Conveying & accumulation

Ocean Spray's vision improves inspection

Juice maker automates vision system for detecting fill heights and cap application on PET bottles containing hot-filled juices. Productivity rises, labor costs decline, resulting in payback in less than one year.

August 31, 1996

Machinery: Page 1191

Conveying & accumulation

High-assurance capping, sealing & bottle counting

In addition to flexible changeover, Glaxo Wellcome's clinical trial packaging line makes a high priority of quality-assured packaging. Its capper, sealer and bottle packer/counter are designed to maximize accuracy while minimizing errors.

August 31, 1996

Coding, Printing & Labeling

Seaforth puts label on versatility

Upgrade of a hot melt system results in improved labeling for private label manufacturer Seaforth.

August 31, 1996

Conveying & accumulation

A reusable case for automation

New equipment at Herr Foods is among the first that erects, packs and seals tough-to-handle corrugated cases that are reused up to five times.

August 31, 1996

Secondary Packaging

Two-in-one bottle an interesting solution

For years, Glaxo Wellcome had used generic 30-cc high-density polyethylene pharmaceutical bottles to hold 60 tablets of its prescription-only Zantac® medication.

August 31, 1996

Filling/capping, dry

Glaxo Wellcome counts its savings

An electronic tablet counter/filler for clinical trial drugs provides 15-min changeover, regardless of tablet size or shape.

August 31, 1996

Filling/capping, liquid & viscous

Unique basket packer keeps pace with exports to the U.S.

While Bass's Marksman 2000 adds flexibility to its wrap pack capability, the company has augmented its six-pack basket packaging capacity to accommodate surging growth.

August 31, 1996

Feeding/inserting/unscrambling

Bass wraps up market flexibility

A highly flexible multipacker wraps 4-, 6- and 10-count bottles in paperboard to help Bass meet demands of disparate retail markets at home and abroad. Automatic servo-driven dimensional changeover takes 15 seconds.

August 31, 1996

Secondary Packaging

Pairing pack styles with markets

With Bass's vast reach to more than 70 different export markets, what determines which pack style is used for a given market?

August 31, 1996

Blisters/clamshells/skin packaging

Now beverage cans will open wide-- really, really wide

Suddenly, it seems, U.S. brewers are looking to change one of the most popular and endearing features of their cans--the easy-opening features. Last month (See PW, August '96, page 8), we reported on the conversion by Miller Brewing Co., Milwaukee, WI, from its standard, easy-opening stay-on tab (SOT) end to a large opening end (LOE) developed for Miller by Reynolds Metals Co.

August 31, 1996

Conveying & accumulation

Robotics automate portion packing

Robotic packing cell case-packs delicate portion cups at speeds of 500 cups/min. Integrated system incorporates a stand-alone case erector and automatic tier sheet placer.

August 31, 1996

Conveying & accumulation

Bar-code labels drive automated warehouse

In 1992, Herr's built a 40ꯠ sq' automated warehouse that makes use of bar-coded labels on cases of finished goods to automatically sort and stack cases.

August 31, 1996

Conveying & accumulation

X-ray provides total inspection

A metal detector at the end of each packaging line may be fairly typical for any type of food packaging operation. Herr's tried that route a few years ago, only to experience many false rejects.

August 31, 1996