Turnkey system solves problem

16 January 2007




When Elliott Absorbent Packaging's converting supplier decided to withdraw its services because the arrangement was no longer profitable, the UK based manufacturer of non woven absorbent pads for the food packaging industry was faced with a potentially catastrophic situation.

However, managing director Matt Hankins decided right away that he would take all converting activities in-house. This, he reasoned, would give Elliott greater control over a vital aspect of its business - and add value to its commercial offering.

“We had no real experience of slitting and rewinding,” he says, “and we didn't have any facilities for in-house reel converting. That meant we had to shop around for the kind of machine that could handle our materials.”

The challenge was to deliver a machine and a set-up that would comply with BRC/IoP guidelines; unwinding reels up to 1.7m width and 1.8m OD; rewinding up to 1.1m OD. A new turnkey converting and materials handling system supplied by Double R Consol provided the answer. This included: roll handling and manipulation of the unwind reels, crush and razor slitting, and rewound reel handling, including upending and packing onto pallets.

The slitter supplied by Double R is the DCS-1100 duplex centre-surface machine. It converts rolls of laminate materials 1,800mm in diameter x 1,700mm wide, slitting down to a minimum width of 150mm and rewinding up to 1,100mm on 76mm or 152mm cores. Double R's staff were able to guide Elliott's inexperienced operators through a crash course in slitting and rewinding technology, as well as machine handling.

An additional - and crucial - element was the development of a handling solution for the extremely large and heavy mother rolls. A grabber and manipulator was designed, based on the forklift truck grab attachment principle, to suit the tight space considerations within Elliott's factory. This means that unwind rolls can be loaded quickly and easily, says Double R, whilst a rewound reel upender rotates and stacks the finished rolls onto pallets.



Contact

Double R Consol
Tel: +44 (0)1706 623625





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Double R Consol

In-house converting, courtesy of Double R Consol In-house converting, courtesy of Double R Consol


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