Medical Device Link.

Originally Published PMPN July 2003

PRODUCT UPDATE

Machines prepare a wide range of products for market. 

Linium 301

Suitable for batch runs, a horizontal wrapper uses flat, wound rollstock film and creates a complete overwrap around the product. The products are fed into the infeed conveyor of the machine, and a former puts film around the product. A longitudinal fin seal is created, and the ends of the packages are sealed and cut apart. The standard Linium 301 handles products up to 175 mm wide and 65 mm high. Versions are also available for products up to 250 mm wide and 115 mm high. The machine can be supplied for hand-fed or automated operations. It has three servo drives and a rigid steel frame enabling fast production runs with high reliability. SIG Doboy Inc., New Richmond, WI; 715/246-6511; www.doboy.com. 

Revolution IP

An inverted full servo poly wrapper is used for difficult-to-handle products. The wrapper transfers products directly onto the film web presented to the film forming plow from beneath the product infeed conveyor. This configuration allows the machine to handle a wide variety of products that could not be controlled on a conventional upright horizontal wrapper. The machine features a sanitary modular design with cantilevered components and is designed to operate at speeds up to 200 products per minute with a standard sealing head. Features include servomotors with timing belt drives to the cutting head, a film feed roll tubing section, and an infeed conveyor. A PanelView 1000 touch screen operator interface includes fault, product per minute, and totalizer displays. Up to 20 product records can be stored for retrieval through the touch screen. Campbell Wrapper Corp., De Pere, WI; 920/983- 7100; www.campbellwrapper.com. 

Pillow Pack Machine

A company’s pillow pack machines use the “long-dwell principle,” which delivers sealing times that are 40 times longer than conventional pillow pack machines. The specified air-tightness of the packages corresponds to 0.5 bar negative pressure to guarantee better protection against humidity and sunlight. Any faulty or empty packs are detected by sensors and rejected. To avoid unnecessary waste of packaging material, every chain pocket is checked for product to ensure that there are no empty or double packs. The machine is fitted with several monitoring devices for quality assurance. SIG Pack Systems AG, Beringen, Switzerland; +41 52 6747419; www.sigpacksystems.com. 

Hood Stretch Machine
A hood stretch machine reaches capacities of up to 180 loads an hour. When hood stretching, the height of the pallet load is automatically measured before it moves into the machine, and the correct amount of film is fed to the film opening system. An undersized film hood is stretched hydraulically to a dimension matching the exact outer circumference of the load. By means of the grippers and a profile control that reads the contours of the pallet load drying the hood application, it is possible to go even close to the product during the application of the hood. This avoids overstretching of the film hood as the grippers automatically adjust themselves to the changes in the contour of the load. The four grippers that have stretched the film travel down the load applying the film and finally securing it underneath the pallet. Lachenmeier Inc., Hollywood, FL; 954/987-9945; www.lachenmeier.com. 

Sidewinder Rotary Tower
A semiautomatic stretch-wrapping machine allows the load to be stationary while the overhead wrapping sequence occurs. The drive system eliminates maintenance items such as chains, sprockets, or belts. The redesigned system is cost-effective, has a smaller footprint, and a new film delivery system. It is suitable for unstable loads and features Allen-Bradley electrical components. Infrapak, Schiller Park, IL; 847/678-0233; www.thearpacgroup.com.  

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