Automated trim removal matches converter's rapid growth
Green Bay, WI-based contract printer and packaging converter Fox Converting "dusts off" its waste-handling system amid rapid operational growth with assistance from Precision AirConvey. (Photos)
Edited by Editor in Chief Mark Spaulding -- Converting Magazine, 7/1/2009 12:00:00 AM
While many converters manage to deliver high-quality printing amid a fair amount of waste and clutter, growth at Fox Converting in Green Bay, WI, left the company awash in a continuous flood of edge trim that was overwhelming the plant and threatening to impact production. “It was just a mess,” says Fox process development manager Ron Engebos. 
These high-performance pickup nozzles capture edge trim at a slitter and convey it through one of 12 different inline-cutter assemblies. The cutter cuts the trim into tiny, confetti-like pieces before allowing it to continue through the ductwork.
Fox Converting specializes in wide-web coating, laminating and two-sided flexographic printing with nonwovens, tissue, paper, film, foil and paperboard for customers ranging from medical and healthcare to fast-food and consumer packaging. The self-described technology-driven company had expanded its capabilities and capacity with advanced flexo, coating, sheeting and other equipment throughout the past decade and built a pilot line and cleanroom to support its product and process development expertise. Yet for all its commitment to the latest technology and to a clean operation, the company’s rapid growth had left its decidedly “low-tech” trim- and waste-handling system in the dust.
Army of waste handlers
Cut trim is pneumatically transported from slitters through the ductwork installed at the top of the ceiling. The static-elimination device shown (blue box) keeps the cut-trim pieces from sticking to each other or to the air separator.
Trim was blown into either an open Gaylord or horizontal baler independently from each individual machine. Trimming materials such as 1/2-mil film to tissue to linerboard at operating rates of 100 to 3,500 fpm, Fox was generating huge piles of edge trim every minute. Designated staffers were required to manually handle the billowing rows of waste, haul the filled containers to the baler and ensure empty containers were on hand and ready to accept the flow of waste material.
“Countless hours were lost to the constant attention needed on the system not only by operating personnel but by material handlers and maintenance as well,” says Engebos. “It also took up so much floor space and created enough dust that it was quite evident we needed to change our procedures.” In addition, management had been considering more equipment investments so floor space was at a premium.
Engebos investigated nearly every trim system supplier in the market for guidance in solving the trim-removal issues. “Everyone claimed they could handle our trim requirements,” says Engebos. “Only Precision AirConvey and their manufacturer’s representative Joel Bartelt, [Dotray & Associates, Maple Grove, MN] would guarantee to handle our trim without plugging.”
Automated solution
The material-handling fan that generates the pneumatic conveying action is hidden inside this novel sound enclosure to support comfortable sound pressure levels.
Engineered to manage trim produced on a 10th line Fox Converting added, the PAC system is a veritable showcase of state-of-the-art, automated trim-system technology. Dual material-handling fans generate the ideal amount of vacuum conveying power needed to meet current and anticipated system requirements while running at a mere 40 HP. At 14 slitting stations, proprietary infeed assemblies with high-performance pickup nozzles capture edge trim and convey it through one of the 12 different inline cutter assemblies. Fitted with durable tungsten-carbide knives set at controlled cutting clearances of less than 0.00025-in., each inline cutter cuts the trim into tiny, confetti-like pieces before allowing it to continue through the ductwork.
In this centralized design, the network of precision-engineered aluminum ductwork is carefully balanced to ensure the pneumatic conveying action is consistent from every infeed for smooth movement of the waste material from all pickups. To keep the cut trim from developing an electrostatic charge and sticking to each other or to the air separator, the system includes inline static-elimination devices that continuously neutralize ions. Once the free-flowing trim is evacuated through the ductwork from the converting line, it enters a slant-screen separator, which removes the conveying air and momentum. The cut trim gently falls like snowflakes into a compactor while the airstream flows into a PAC reverse-jet dust collector. The cartridge-based collector removes dust particles, which are automatically collected into an attached drum for easy disposal.
Once the airflow has been cleansed of particulates, it is reclaimed and returned into the warehouse. Slightly warmer than the ambient air, this process supports the company’s efforts to minimize energy consumption. “With today’s energy costs, it makes no sense to release the heated, cleaned air into the environment, especially here in Green Bay,” says Engebos. “Bringing it back into our facility reduces the demands on our HVAC system and contributes directly to cost savings for heating the facility.”
Sound of silence
The sound of some vacuum systems operating at high speeds could affect the comfort of the workplace and, in some cases, require workers to use hearing protection. To prevent this from becoming a concern from the outset, PAC engineers devised the Fox system to run quietly, at gentle sound pressure levels within OSHA requirements. Every step of the system is designed with sound attenuation devices. For example, the infeeds feature pickup nozzles with built-in acoustical packing. The inline cutters, which house a motor rotating at 1,800 rpm, include companion, 24-in.-long inline sound attenuation devices that prevent cutter noise from traveling through the system. At the material handling fans, where most of the sound is generated, inline devices address the sound before it can travel toward the work environment.
Piping up
The slant-screen separator removes the conveying air and momentum and allows the cut trim to fall gently into the compactor.
Paying extra attention to a clean workplace, Engebos and his team also carefully considered the placement of the ductwork. “The piping is typically hung down from the ceiling to ease the installation,” explains Joel Bartelt, who has been involved in hundreds of installations with PAC, “but Ron wanted to hide it for several reasons, including aesthetics.”
PAC engineers set the ductwork high up in the ceiling. Using narrow-diameter pipe in the conveying system made the placement less costly compared to a system relying on excessively wide-diameter piping. “It looks cleaner and neater without items hanging from the ceiling,” says Engebos. “It adds a great deal to the overall look of our shop.”
The savvy placement of the piping was also important to ensure there was ample room to permit new machinery to be brought into the facility. “We did not want to have to move or disassemble the trim system in cases where we had tall parts to move in or out,” says Engebos.
After more than two years with the automated-trim system in place, Engebos is pleased his staff can concentrate on their jobs instead of wrestling with Gaylords billowing over with edge trim.
“Since day one, this system has operated without fail,” he says. “It has not required a lot of maintenance, we can be confident in it on a day-to-day basis, and it has done everything we expected.”
MORE INFO:
CONVERTER:
FOX CONVERTING, 920/434-5272, www.foxconverting.com
SUPPLIER:
PRECISION AIRCONVEY CORP., 302/999-8000, www.precisionairconvey.com
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