The Secret Strain

Published: December 31, 2005

Converting Rx: Bowed Roller Dosage

Published: November 30, 2005

Last month we picked up our prescription for bowed roller and read the instructions and warning label. But what's in that bottle? How do we know we have the right dosage of bowed roller? Let's combine a little diagnosis and diagramming to see how to find the proper prescription.

Need a Hand?

Published: November 30, 2005

Improper roll handling boils down to one thing: loss. Lost workers, lost productivity, and perhaps most import, lost money.

Converting Rx for Bowed Rollers

Published: October 31, 2005

At the top of my list of converting controlled substances: bowed rollers. Let’s read the “Directions for Use” fine print on the bowed roller bottle.

The Case for Automatic Splicing

Published: September 30, 2005

The risks of manual at-speed splicing should not be played down. Every time you ask an operator to crawl into or lean over a turret winder to make a slice and tuck transfer, you are playing Russian roulette with a possible broken arm, cracked ribs, or most unforgivable, loss of life.

New Technology Guides Web

Published: September 30, 2005

The speed and accuracy of new presses have brought all the peripheral components, web guides among them, ahead in technology. Users are demanding more flexibility, more intelligent devices that are easier to use and set up.

The Converting Relay Race: Part II

Published: August 31, 2005

Our rolls are loaded, spliced, and ready to run. To complete the unwinding relay, we need to finish strong with our plan for web alignment and tension control.

The Converting Relay Race: Part 1

Published: July 31, 2005

Converting productivity is a race to see how much material we can get through our process. Instead of a marathon, with one runner going the distance, converting processes are more like relay races, with a series of runners. Like a relay, we need to pass baton from roll to roll so each roll can run their leg of the race.

Concave Rollers Pros & Cons

Published: June 30, 2005

Got some nasty wrinkles on a roller? Some tape here, some tape there—wrinkles be gone. Adding tape collars or bands to a cylindrical roller just under each of the web’s edges turns a cylindrical roller into a wrinkle-stopping concave roller.

You're Too Tense!

Published: May 31, 2005

When planning to purchase tension controls, there is a lot for the converter to consider. "It's not just as easy as buying brand X controller and throwing it on your system and away you go." Here are some of the important questions to consider.

Drawing Conclusions: Part II

Published: May 31, 2005

The principles of draw control usually create a good deal of confusion. Let’s pick up where we left off in my last column and see if we can move from drawing confusions to draw control conclusions.

Introduction to Roll Handling

Published: April 30, 2005

Proper roll handling methods are required to ensure plant personnel safety and to minimize losses associated with roll damage.

Drawing Conclusions: Part 1

Published: April 30, 2005

In planning the tension control for any web line, there are only three options: tension control, torque control, and draw control. Between any two rollers or rolls controlled by a motor, brake, or clutch, you have to select one of these three choices.

Clean Thinking

Published: March 31, 2005

What is your definition of clean? What people think of as "clean enough" in their home is staggeringly different. Hopefully, your definition for your converting operation is the same as that of your customers.

Detecting the Edge

Published: March 31, 2005

Web guides have evolved dramatically since their first appearance on converting lines in the 1930s. Electronic edge detectors and electric motors gradually displaced pneumatics and hydraulics as demand grew for greater accuracy and reliability, and tolerance for leaky hydraulics diminished. The earliest electronic systems were far from perfect—in particular the edge detectors were sensitive to dust and temperature swings—but they were a big improvement over their predecessors