Conveying & accumulation

Six-sided wrapping speeds Spencer

Two new stretch wrappers that run in sequence on the same line greatly increase speed and output while eliminating labor costs to band pallets of mail-order catalogs printed by Spencer Press.

April 30, 2001

Stretch wrapping/load stabilization: Page 18

Secondary Packaging

E-commerce-enabled Suppliers

Impaxx (www.impaxx.com), which owns several companies that supply packaging materials and labeling equipment, permits customers to access online proofing, order status and inventory management information.

January 31, 2001

Conveying & accumulation

'Cool' robot palletizes three-up

A robot at Schroeder Milk palletizes cases from three lines in up to three different configurations at a time using specialized tooling to handle cases, pallets or slipsheets. System replaces manual palletization.

January 31, 2001

Conveying & accumulation

Paired vf/f/s equipment 'brews' foodservice packs

By adding two vf/f/s machines, Mother Parker’s Tea & Coffee meets growing sales demand for small bags of ground coffee sold primarily to restaurants and hotels.

November 30, 2000

Feeding/inserting/unscrambling

Laser-guided vehicles at Latrobe

REPORTING FROM PACK EXPO: Rolling Rock beer brewer Latrobe Brewery, Latrobe, PA, bought three Elettric 80 laser-guided vehicles in early 2000 to move pallets of finished product throughout its warehouse. The same model was running non-stop at the Sasib booth.

October 31, 2000

Conveying & accumulation

Radius applies labeler to Fisher-Price application

Unusual new labeler at Radius Corp. closes a plastic case around a Fisher-Price toothbrush, then applies a TE label that wraps around three sides of the case.

October 31, 2000

Conveying & accumulation

For e-commerce, size does matter (sidebar)

Capsule reviews

September 30, 2000

Secondary Packaging

Lantech Inc: Pallet wrap sensor

The intelli-sensor™ from Lantech (Louisville, KY)—now standard on the company’s stretch wrappers, retrofittable to existing machines—can detect the characteristics of a pallet load regardless of material, color, shape, texture, distance or surface glare.

May 31, 2000

Conveying & accumulation

Software brews line efficiency at Miller

Brewer sees quick payback on a multimillion-dollar investment in software that’s increasing output at six breweries nationwide. The software will be used for 57 lines, for cans, glass and plastic bottles.

May 31, 2000

Conveying & accumulation

Controls push speed limit

U.S. Sugar fills two 5-lb bags/sec with better than ±0.1% accuracy thanks to a state-of-the-art sugar-filling line powered by the latest in servo drive, PLC and networking technology.

February 29, 2000

Secondary Packaging

Unsaleable product costs reach $4.2 billion in '98

Packaging is often the problem when products and packages are diverted from retailers to reclamation centers. Credits issued are a growing cost for distributors and manufacturers, says a new report.

February 29, 2000

Conveying & accumulation

Fit for filling 'round the clock

Aberfoyle Springs fills 500-mL PET bottles at a rate of 630/min seven days a week, in two 11-hour shifts each day. ‘We train our people like there’s no tomorrow.’

February 29, 2000

Secondary Packaging

Orion Packaging Systems: AC-drives on stretch wrappers

Long-lasting AC motors are being integrated into Orion’s (Memphis, TN) line of automatic stretch wrappers. The AC variable frequency drives are more energy efficient and more versatile than DC motors, which have brushes that tend to wear out quickly.

January 31, 2000