Marking out a new era

18 November 2008



Packaging Today finds out how coding and marking technology is evolving to satisfy new demands


Packaging manufacturers around the world are placing increasing demands on manufacturers of coding and marking machines. These must now fulfil a wide range of criteria, including efficiency, clarity, reduced consumables usage and the ability to reproduce unique codes for traceability and anti-counterfeiting purposes. The objective of this article is to round up some new developments and demonstrate some potential applications.

Speed is essential

The US-based Ring Containers has its UK operation in Swanley, Kent. Since 1994, the company has specialised in the manufacture and supply of 10, 15 and 20 litre plastic containers, boxed and ready for the edible oils market. Its customers include such companies as McDonalds and KFC, and the production line requires coding equipment that can process volumes of over 1000 containers per hour. Ring Containers thus decided to trial the Videojet 1510 small character inkjet printer on its line to test print quality and reliability. Brian Nicholls, Technical Manager, Ring Containers, commented: “In particular the small footprint saves valuable space, its simplicity reducing the time spent training our many operators who work in shifts over a 24 hour period. The floor around the unit is free from ink spills. It is much cleaner, eliminating the requirement for daily cleans of the line. "

According to Videojet, the 1510 also reduces consumables expenditure, as one printer is used to code two lines of text, eliminating fluid usage. The machine is also pump-driven, claimed by the company to reduce costs, when compared with air-driven systems.

Reducing counterfeiting incidence

Allen Coding Systems (a division of ITW) manufactures thermal transfer and hot foil coding and marking equipment. The company has recently launched its LaserSystem Plus series of compact laser-coding solutions, designed for use in the food, beverage, personal care, pharmaceutical and household chemical sectors.

Based on CO2 laser-coding technology, the Allen Coding LaserSystem Plus series comprises the K-1010 10-watt and K-1030 30-watt models. Both machines can be integrated in primary packaging lines to produce static or dynamic codes on a wide range of substrates, including plastics, varnished and anodised metal, glass and paper, in addition to coated and printed cardboard. Day-to-day operation and programming is undertaken using the touchscreen terminal or optional handheld device. Allen claims that this permits product, package and code changeovers to be quickly undertaken with a minimal requirement for operator training.

The new laser units also incorporate a marking head, Ethernet interface and integrated air-cooling system. According to Allen, changing the lens enables the marking area to be increased to 250×250mm. The beam exit can be selected at either 0º or 90º. Cigarette counterfeiting is increasingly, and Allen Coding recently supplied a K-1010 Plus laser system to a leading UK tobacco manufacturer, who fitted it to a cigarette packet filling machine, applying an anti-counterfeiting code to the bottom of each pack. These packs are then exported to the Spanish market.

Minimising product wastage

Markem-Imaje has recently supplied a customised solution to a leading wound care product manufacturer. Advanced Medical Solutions (AMS) develops and manufactures advanced wound care dressing technologies from its Cheshire factory. However, the company was experiencing problems related to poor batch code and expiry date legibility on gel-filled tubes manufactured from aluminium.

Current traceability requirements state that any tubes displaying an illegible code must be discarded, which resulted in considerable product wastage. AMS thus approached Markem-Imaje to resolve this problem. Chris Neild, Markem-Imaje, commented: "The main problem lay with the sterilisation process. As the tubes are used in aseptic environments, they must be sterilised in an autoclave for an hour at 121°C following filling and coding. AMS originally used an indenting solution to mark the data on the fold of each tube. Although the codes were initially of a good standard, high-temperature sterilisation in the autoclave caused the tubes to expand and the enamel around the codes to flake off.”

Markem-Imaje recommended that AMS should use its 9040 small character inkjet coder for the application of ink designed to withstand excessive temperatures. Xiaodong Wang, Technical Manager, AMS, explained: “The team at Markem-Imaje tested a broad range of high-temperature inks in an autoclave to find the most suitable ink for the application. This process also involved sending sample tubes to our customers for their feedback. We eventually selected a high-temperature black ink, which continuously produced a permanent and easily legible code after sterilisation.”

The process was further complicated by the fact that the previous coder had been permanently fixed to a rotary filling machine. However, AMS wanted its new coder to be freestanding so it could be easily manoeuvred to and from the filling machine, as required. Markem-Imaje consequently fitted two stainless steel brackets just inside the filling machine to support the stainless steel print head, when needed. It also installed a fibre optic sensor to the side of the print head so the coder would be able to sense the size and position of each tube. Batch code changeover is undertaken via computer, whereas the indentation system necessitated physical changing of the digits. According to Xiaodong, the coder can realise codes at a maximum output of 60 tubes per minute.

Pharmaceutical solution

Atlantic Zeiser has launched the Omega 36 HD, high-resolution digital inkjet printing system, designed to realise variable data printing and late-stage product differentiation on cartons, labels and such flexible packaging materials as foils, PET or aluminum. The company claims that the system can be used to realise all types of barcodes, sequential and random numbers, expiry dates, lot numbers, product codes, and product- or country-specific information. The Omega 36 HD digital inkjet printers are designed for web applications. According to Atlantic, the systems can deliver a resolution of 720dpi, printing extremely small characters and producing clear barcodes.

The company claims that the Omega printheads realise variable data with the quality of flexographic printing, whether used on web- or sheet-fed processes, being particularly suitable for short-run jobs, including those previously reserved for flexographic and silk-screen printing. Atlantic Zeiser has also launched a range of fast-curing inks, believed by the company to exhibit high adhesion to non-absorbent substrates during smart coding and marking of variable data printing.

Sunala has introduced a new version of its Pharmacarton Coding Station, designed for high-resolution printing of lot, expiry and bar codes for pharmaceutical and medical cartons. This now incorporates the Wolke m600 thermal transfer inkjet printer. According to the company, the Pharmacarton III has been designed to satisfy the Animal Health requirement for mass-serialisation using Datamatrix codes to ECC 200, in addition to changes proposed to satisfy European pharmaceutical traceability requirements.

According to Sunala, the high-density bar codes and 2D codes are printed in-line by controlling the carton during the print and vision processes. The codes are printed using the new Wolke m600 Advanced thermal inkjet printer, thereafter being verified by an OCV system. The m600 Advanced can be used to print in real-time, again meeting Animal Health requirements for tracking and traceability. Sunala advises that data can be input from a remote server through the integrated ethernet port and that the printer’s HP technology and water-based inks deliver maintenance-free coding on a wide range of substrates, producing characters and barcodes up to 600dpi. The Pharmacarton III also comprises a carton conveyor, stabilising belts and a reject unit to remove sub-standard packs.

Reducing maintenance

Sunx, a member of the Panasonic Electric Works Group, has recently launched a new range of laser markers to the UK and Irish market that it claims have no requirement for on-site maintenance and can be used on metal, glass, carbon-fibre, wood and plastic. The laser markers are air-cooled, and the company states that they can mark at consistent quality for 30,000 hours with low power consumption, using the FAYb technology developed by the company. Galvanometer drivers are used to control the mirrors, maintaining quality at speeds up to 240m/min, according to Sunx.

Three sides now

At PPMA 2008, Domino Printing Sciences unveiled a new addition to its C-Series portfolio of secondary coding technologies. The new adjacent sidecoding system – the C6000AS plus – is able to simultaneously print on two or three sides of a case. According to the manufacturer, it has been developed in response to long-term market demands for more efficient use of both equipment and production floor space. Mike Hurst, Product Director, Outer Case Coding, Domino Printing Sciences, commented that: “Business models in high volume retailing and wholesaling of food mean that several different sets of coded information may be required for the various transactions in the supply chain. Until now, these demands could only be met by complex installations involving multiple coding stations and turntables that require a large amount of floorspace for end-of-line operations."

According to Domino, the C6000AS plus can be retrofitted to existing lines, with all three coding operations being synchronised via a single print head, reducing the time required for production start-up and more efficiently managing consumables useage. The C6000AS plus constitutes part of Domino's enhanced C-Series plus range of online coding solutions for outer case coding (OCC), which it claims can achieve print resolution of 180dpi at rates up to 60m/min.

Speed-reading

Datalogic Automation, headquartered in the Bolognese packaging valley of Italy, has introduced its Matrix 200 imager for reading all standard two-dimensional or linear bar codes. The Matrix 200 is available in two models: straight and with a 90° reading window. Models are equipped with a WVGA image sensor, in addition to serial and USB interfaces. The company claims that this facilitates flexible mounting and positioning in narrow spaces. The Matrix 200 incorporates an image sensor, lighting system and decoding software librarary. According to Datalogic, this facilitates reading performance across a wide range of code symbologies, permitting comprehension of damaged and low-quality barcodes. The Datalogic system incorporates the X-Press interface, designed to set all relevant functions, such as test mode, aiming, automatic imager calibration and code types. The system is entirely manufactured from metal, protected according to IP65 and can be operated at temperatures of 50°C, according to the manufacturer.

Clear large character marking

Linx Printing Technologies launched its Linx IJ350, Large Character Marking (LCM) coder at PPMA, together with its IJ600 single head high-definition coder and a pigmented ink for LCM applications. The Linx IJ350 is designed for outer case or secondary packaging. It incorporates a fully-enclosed printhead that is claimed to be self-cleaning, together with a patented micro-purge system. The compact, detachable display unit is designed to provide immediate status indication via the traffic light colour-coded system. Linx states that the IJ350 has been designed to meet the requirements of customers who need legible, accurate secondary packaging coding.

The self-cleaning micro-purge system in the Linx IJ350 uses a small film of ink on the printhead to collect dirt and debris prior to printing. This is blasted with air to clean the ink from the printing plate; the ink is then collected and recirculated, passing through a filter to maintain clean ink in the system. The company claims that this eliminates the requirement to dispose of waste ink. According to Linx, the coder is designed to be compact, facilitating installation wherever it is required and easy removal between lines. The Linx system also permits the networking of four printers together, controlled from one ‘master’ printer or via network control software. The IJ350 can print characters up to 50mm in height, whereas the IJ370 can print those up to 70mm.

In addition, Linx has completed its family of scribing lasers by launching the new Linx SL501 50W laser. This features a standalone construction with no requirement for air or water during operation. The Linx SL501’s sister models in the SL range – the 30W SL301 and 10W SL101 – were launched in 2007. This new addition offers a 50-watt option. According to Linx, the SL501 has been designed for such high-speed applications as bottling, and incorporates a manoeuvrable Beam Delivery Arm. The system has an IP65 rating for washdowns, and is claimed by the company to have low maintenance requirements, even when used in harsh conditions.

The negation of air or water enables the Linx SL501 to be flexible in installation. This mobile unit is supplied with an articulate 1m+ Beam Delivery Arm, which the company claims facilitates movement into tight spaces. The LinxDraw PC software permits full remote ethernet access, enabling operators to monitor multiple machines from a single control system. Linx also claims that this software can be used to realise complex codes, including graphics and two-dimensional variants.

Enhanced quality

Increasing demands are currently being placed on coding and marking solution providers, the impetus for which comes from a variety of different directions. The first of these is legislation – the requirement for a greater level of traceability now extends far beyond pharmaceutical applications, and sequential coding is becoming essential. This needs to be indelible from the product, thereby combating counterfeiting. The other main driving factor is flexibility – coding and marking systems need to be quickly and accurately changed over between package sizes and types, remaining operational in a range of environments.


The Linx SL501 50W scribing laser can be used for anti-counterfeiting applications Keeping it original The Domino C6000AS plus can be used to simultaneously print on two or three sides of a case Three sides now It is claimed that the Videojet 1510 inkjet printer can apply codes on plastic containers at rates of 1000 containers per hour Printing on plastic

Three sides now Three sides now
Printing on plastic Printing on plastic
Keeping it original Keeping it original


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