Solution:

Profile:

US manufacturer of corrugated

box products

LaserSpeed® 4000

Dramatic increase in accuracy

of board length

$16,875 per month savings from

reduced scrap on product changeovers

or any time the line is down

Decrease in maintenance

Results:

Corrugated box plant controls cut accuracy and reduces scrap,and realizes hugh monthly savings

Corrugated box production

The manufacture of corrugated boxes is a complex process.

Corrugated box material or board is made by taking rolls of liner

or paperboard, called a web, and drawing them through gear-like

cylinders which shape the web into precise waves. Glue is applied to

the tips of the waves and pressed against a liner. Another liner may

be applied to the other side. The resulting board can be made with

different strengths depending on the thickness of the web source

materials.

Now that the corrugated board is made, it is further converted into

precise lengths which will then make up the final product. The

discrete lengths are made by a cutter. The knives of the cutter are

controlled by a cut signal. A variance in the signal will cause a vari-

ance in the cut. Corrugated box manufacturing lines run in different

configurations that depend on the age of the equipment, type, cost

of the material being made, and type of drive systems that are used

on the line and the knife.

Application: Cut Control

Industry: Packaging

A US corrugated box manufacturer wanted to better control

the cutting process and reduce material waste at one of its

production plants. The precise control of the knives is

important as it determines the accuracy of the discrete

boards. The biggest issue or waste, however, happens when

the line goes down for any reason. For example, if the line

goes down during a product changeover.

When the line goes down, the line performs what is called a

“tail-out”. A tail-out occurs when the main board is sheered

anywhere from 50 feet to 100 feet before the knife (varies

from plant to plant). The board at this point is being pulled

through the knives by the pull roll that is part of the knife

system. The board is accelerating at this point by up to 2 to

3 times the main board line speed. This part of the board run

is referred to as the tail. Hence the term tail-out was coined.

The problem with the tail-out lies in the fact that the speed

of the board tail varies because of slippage and “out-of-

calibration” pull rolls. The configuration of each of the knife

systems varies, but usually they have both a top and bottom

knife which requires two pull rolls controlling the speed.

Because of the tail-out problem, the box plant was scrapping

the entire tail. Figure how long the tail is and how many times

the line goes down a day, as well as the cost of the material,

and you can easily come up with the amount of loss due to

this problem.

The corrugated box manufacturer implemented

Beta LaserMike’s LaserSpeed non-contact measurement

solution which consists of two (2) LS4000 encoders to measure

the actual board speed as it enters the knives. The LS4000

units project a unique pattern on the surface of the board.

As the board moves, light is scattered back to the units.

This information is translated into product speed. The speed

signals from the LS4000 units provide the control system with

precise pulse counts to control the cutting knives.

Critical Process Factors. The box plant had several process

considerations to take into account in order to select the

appropriate length and speed measurement solution. First,

the measurement system had to be extremely accurate in

order to better track and control the actual velocity of the

main board line speed versus the speed of the pull rolls during

normal production and tail-out situations. This would help to

avoid measurement errors due to slippage issues. Second, the

system needed to accurately measure and monitor the board

length as product progressed down the line to the knife

system to ensure the desired product length was being

achieved repeatedly. Last, the plant required the measure-

ment system to be more reliable than its current contact

mechanical encoders and pull roll drive encoders to minimize

downtime and maintenance issues due to mechanical failures,

recalibration, and service-related tasks.

Installation. The LS4000 units are mounted just before and

as close to the actual knife system as possible to minimize the

distance between the measurement system and knife. The

benefit of using the LS4000 units at this point is that the cuts

can be controlled very accurately during normal run or

tail-out mode. This accuracy helps eliminate scrap and

increases product quality. The scrap, or waste savings, that

the LS4000 units can achieve is determined by the distance

between the main board sheer and the knife system, and also

the amount of product changeovers per day and the percent-

age of scrap on each. Some plants throw away the whole

section of board from the tail-out.

The Challenges: Control Cutting Process and Reduce Waste

The Solution: LaserSpeed® 4000

The corrugated box manufacturer realized several benefits

by implementing the LaserSpeed solution on its corrugated

board lines.

Dramatic increase in accuracy of board length

Huge savings from reduced scrap on product

changeovers or any time the line is down

Decrease in maintenance

A somewhat hidden cost in traditional contact measurement

systems, such as wheel tachometers, is due to maintenance.

Contact systems wear and have to be re-calibrated. The

LaserSpeed solution is non-contact and has no moving parts to

wear. LaserSpeed is also permanently calibrated which further

reduces maintenance.

© Copyright 2010 Beta LaserMike. All rights reserved. 10/10 Printed in the USA.

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The Results:

To learn more, visit: www.laserspeedgauge.com

Calculating the savings from scrapped tail boards

Number of product changeovers = XX per day

Distance from main sheer to knife = XXX ft or m

Percentage of scrap each tail-out = XX %

Cost of product (average or actual) = XX $/ft or $/m

Beta LaserMike’s LaserSpeed non-contact encoder is the most accurate, reliable,and cost-effective measurement solution for cut control and reducing waste.

Savings per day = Number of product changeovers x Distance

main sheer to knife x Percentage scrap x Cost of product

At the corrugated line, the distance from the main board

sheer to the board knife is 90 ft. The box plant had 100% scrap

at each tail-out. The plant performed an average of 25

changeovers a day. The average cost per foot was $0.25.

Savings per day = 25 x 90 x 1 x 0.25 = $562.50. That is $16,875

per month or $202,500 per year.