horizontal stretch wrapper for paper tray

Streamlining Paper Tray Packaging: The Role of Horizontal Stretch Wrappers

Handling and securing paper trays for shipping or storage presents unique challenges, especially when dealing with soft materials or irregularly shaped loads. Horizontal stretch wrappers offer an effective automated solution for unitizing and protecting these products. The included video demonstrates a specific application: securing cylindrical items placed onto paper trays, highlighting the adaptability of this technology.

The Challenge of Wrapping Paper Trays

Paper trays are often susceptible to damage due to their construction. Key challenges in packaging them effectively include:

• Material Fragility: Soft or thin paperboard can easily deform, tear, or be crushed under excessive packaging force.
• Load Instability: Items placed on trays, like the cylinders shown in the video example, can shift during handling and transport, compromising the integrity of the package.
• Irregular Shapes: Non-uniform product dimensions or combined tray-and-product profiles require a wrapping method that conforms securely to the entire load.
• Handling Short Packages: Ensuring consistent, secure wrap cycles on shorter items necessitates precise machine control and film management.
• Automation Needs: For higher volume operations, manual wrapping is inefficient and inconsistent, driving the need for automated systems.

How Horizontal Stretch Wrappers Address These Challenges

Horizontal stretch wrappers, often referred to as orbital wrappers, are specifically designed to tackle these issues. They operate by passing the product horizontally through a rotating ring that carries the stretch film roll. This 'orbital' wrapping motion allows for a continuous layer of protective film to be applied securely around the length of the product and its tray. This method provides excellent load containment and protection without requiring the product itself to rotate.

Key Features and Considerations for Paper Tray Wrapping

Modern horizontal wrappers incorporate features crucial for effective and safe paper tray packaging:

• Conveyor Systems: Smooth-operating belt or roller conveyors designed for stable product transfer. These may include specialized side guides or belts to support unstable or soft loads like paper trays.
• Film Carriage with Pre-stretch: This mechanism stretches the film before application, maximizing film yield (reducing material costs) and allowing for controlled tension application – vital for preventing damage to fragile trays.
• Automatic Clamping, Cutting, and Wiping Systems: These automated functions ensure a clean start and secure finish to the wrap cycle without manual intervention, improving speed and consistency. The film tail is typically wiped securely against the package.
• Variable Speed Controls: Allow operators to adjust the conveyor speed and ring rotation speed to optimize the wrap pattern and tension for different product lengths and fragility levels.
• Safety Features: Interlocked guarding and emergency stops are standard to ensure safe operation.

The Horizontal Wrapping Process Explained

The automated process typically follows these steps:

1. Infeed: The paper tray, potentially with the product already loaded onto it, is placed onto the infeed conveyor, which transports it towards the wrapping ring.
2. Wrapping Cycle: As the product enters the rotating ring, the film carriage orbits around it, applying layers of stretch film. The number of wraps and overlap can usually be programmed based on the required level of protection and stability.
3. Film Management: The machine automatically clamps the leading edge of the film at the start of the cycle. Upon completion, the film is automatically cut, and the trailing edge (tail) is wiped down onto the wrapped product to prevent unraveling.
4. Outfeed: The fully wrapped and secured paper tray unit exits the machine on the outfeed conveyor, ready for palletizing, storage, or shipping.

Video Demonstration: Wrapping Cylinders on Paper Trays

The video below illustrates a customized horizontal stretch wrapping system designed specifically for securing cylinders loaded onto paper trays, demonstrating the process in action. This highlights how the technology can be adapted for specific, challenging applications.

For further details on machine types, you can view an example of a horizontal wrapping machine.

Benefits of Automated Horizontal Wrapping for Paper Trays

Implementing automated horizontal stretch wrapping solutions for paper tray applications offers significant operational advantages:

• Improved Product Protection: Consistent, tightly applied film secures the load effectively, shielding paper trays and their contents from dust, moisture, and damage during handling and transit.
• Increased Throughput & Efficiency: Automation significantly speeds up the packaging process compared to manual wrapping or other less efficient methods.
• Reduced Labor Costs: Automating the wrapping process frees up personnel from tedious manual labor, allowing them to focus on other value-added tasks.
• Material Savings: Advanced film pre-stretch capabilities minimize stretch film consumption while maintaining or improving load containment force.
• Enhanced Load Stability & Unitization: Ensures that trays and the products they carry remain securely unitized, reducing the risk of shifting or collapse during shipping.
• Consistency: Automated systems deliver repeatable, uniform wrapping quality for every package.

Versatile Applications

While this discussion focuses on the specific challenges of paper trays (especially those carrying other products), horizontal stretch wrappers are highly versatile. They are widely used across various industries for packaging long, bundled, or irregularly shaped products, such as:

• Lumber and wood products
• Pipes, tubing, and extrusions
• Textile rolls
• Doors and windows
• Furniture components
• Bundled materials

Conclusion

Horizontal stretch wrappers provide a robust, efficient, and reliable method for packaging paper trays, effectively overcoming common challenges associated with material fragility, load instability, and irregular shapes. By automating the stretch wrapping process, manufacturers and distributors can significantly enhance product protection, improve operational efficiency and consistency, reduce costs, and ensure their products arrive safely and securely at their final destination.