Using common modules, the HERMA label applicators were configured online to achieve the necessary precision and compact dimensions.
Multipacks are popular with consumers and lucrative for retailers. However, there are hardly any suitable machines to support this process for medium-sized quantities that are simply held together with labels to save material. To fill this gap, machine builder Benner MSA has developed a compact system equipped with HERMA 500 label applicators.
The footprint of no more than four square metres
This multipack machine has a footprint of no more than four square metres and is ideal for situations where an upstream packaging system operates at around 60 to 80 work cycles. “There are, of course, one or two other manufacturers of label-based multipack machines. However, these machines are single-format systems designed for a single product that is produced in extremely high volumes, such as a well-known biscuit snack,” says Ilyas Zorla, Managing Director of Benner MSA, based near Karlsruhe, Germany. “These machines are not only very large, they are also very, very fast and can easily run at 700 cycles per minute.” The Benner MSA machine, on the other hand, bundles bags into 20 to 30 multipacks per minute. “For many suppliers of, for example, nuts, dried fruit, cereal bars and so on, this processing speed is perfectly adequate – here a higher output would be uneconomical.“
Label-based multipack machine for mid-range products
Together with HERMA, Benner MSA has developed something that has probably never been seen before in this form: a label-based multipack machine for “mid-range” products. In this new type of system, the individual, ready-filled bags are transported up a sloping conveyor belt to a height of about two meters. There the bags are fed into a compartmentalized conveyor belt where each compartment receives a defined number of horizontally positioned bags. Two HERMA 500 label applicators, one on each side, then apply a preperforated label to form the multipacks. As standard, the machine is designed for bags measuring around 65 x 150 x 25 millimeters (W x L x H). However, the machine is flexible enough to allow wider products to be bundled. The four side guides of the shaft in which the bags are located can be adjusted to any dimension.
Designed together in the online configurator
In addition to its specific output and flexibility, the Benner MSA machine is characterized by its outstanding precision: To ensure that the individual bags can be easily separated, the perforations must be positioned exactly at the “gaps” between the bags. “This is why the HERMA 500 is invaluable as a label applicator,” says Zorla. “It has a master encoder. In other words, the labeling speed is always controlled by the actual product speed. In this way, our customers achieve an extremely high level of precision in the labeling process”.
The HERMA 500 has an additional advantage: the label applicator was designed together with the machine manufacturer Benner MSA in real time in the HERMA online configurator in such a way that an extremely compact design could be realized. The configurator offers a large number of standardized equipment features and can therefore provide the right solution for almost any application. Full SAP integration ensures stable processes and the shortest possible delivery times. The live 3D presentation also provides targeted configuration support. This is particularly important because, due to the limited installation space of this multipack machine, the peel plate in particular had to be kept as small as possible – without, of course, compromising dispensing speed and quality.
Patented solution for different heights
Another advantage of the new multipack machine: It can easily process irregularly shaped bags. For example, peanuts and cashews are dry and hard, while dates and cranberries are soft and pliable. And depending on the product, the bag contains different amounts of air. This can be as much as five millimeters high. “With three bags, this makes a difference of up to 15 millimeters – a challenge when it comes to accurately positioning the labels,” Zorla points out. This problem was solved by a special, now patented, compensating element which offsets such differences in height. In addition, the user-friendliness of the HERMA 500 is essential for the smooth running of the multipack bundling process: “There is not much you can do wrong when setting up and operating the machine. For example, it’s possible to activate only those parameters that are relevant for the respective operator level. This makes the HERMA 500 ideal for operators who have never used a label applicator before.”
