a date, batch no., list of ingredients, logo or other data on the labels.
Hot-stamp coders
Thermal transfer printers
Inkjet printers
Be inspired:
The solutions seen below depict the solution’s principles.
The dispensers are configured for customers’ specific labelling tasks.
We will gladly supply a custom solution for you.
