Putting run size on the agenda

In the Can Supplier Awards voted for by the industry, SLAC scooped the Gold Award with its Digital Mini-Line. SLAC’s Mini-Line concept lowers the traditional threshold for DWI and opens up the possibility of low cost opportunities for annual volumes of less than 75 million cans, many times less than the conventional threshold for DWI. The concept also uses SLAC’s new SC-DCP-B2006 Digital Printer, which achieves photo-quality printing on cans.

The SC-DCP-B2006 has a number of other features, with the function for instant label changes, no set up or fine tuning needed, and no ink changes too. This digital printer for DWI cans is said to make the whole printing process simpler, with no roller clear, no scrapped cans, no printing plates and no changeover downtime. This digital printer is truly all digital, simplifying the printing process. And that’s not all; with the trend of small runs, the SC-DCP-B2006 allows for can makers to juggle a busy order book, with minimal fuss.

It was a bittersweet moment for owner Shu An, and chief marketing officer, Chris McKenzie, however.

“Today was a bittersweet moment for Shu An and I, both being sad that being extremely busy could not attend the CanTech event in Istanbul, however, we both woke to hear of the news of our fellow board member, Richard Moore, receiving for SLAC the Gold Award for innovation for the SLAC Digital Mini-Line.

“We are honoured to have been voted for by our customers and peers, and thank them for their support,” said SLAC’s chief marketing officer, Chris McKenzie. “We would also like to thank all of our hardworking team who have made this possible.”

In the Can Supplier Awards, Movipack claimed the Silver Award with its Fully Automatic Palletising Packaging System. A relative newcomer to the industry since 2016, Movipack’s fully automated packaging system allows for a single solution with several functions without sacrificing the overall efficiency of the productions working up to 600cpm. In one single plant it allows the final customer to perform the working cycle of four different types of equipment simultaneously, without reducing the overall potential of the line. The innovation is completely automatic, with no manual operation required.

Pressco claimed Bronze, with its Decospector 360. the Decospector 360 inspects every can to detect litho defects and colour shifts. The easy-to-use Decospector 360 creates an ideal template for every label produced so that deviations are identified and removed from the line. Users can also identify multiple target zones on each label to track Delta E values and take action if a deviation exceeds their threshold.

Inspection locations for the Decospector 360 module are either before or after the oven. Before-the-oven installations view the cans while still on the pin chain and stabilised on the custom transfer device. After-the-oven installations are located just after the strip off (unloading) area, just before they are mass conveyed to the inside sprayers.

A delighted John Keating, sales manager at Pressco, said: “We’re delighted to have been awarded the Bronze Award at the Supplier Innovation Awards,” he said. “We have a very good product (Decospector 360), that our customers are extremely excited and happy with, and it’s showing it can get good spoilage and print reduction, using it.

“We went to all over our customers and asked them about it, and the feedback we got as expected was excellent. We’re very happy that we scooped the award.”

Commenting on the Awards, event director Neil McRitchie, said: “Congratulations to our winners. The event was a terrific night celebrating success within the can making industry.

“We were delighted with the number of innovation entries for our Supplier Awards, and to have over 1,000 independent votes cast in our first year was more than we could ever have imagined. We look forward to how these awards will grow in the future.”

The Global Innovation Awards will return in 2020. Keep up to speed at www.cantechthegrandtour.com for all the latest developments.

 

Related content

Leave a reply

CanTech International