Roberts PolyPro, powered by Pro Mach, is showing for the first time at Pack Expo the highest speed, most innovative handle applicator in the company’s history. This new up to 600 bottles-per-minute handle applicator utilizes a continuous motion roll-feed design to achieve 2, 4, 6, 8, and 12 packs. (Roberts PolyPro Pack Expo East Booth #607)
The roll-feed design has reduced the cost of handle dies as well as the number of dies required – one die per bottle neck size, not pack-size configuration. This significantly lowers the acquisition cost of this new continuous motion handle applicator.
The latest generation of fully recyclable HDPE handles are thin, light, and strong. The cost compared to the previous generation of handles has fallen by 26 percent principally from a significant reduction in material sourced per handle. Operators no longer have to fill stacks of handles into a machine magazine, but simply load a roll of handles onto the machine. To change rolls, operators weld the end of the in-use roll to the beginning of the next roll with one push of a button. Each machine accommodates two rolls of handles. These features help reduce labor costs.
In the past, handles were applied at the end of the packaging line to bottles already packed in cases. This limited throughput to fewer than 500 bottles a minute. The new machine is located right after the capper. Not having to deal with in-case application meant that design engineers could reduce the footprint of the new machine.
“Brand owners and co-packers that are running high speed operations with one, two, or three bottle neck sizes per line will discover this is the solution they have been waiting for,” said Chris Turner, Sales Director, Roberts PolyPro. “The high throughput, favorable cost of acquisition through die cost reductions, small footprint, reduced materials cost, lower operator involvement, and exceptional flexibility make this high speed handle applicator a machine to learn more about.”
For more information on the new up to 600 bottles-per-minute machine, contact sales at 800-269-7409. More solutions from Roberts PolyPro can be viewed at www.RobertsPolyPro.com.
