AHEAD OF OUR TIME
Like any other business, economic
viability is just as important a
consideration for packaging moulders.
Low unit costs, high output coupled with
energy savings all need to be factored
in. That’s why so many packaging
manufacturers today are prepared to
invest in new high-performance plant.
Increasingly, packaging moulders are
looking to injection machinery suppliers
to provide turnkey solutions, including
robotic product handling, advice with
tooling, training and testing and all the
know-how and support that underpins
efficient manufacturing.
Automated vision quality control is
one area where significant advances
have been made. At K-2019, we
showcased our fastest closure
turnkey exhibit to-date featuring
the inspection Capwatcher Q Line
from Intravis. Comprising eight highresolution
cameras, this technology
collects, visualises and provides up to
144,000 cavity-based measurements
per minute. It also sources a unique
inline temperature measurement for
each closure, which allows moulders
to determine the shrinkage behaviour
of each and every closure. From a
quality control perspective, this is
groundbreaking stuff and significantly
reduces production waste.
Another way to achieve thinner yet
stronger packaging containers is to
apply injection compression techniques
to stack moulds. With this, packaging
moulders can increase output while
reducing the wall thickness of
containers and lids from 0.45mm to
0.35mm. This saves around 25% in raw
polypropylene materials compared
to the standard injection moulding
process, while maintaining comparable
mechanical properties.
COMPLETING THE CHAIN OF
CUSTODY
Sustainability and production efficiency
is also intrinsically linked to skills. As we
reopen our society, resource efficiency
18 FDPP - www.fdpp.co.uk
has probably superseded sustainability
as an immediate priority. Attracting new
people with the appetite for innovation
is as critical as ever.
Workforce and skill shortages can have
a profound impact on cost, overruns
and quality. Demands to create smaller,
lighter parts have made thin-wall
moulding one of the most sought after
capabilities in the injection moulding
community.
In mid-June the company reopened its
training facility doors. To further assist
moulders of all sizes and sectors, this
July Sumitomo (SHI) Demag will also
host a free series of Webinars covering
some of the basic principles of injection
moulding. The first discusses how to
calculate a correct clamping force
Packaging businesses we are in daily
contact with are very much back to
business. Nevertheless, the pandemic
has forced another re-think to our
way of living and future reliance on
packaging. While food and medical
packaging saw rises in demand, other
categories softened.
Responding to a pandemic of this scale
will always be a series of educated
guesses. I’m personally encouraged
to hear how packaging moulders are
flexing to this unknown landscape and
acknowledging the fragility as well as
the resilience of their product portfolios.
Equally, the climate emergency has not
been forgotten.
As public health concerns gradually
ease, I suspect demand for reusable
and sustainable solutions will swiftly
resume. However, the exact timings
will be very much determined by
consumers. Understanding how
people interact with packaging and the
channels they purchase through will
be a clear driver, ensuring consumer
safety, product security and future
sustainability are evenly balanced.
http: /uk.sumitomo-shi-demag.eu/