Multi Color is a full service provider of decorative and packaging solutions. Quick Pak, a packaging service division of Multi Color, is a leading supplier of promotional packaging and assembly services. Services include designing and providing raw materials, demonstration and custom assembly, shrink wrapping and shrink wrapping, making cartons, bar codes, marking and labeling, rework and repair, warehouse management and sales.
In the summer of 2004, at the request of a customer who produced hair products, Quick Pak installed a shrink label system manufactured by NAFM Engineering Services to label a new vial. The Quick Pak label used to decorate the cans was printed at the Multicolor's Scottsburg factory. The print cylinder used was etched by Laser Graphics. Laser Graphics is located in Erlanger, KY and is a graphics service division of Multi Color. This project proves that Multi Color has unique capabilities in serving customers and can do everything from project design to the completion of packaging.
The NAFM system includes a vial automatic stacker, labeler, steam pre-shrinkage channels, and a stacker.
The vials are moved upwards onto the conveyor belt by an automated stacking table with rotating trays and then into the discharge point. The neck must be facing upwards when the vial leaves the automatic stacking platform. A small guide rail on the wall of the automatic stacking table allows the correct direction of the vial to pass through, while the inverted vial is returned to the tray for the next cycle. There is also an air injection device to assist in this process.
The vial descends along the curved guide channel, which reverses the vial so that the neck opening is down when the vial is placed on the supply conveyor. During the period from the supply of the conveyor belt to the labeler, the vials are measured by a star wheel and placed in the groove of the label conveyor belt onto the labeler. Grooves ensure that non-standard canisters do not tilt during labeling.
The shrinking sleeve is placed on the shaft behind the labeling machine, and the labeling tube is pulled over the floating roller to maintain the tension. The material advances to the top of the labeler and then descends into the machine along the vertical empennage, during which the vertical empennae partially open the material and move the material toward the plastic floating mandrel. The roller that rotates against the side of the mandrel contacts the film and pulls the film down.
An electronic eye reads the distance between the labels on the roller and triggers six horizontal rotary knives to cut off the bottom label from the label tube when the label is paused. The other electronic eye checks if there is a canister on the conveyor below and triggers the drive roller at the bottom of the mandrel to “fire†the label onto the canister when the canister passes. An electronic eye is also placed on the bottom of the mandrel to check for clogging. If this electronic eye sees a label for longer than the set time, then #26631; the signing machine determines that there is a blockage, and then stops the incoming star wheel.
After leaving the labeler, the canister enters a 9-foot steam passage where the label is held in place. The canister passes under the horizontal gusset before entering the channel. Here, the gusset gently pushes the weakly adhesive labels onto the cans.
This unique steam channel is equipped with more than 100 tiny plastic steam nozzles, each of which has a connection valve that must be opened to inhale steam. In this way, the steam can be accurately positioned as needed to achieve the best amount of label shrinkage.
The parallel transverse belts grab the cans as the cans leave the shrink chamber, place them on the conveyor belt, transfer it to Garvey's stacking table, and manually load the cans into the shipping container.
Operating engineer Ben Wilcox said: “The NAFM system worked well and brought benefits to both Multi Color and our customers. This project truly demonstrated our ability to provide customers with complete packaging solutions from the start of label design.â€
Source: Primary Packaging