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Seaforth puts label on versatility

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

Hot melt adhesive is applied to thetrailing edge of labels as they?re applied to jars
Hot melt adhesive is applied to thetrailing edge of labels as they?re applied to jars

Established as a small creamery almost 100 years ago, contract packager Seaforth Creamery has grown to become a producer of salad dressings, mayonnaise and margarine under more than 30 private label brands. Because of this variety, packaging--in Seaforth's case, labeling--is vital to the success of these products as they contend against major brands. Ironically, labeling was precisely the problem this Oakville, Ontario, Canada-based company was having with its production line.

Seaforth fills products into glass and plastic bottles and jars ranging in size from 475 mL to 4 L. These containers use five sizes of wraparound labels, ranging from 2" x 8" to almost 8" x 16", larger sizes being used for foodservice applications. On any given day, the company changes labels at least 10 times.

To accommodate this need for versatility, Seaforth purchased a P.E. Futura rotary labeler from B&J Machinery (Cincinnati, OH), already equipped with a hot melt wheel system from Nordson (Duluth, GA). Recently, Seaforth upgraded to a noncirculating hot melt extrusion system.

"The old system operated like a cold glue system," says Tom Turner, maintenance supervisor for Seaforth. In this type of system, hot melt is pumped continuously to vertical rollers and applied to upright bottles for label pick-up and "lap application," where additional hot melt is applied at the trailing end of the label. Glue not used is recirculated back to the melting pot.

"The problem was," continues Turner, "that if you get charring it goes back into the melting pot, too." This caused filters to clog. "Or if the label would get caught [at the dispensing station], the glue would run all over the machine before the operator could get to it." That wasted hot melt adhesive.

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