Ink Jet Codes Add Polish to Jar Filling

After acting as test site for prototype ink jet coding model, J. A. Wright, a marketer of silver, copper and brass polishes, goes on stream with coder that uses solventless ink... explains Eastern Editor Bernard Abrams.

There's something to be said for a supplier's geographical proximity. If nothing else, it could result in somewhat quicker service. To J.A. Wright & Co. of Keene, N.H., it means much more. It translates into making an established packaging line an alpha test site for a prototype hot melt ink jet coder, and then being the first in its industry to put an initial production model to work.

Installed in mid-February '98, on the line used to package premium silver, copper and brass polishes in 8 oz. jars, the production coder "is the first we've found that was built by someone who listened to the users," company president John B. Wright informs PD. "It's constructed in a way that simply solves a lot of problems we had with our older coding equipment."

Final step

Coding jars of hot-fill pastes at rates averaging 60 per minute, MARKEM's Model 9064 unit applies a human readable 6 digit batch and processing date code which, though only 1/16" high, is very legible. The code is used internally and as a control for product returns. When Wright moved an older Model 962 to another packaging line, replacing it with the newer coder, Wright production manager John Washuda tells Packaging Digest, that is the final step in a program begun in 1994, to phase out other older ink jet coders and to eliminate the use of unit chipboard cartons for the jars.

So impressed with the results of the new machine is Wright that the positioning of the jars as they enter it is random. This means that the instant-curing code, printed about 1/4" above the wraparound labels, may appear in the main display area of the container. "It looks sharp and clean," he says, "and is reassuring even to those who don't know why it's there."

It's also a symbol of the attention to detail that marks this company which, founded in 1873, is reportedly the nation's oldest and largest manufacturer of silver polish and other metal-care products. Now that there are no cartons with their display facings, the jars, under the Wright's trade name, carry the full weight of convincing the consumer of the products' quality and performance.

Two upgrades

Originally established in 1995, the packaging line has required only two upgrades, the more recent being incorporation of the new coder. The first is the switch to semi-automated stretch-wrapping last December. Both relieve some time-consuming tasks from employees who work on the line.

Especially the coder. It is centrally placed in a line that begins with manual uncasing of the jars onto a Shuttleworth motorized conveyor, where they feed under the four heads of a volumetric filler from Filling Equipment Co. Product flows from an overhead hopper, where it's heated to 160° F.

Following cooling and manual loading of a hexagonal sponge polish applicator, the jars convey to a 4-head capper from Pneumatic Scale for application and torquing down of the 89mm linerless threaded PP closures. Because of manual involvement at this point, the jars receive their second visual inspection; the first is at uncasing.

Since the jars and closures are already decorated, there's no need for label application, further simplifying the line. Injection-molded by Owens-Brockway, the containers use heat-transfer labels from Dinagraphics, printed in three colors including a metallic. Silk screening in white decorates the lids produced by Phoenix Closures, providing Wright's location and inviting consumer comments and, by the way, freeing space on the body label for product description and use instructions.

Getting up

With a printhead mounted just downstream of closure application, the MARKEM coder coasts. Running at line output, it's reportedly capable of speeds, to 600 jars per minute. Getting up to speed, Wright says, "is a matter of minutes, even after the plant has been closed for a weekend."

A slimmed-down control box is a feature of the 9064. At the box, user-comfortable guides lead to keyboard entry of data to produce screen graphics that enable operators to program an entire day's code changes only once. Equally simple is storage, recall and display of pre-programmed legends and other graphics used by Wright, which operates the line on one shift a day.

One of the system's most appealing features is its use of solid non-toxic ink, eliminating both the messiness and waste with liquids and the need for solvents for the low-volume installation. The solid ink, MARKEM Touch Dry®, is supplied as a block, about the size and shape of a hockey puck that melts quickly in a heated reservoir in close proximity to the printhead.

Another bow to simplicity is the ability to change printheads and reservoir filters in just a few minutes. Both can be accomplished during off-shift hours.

Optimal throughput

Immediately following coding, the jars convey downstream for a final inspection and manual loading into RSC corrugated shippers from Stone Container. The sturdy jars need no partitions or other cushioning; the sole identification on the way to palletization is application of a one-line alphanumeric date code by a Kiwi Series 450 roller coder.

At this point, too, the shippers are closed by an Elliott Mfg. case sealer using Nordson hot-melt applicators with a Henkel adhesive for the top and bottom flaps. Shippers are then manually palletized.

The final step before warehousing also marks the second operator-friendly installation on the line. Where earlier pallet loads were hand-wrapped with a multi-sourced 80-ga polyethylene stretch film, Wright now has a semi-automatic stretchwrapper, Lantech's Q Series Model 300, acquired through Brown Packaging. Ramped for truck loading, the machine is programmed for the number of wraps to be made per pallet; only film tucking and cutting are manual.

Commenting on the packaging line as now constituted, Wright notes that "it is a much more pleasant environment in which to work. At the coder, it's obvious that some people spent a lot of time figuring what is needed from the user's viewpoint. The machine is reliable and doesn't require a lot of tinkering. There's no odor, and in fact it's so quiet you wouldn't know it's there if you weren't watching."

Washuda adds from Wright's first experience with the earlier coder to selection of the 9064, "we've been satisfied with the products, the service and the support we have received. MARKEM is more than a good neighbor, it is an integral part of our packaging success." And being headquartered just a few miles away doesn't hurt a bit.

Reprinted from PACKAGING DIGEST April 1998 © 1998 by CAHNERS BUSINESS INFORMATION