{"id":1256,"date":"2018-07-26T03:40:28","date_gmt":"2018-07-26T03:40:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fhopepack.com\/videos\/?p=1256"},"modified":"2026-10-19T13:23:08","modified_gmt":"2026-10-19T13:23:08","slug":"rotate-arm-stretch-wrapper-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fhopepack.com\/videos\/rotate-arm-stretch-wrapper-3\/","title":{"rendered":"Rotate arm stretch wrapper"},"content":{"rendered":"<blockquote>\n<p><strong>Executive summary<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>On a bottling or canning line the pallets are heavy and the bundles are slippery, so spinning them on a turntable is a risk. A rotate arm stretch wrapper, usually called a rotary arm stretch wrapper, keeps the pallet still on the roller conveyor and orbits it with pre-stretched film. Our equivalent solution runs the arm at 10\u201314 r\/min with powered pre-stretch up to 200%, for loads up to 1,200 \u00d7 1,200 \u00d7 1,600 mm at about 20\u201340 pallets an hour. Below we show what pre-stretch saves, how the roll change fits the line and how the zone is guarded.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"940\" height=\"535\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/6huK9ON9kFA\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<p>Pallets of shrink-bundled bottles move along a blue roller conveyor into a fenced cell with orange mesh panels. A grey overhead frame carries the arm, and the yellow film carriage travels round the stationary pallet. Wrapped pallets, glossy with film from base to top, queue on the out-feed conveyor beside the cell.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"table-of-contents\">Table of Contents<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"#heavy\">Why heavy drink pallets should not spin<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#data\">Rotate arm data<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#prestretch\">What 200% pre-stretch saves<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#roll-change\">Roll change while the line runs<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#base\">Tying the bundles to the pallet<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#selection-checklist\">Selection checklist<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#safety\">Guarding the cell<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#engineering-faq\">Engineering FAQ<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#next-step\">Next step<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#related-reading\">Related reading<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#sources\">Sources<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 id=\"heavy\">Why heavy drink pallets should not spin<\/h2>\n<p>A full pallet of bottled water or soft drinks is heavy, and the shrink-wrapped bundles on it sit on each other with little friction. On a turntable, every start and stop pushes the upper layers outwards, and the heavier the pallet the bigger the turntable and drive must be.<\/p>\n<p>With a rotary arm the pallet stays on the roller conveyor and only the arm and the film carriage move. The pallet weight therefore does not size the wrapper, only the conveyor.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"data\">Rotate arm data<\/h2>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th style=\"text-align: left\">Item<\/th>\n<th style=\"text-align: left\">Automatic rotate arm wrapper<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">Working mode<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">unmanned: film feeding, wrapping, cutting, smoothing and conveying automatic<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">Rotary arm motor<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">about 0.75 kW<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">Film carriage motor<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">about 0.37 kW<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">Arm rotation speed<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">10\u201314 r\/min, variable through inverter<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">Film carriage speed<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">2\u20136 m\/min<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">Packing speed<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">about 20\u201340 pallets an hour<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">Pallet height<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">800\u20131,600 mm<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">Maximum packing size<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">1,200 \u00d7 1,200 \u00d7 1,600 mm<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">Pre-stretch<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">powered, up to 200%, film delivery by a separate inverter-controlled motor; its rating is confirmed at quote<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">Film clamp, cut and wipe<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">option, pneumatic; our quoted arm wrappers use 6\u20138 kgf\/cm\u00b2 clean, dry air<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">Height detection<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">photocell, automatic<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">Arm home position<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">fixed home and film change position<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">Machine weight<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">about 600 kg for the arm machine; a portal frame and safety cage add weight, confirmed at quote<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">Power<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">AC 380 V, 50 Hz<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h2 id=\"prestretch\">What 200% pre-stretch saves<\/h2>\n<p>At 200% pre-stretch each metre of film from the roll becomes 3 m on the load. Take a 1,200 \u00d7 1,000 mm drink pallet that needs about 70 m of film on its sides (example).<\/p>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th style=\"text-align: left\">Pre-stretch<\/th>\n<th style=\"text-align: left\">Film off the roll<\/th>\n<th style=\"text-align: left\">Pallets per roll, relative<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">none<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">70 m<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">1\u00d7<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">200%<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">70 \u00f7 3 \u2248 23 m<\/td>\n<td style=\"text-align: left\">about 3\u00d7<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>Pre-stretched film is also thinner and tighter on the load, which matters on slippery bundles: it pulls them together instead of only covering them. The film force is set by the separate film delivery motor, low enough not to dent bottle necks at the top corners.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"roll-change\">Roll change while the line runs<\/h2>\n<p>The arm parks at a fixed home and film change position, where the operator reaches the carriage from outside the conveyor path.<\/p>\n<p>Bottling lines do not stop for a roll change, so pallets build up on the in-feed. <strong>Buffer positions = roll change time \u00f7 time between pallets.<\/strong> At 40 pallets an hour a pallet arrives every 3,600 \u00f7 40 = 90 s; an example 4-minute change then needs 240 \u00f7 90 \u2248 2.7, so three buffer positions. With 200% pre-stretch the roll lasts about three times longer, so the changes come a third as often.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"base\">Tying the bundles to the pallet<\/h2>\n<p>Most transport damage on drink pallets starts at the base, where the bottom layer slides on the deck boards. Run extra bottom winds with the film reaching down over the deck boards, so load and pallet move as one. On tall, light top layers a lower film force at the top avoids pulling the corner bundles inwards. The pallet height is read by the photocell for every pallet, so mixed heights between 800 and 1,600 mm wrap without a program change.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"selection-checklist\">Selection checklist<\/h2>\n<ol>\n<li>Pallet size, height and weight.<\/li>\n<li>Bundle type: shrink packs, cases or crates.<\/li>\n<li>Pallets per hour and line interval.<\/li>\n<li>Conveyor type and passline height.<\/li>\n<li>Space for in-feed buffer positions.<\/li>\n<li>Film clamp, cut and wipe: included or added.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h2 id=\"safety\">Guarding the cell<\/h2>\n<p>We design to EN 415-6 for pallet wrapping machines, with EN ISO 12100:2010 for risk assessment and EN 60204-1 for the electrical equipment. The orbiting arm sits inside fixed mesh fencing with interlocked access doors.<\/p>\n<p>The conveyor openings are protected by muting light curtains, which let pallets through and stop the arm if a person enters. The safety functions are designed to EN ISO 13849-1, with the required performance level set by the risk assessment. An emergency stop is fitted at the panel. Guarding and CE documents are agreed per project.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"engineering-faq\">Engineering FAQ<\/h2>\n<p>Q: How heavy can the pallet be?\nA: The arm does not carry the pallet, so the roller conveyor sets the weight limit. Roller size and pitch are chosen for your heaviest pallet and confirmed at quote.<\/p>\n<p>Q: How tall can the pallet be?\nA: From 800 to 1,600 mm.<\/p>\n<p>Q: How much film does pre-stretch save?\nA: At 200% one metre from the roll covers 3 m of load.<\/p>\n<p>Q: How many pallets an hour?\nA: About 20 to 40. Tall pallets with extra bottom winds sit at the low end, low pallets with a short program at the high end.<\/p>\n<p>Q: Where is the film roll changed?\nA: At the arm&#8217;s fixed film change position, reached from outside the conveyor path, so the operator does not stand under the arm.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"next-step\">Next step<\/h2>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Send your pallet sizes, weights and line rate<\/strong> to info@fhopepack.com.<\/li>\n<li><strong>We set<\/strong> the wrap program, pre-stretch and buffer conveyor.<\/li>\n<li><strong>We reply within 24 hours<\/strong> with a proposal and quotation.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h2 id=\"related-reading\">Related reading<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fhopepack.com\/Rotary-arm-wrapping-machine\/Rotary-arm-wrapper-RAS200.html\">Rotary arm stretch wrapper RAS200 (product)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fhopepack.com\/videos\/automatic-drink-bottle-stretch-wrapping-bundle-machine\/\">Automatic drink bottle stretch wrapping bundle machine<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fhopepack.com\/videos\/rotary-arm-pallet-wrapping-machine-2\/\">Rotary arm pallet wrapping machine<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fhopepack.com\/videos\/double-rotary-arm-stretch-wrapping-machine\/\">Double rotary arm stretch wrapping machine<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fhopepack.com\/videos\/fhope-r100-rotary-arm-pallet-wrapper-with-film-cutter\/\">FHOPE R100 rotary arm pallet wrapper with film cutter<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fhopepack.com\/videos\/fully-automatic-pallet-wrapping-machinery-line\/\">Fully automatic pallet wrapping machinery line<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2 id=\"sources\">Sources<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>FHOPE quotation: automatic rotating arm pallet wrapping machine, 2017-10-18<\/li>\n<li>FHOPE quotations: automatic rotary arm pallet wrappers R100 and R200, 2022-03-30 (pneumatic supply)<\/li>\n<li>EN 415-6; EN ISO 12100:2010; EN 60204-1; EN ISO 13849-1<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Last reviewed:<\/strong> 2026-10-19<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Executive summary On a bottling or canning line the pallets are heavy and the bundles are slippery, so spinning them on a turntable is a risk. A rotate arm stretch wrapper, usually called a rotary [&hellip;]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5633,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_titles_title":"Rotate Arm Stretch Wrapper for Heavy Drink Pallets | FHOPE","_seopress_titles_desc":"Rotate arm stretch wrapper for heavy bottle pallets on a roller line: why the load stays still, pre-stretch film savings, roll change and 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