Baumer hhs’ new Side Seam Gluing Solution for straight-line box production is aiming to replace glue wheel units with high-performance application heads to apply glue from below – thought to reduce waste and water use.
As it is a closed system, the new solution – operating at machine speeds of up to 600 m/min – prevents adhesives from contaminating folder gluers and straight-line boxes. It is also designed to stop the over-consumption of glue with its intelligent Xact up controller, PX 1000 application head, and DPP double-piston pump said to offer high-accuracy pressure regulation and an optimised adhesive pressure at every production speed.
The removal of glue discs and wheels is intended to minimise machine downtime and result in an easier cleaning process for operators. Baumer hhs claims that 30 litres of warm water are used each time a conventional glue wheel unit is cleaned, a figure that is significantly reduced with a decreased usage of glue.
The application head is also capable of cut-off for precision metering and glue dot and stitch applications via the Baumer hhs Glue Save mode. This allows for the gluing process to be interrupted at defined intervals, reportedly cutting down on adhesive consumption by up to 50% while increasing the strength of the adhesive.
Additionally, the Side Seam Gluing Solution also features an auto mode, in which a light barrier immediately upstream of the PX 1000 application head detects the length of the glue flap on a straight-line box – meaning that the required distance between the glue applicator and the edges of the glue flap only needs to be entered into the controller once.
“We have totally redefined straight-line box gluing in collaboration with packaging and adhesives manufacturers,” says Ralf Scharf, Folding Carton business development manager at Baumer hhs. “Our Side Seam Gluing Solution guarantees perfect gluing, with millimetre accuracy, right to the edge of the glue flap. It is very easy to operate and configure, putting the work of machine operators on a new level.
“We calculated the time saved by eliminating just the cleaning step, which is one of a machine operator’s basic tasks when using glue discs: Assuming 25 minutes per shift for cleaning and 2-shift operation over a period of 250 working days, we arrived at an annual availability increase of about 200 hours per folder gluer. Depending on the situation, the machines can produce more than 20 million folding cartons in that amount of time.”
The Side Seam Gluing Solution can be used and retrofitted on any folder gluer.
Announced last year, Baumer hhs’ CorrBox Solution is a modular gluing solution for corrugated converters. It contains a sensor that can detect adhesives with no additives required, as well as a multi-application head compatible with various glue viscosities.
Sustainability has also been an aspiration for the adhesives sector. Henkel and LyondellBasell previously collaborated to develop a hotmelt adhesive for re-sealing APET and polyolefin trays containing food products, and the former’s ‘carbon-negative’ hotmelt packaging adhesive was the winner of the ‘Climate’ category at the Sustainability Awards 2022.
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