Soma Engineering has launched its second generation automatic rewind tension control system, Tenzomat II. This option is available for the company’s complete range of slitter rewinders and enables a wider spectrum of flexible packaging materials to be handled.
Precise rewind tension control is achieved through load cells linked to a PLC to measure tension values at each working station. These values are subsequently compared through special software to pre-set targets and any deviations are corrected through changes in the pressure inside the rewind shafts. This enables precise rewind tension control during the entire rewind cycle.
Pavla Kusa of Soma said: ‘Because slitting and rewinding is usually at the end of the converting operation, substrates are likely to have built in tension or defects caused by the previous printing, laminating or rewinding operations. This is in addition to the tension imparted during the production of the material itself. Rewinding of slit material must be exacting to allow accuracy in the final application or end use. Today’s flexible packaging converters are faced with cheaper types of the most frequently used materials and more demanding stretch and sleeve films to deal with. Rewound rolls differ in terms of tension and substrate properties and slitting and rewinding without a good tension control system can be costly in terms of waste and lost production. We have addressed these issues with the development of Tensomat II which is our own system and enables a wide variety of materials to be handled at high speeds down to a slit width of 35mm.’
Tensomat II allows for variations in the width, thickness and diameter of rolls to be processed and enables the user to process a wider range of materials with top quality finished reels. Ease of operation is through touch screen control and entry of the job parameters that include rewind roll width, lay on roller weights and material thickness. The system is equipped with software that stores recipes for repeats jobs.
‘The stretch and sleeve film market is one of the fastest growing for flexible packaging and consumes in excess of 2.1 million tonnes in Europe ,’ added Kusa. ‘Operators are faced with the challenge of producing visually perfect rolls free from telescoping or variations in width, density and rewind consistency. The development of new materials for innovative packaging applications is ongoing. Tensomat II gives converters greater flexibility to run a full range of materials, increase productivity and the security of knowing rewind rolls will be of perfect quality and fit for on-going applications.’
