Shrink Wrap Machine: What It Is and How to Use It

Eopac Machinery Product Page

Efficiency and protection are paramount in packaging. A shrink wrap machine, a staple in various industries, embodies these qualities by providing a means to quickly and securely wrap products in a protective plastic film. Let us explore what shrink wrap machines are, the different types available, how they operate, and practical tips for their use.

 

What is a Shrink Wrap Machine?

 

A shrink wrap machine is a device that encloses or wraps products in a transparent, plastic film that is then subjected to heat. The heat causes the film to shrink tightly over whatever it is covering. This process secures the product and protects against dirt, moisture, and tampering. The result is a clean, attractive packaging solution widely used in numerous sectors, including food and beverage, electronics, publishing, and pharmaceuticals.

 

How to Use a Shrink Wrap Machine?

 

Setup and Preparation

 

1. Choose the Right Film: Options include PVC, polyolefin, and polyethylene, each with different characteristics suitable for various products and durability needs. An additional tip, QUICK SHRINK-IR or QUICK SHRINK-201 , may help ensure that you choose the right film for your shrink-wrap machine.

2. Set Up the Machine

   : Install the film roll and thread it through the machine according to the manufacturer&#;s instructions. Adjust the sealer and heat tunnel temperature settings based on the film type and product size.

 

Operating Process

 

1. Product Placement

   : Place the product in the center of the film sheet. For manual machines, wrap the film around the product and seal it using the sealer bar.

2. Sealing

   : For automatic machines, the product with the film automatically moves into the sealing area, where the machine cuts and seals the film.

3. Shrinking

   : The sealed product then passes through the heat tunnel, where the film shrinks tightly around it.

4. Quality Check

   : After the product exits the machine, check for consistent sealing and the absence of wrinkles or loose ends.

   
   

 

Types of Shrink Wrap Machines

 

Shrink wrap machines come in various forms, each designed to meet specific needs:

1. Manual Shrink Wrap Machines

   : These are hand-operated. The operator wraps the product with film and manually moves it to a heat source to shrink the wrap.

2. Semi-Automatic Shrink Wrap Machines

   : The operator must still place the products in the film. However, the process of sealing and shrinking the film is automated.

3. Fully Automatic Shrink Wrap Machines

   : These machines handle the entire process from product insertion, film wrapping, sealing, and shrinking without human intervention, suitable for high-volume packaging operations.

   
   

 

Components of a Shrink Wrap Machine

 

• Sealer

  : This part of the machine cuts and seals the film around the product. Sealers vary depending on the type of machine, ranging from manual bars to automated arms.

• Heat Tunnel

  : After sealing, the product passes through a heat tunnel where hot air or radiant heat shrinks the film tightly around the product.

• Conveyor System

  : Particularly in semi-automatic and automatic machines, a conveyor system moves the product through the machine.

  
  

 

What is the Size of a Shrink Wrap Machine?

 

The second most critical aspect to consider when selecting the appropriate shrink-wrapping machine is the minimum and maximum dimensions of the products you will be wrapping. Every package has three dimensions: width, length, and height. Additionally, knowing the orientation in which the product will be packaged.

Shrink wrapping machines are constrained by the maximum size of the items they can encase. For manual or semi-automatic L-Sealer models, this maximum is determined by the dimensions of the L bar.

Fully automatic models, on the other hand, do not restrict the length of the product, but there are still mechanical limits on the height and width.

The company is the world’s best paper roll wrapping machine supplier. We are your one-stop shop for all needs. Our staff are highly-specialized and will help you find the product you need.

Choosing a shrink wrapper of the appropriate size is crucial for minimizing packaging costs and maximizing production efficiency. Ensuring that the shrink wrapper and the heat tunnel are large enough to handle your most significant product is essential.

 

What Shrink Wrap Machine Offers?

 

What is your product? Whatever that may be, here are some typical results to expect from a shrink-wrap machine:

• Display: Notice the shiny outer packaging among other products while protecting the primary packaging. For an additional advantage in branding, also use a printed film.

• Tamper-Resistance: The packaging is proof of the end-user&#;s first usage. End-users gain confidence in buying the product with an unopened shrink wrap.

• Protection: During transport, water, dust, or any unwanted external material/factors on the product ensures a fully closed shrink wrap that protects the product.

• Storage/Logistics: To create an easy-to-carry package for heavy items.

• Bundle of Products: It can shrink and wrap group products for multiple purposes. For your convenience, it can also provide results with an opening on the sides of the package when your product is heavy and you need to carry it by hand easily.

  
  

 

More Flexible Film Wrapping Equipment

 

To understand what equipment to use in the packaging world. Here are some ideas for flexible film-wrapping equipment:

1. L-Bar Sealers: BestPack provides the best range of L-Bars available. These include their budget-friendly All-in-One Sealer/Shrink Chamber, the affordable series, the robust Series available with different cutting options, various models of their Automatic L-Sealer, and several types of faster side sealers.

2. Side Sealers: These wrappers encapsulate products in a continuous tube of film, sealing along one side of the package and then separating them into individual units downstream using a cross seal. Unlike L-bar sealers, side seal machines can run random products of infinite length.

3. Shrink Tunnels: A shrink or heat tunnel is a heated tunnel mounted over or around a conveyor system. Items (such as packaging) have shrink film loosely applied; with heat, the film shrinks to fit snugly around the wrapped object. BPX provides a wide range of shrink tunnels, from small 110v models to the largest, most durable ones available. They come in many sizes, with different conveyor styles and voltages, and include easy-to-use features.

4. Flow Wrappers: Flow wrapping helps keep your raw materials safe and protected. It tightly wraps the packaging around the product to prevent it from moving too much and getting damaged. The wrapping uses just enough material to seal the package, avoiding excess that would hang off the ends.

5. Poly Bundlers: Poly bundling is a method to group items of the same size into packs, which can be wrapped with either transparent or printed film. Printed film needs special plates and designs to create. All bundles have openings at each end called &#;bulls eyes&#; due to their oval shape. Now, Poly Bundlers have become more accessible and affordable. They are also being offered hand-fed, belted or right-angle automatic feeding.

 

Maintenance Tips

 

• Regular Cleaning

  : Keep the machine clean from dust and film residues, which can affect its performance and the quality of the seal.

• Periodic Checks

  : Regularly inspect the sealing bar and heat tunnel to ensure they function correctly and efficiently.

• Lubrication

  : Depending on the model, some parts may require lubrication to maintain smooth operation.

 

Conclusion

 

A shrink wrap machine is an invaluable tool in modern packaging, offering an efficient method to protect and enhance the appearance of products. By understanding the different types of machines and their components and how to use them effectively, businesses can ensure their products are presented in the best possible manner, with safety and cleanliness guaranteed. Mastering a shrink wrap machine can significantly impact productivity and product presentation for small-scale operations or large industrial environments.

Share On:

Technology has changed a great deal in the past few decades. Consequently, so has the ways in which companies package and ship their products. Before such technology became commonplace, most processes were slowly and laboriously done by hand. Nowadays, these processes are handled by specialized equipment that makes them easier, faster, and more precise than ever before. The piece of revolutionary packaging equipment you&#;ve likely heard about is the stretch wrapping machine. There are many benefits to using stretch wrapping machines at your packaging facility, from boosted production levels to increased protection for your products. But what do you use stretch wrapping machines for, exactly? What are they, and how do they work? In this guide, we&#;ll go over everything you need to know about stretch wrappers and their use.

What Are Stretch Wrappers?

A stretch wrap machine is a piece of equipment that automatically wraps pallets with stretch wrap. This keeps the products housed inside of the pallet contained and safe from damage. The main purposes of stretch wrapping are to make products easier to transport in bulk and protect individual products from damage during shipping, so they arrive at their destination point unharmed. Although pallet loads can be wrapped by hand, using machines is the faster, more reliable, and more accurate method due to a couple of reasons that we&#;ll delve into later.

Though all stretch wrappers are designed with the same end goal in mind&#;to wrap something with stretch wrap&#;their visual appearance and the way they function varies depending on their design and whether they&#;re semi-automatic or fully automatic.

The Types of Stretch Wrappers

When it comes to stretch wrapping machines, there are a lot of different options in terms of design and functionality. The most popular types include turntable, rotary arm, and horizontal configurations.

Turntable

A turntable stretch wrapping machine will feature a turntable, which is a round, revolving platform that turns in a circle while the stretch film is dispensed and applied to the pallet load. This kind of stretch wrapper is ideal for use with most applications, making it extremely versatile.

Rotary Arm

A mechanical arm that rotates around and wraps the pallet is the key feature of rotary arm stretch wrappers. This kind of stretch wrapper is ideal for use with loads that are on either end of the weight spectrum. Whether the load is super light or super heavy, a rotary arm will work with it perfectly.

Horizontal

A horizontal wrapper dispenses the stretch film from around a ring that surrounds a horizontally laid product. This kind of stretch wrapper is ideal for wrapping lengthy items that would otherwise be hard to wrap, such as windows, doors, lumber, textiles, copper piping, and corrugated tubes.

How Stretch Wrappers Work

The way that stretch wrapping machines work depends on whether the machine in question is semi-automatic or automatic.

Automatic

As the name suggests, an automatic stretch wrapping machine does everything automatically. It carries a pallet to the wrap zone via roller conveyors. Once the machine is done wrapping the pallet, it sends it to the end of the packaging line down the exit conveyor. The next pallet is transferred to the wrap zone, and the process repeats.

Semi-Automatic

A semi-automatic stretch wrapper works similarly to an automatic one. The main difference between the two is that the semi-automatic stretch wrappers require an operator to be present to load and unload the pallet and if needed manually adjust the machinery throughout the process.

Why Should I Use Stretch Wrappers?

You know what stretch wrappers are, the different types of stretch wrapping machines, and how each of their configurations work. But what do you use stretch wrapping machines for? What can these automatic machines do to improve your business&#;s efficiency and bottom line? Well, it turns out they can do quite a lot.

Many business owners wrongly assume that hand-wrapping will save them money. You won&#;t have to spend on machinery if you stick to hand wrapping, they think, and that&#;s true&#;however, wrapping something by hand is a terribly inefficient and unreliable method that&#;ll cost you more in the long run than purchasing and operating stretch wrapping machinery would. A small business might be able to get by just fine with hand wrapping, but if you&#;re wrapping more than ten loads in a day, you&#;d be much better off automating the process. There are a couple of reasons for this, which we&#;ll discuss below.

Machines Are More Reliable Than Humans

Your employees might be reliable, but it&#;s hard to beat the consistency of machines. Mistakes are only human, and your workers are bound to make the occasional blunder. They might struggle to wrap with the right amount of containment force or end up using more stretch wrap than necessary. Machines, on the other hand, will use the right amount of containment force, as well as stretch wrap, each and every time. In applying the correct amount of containment force, machines ensure that your products remain safe during transit and arrive at their destination safely. They&#;ll also stretch the film more than can be done manually, getting the most out of your stretch film investment. How, might you ask? Let&#;s find out.

Hand Film Doesn&#;t Equal Stretch Film

Hand wrapping will give you anywhere from 10 to 20 percent stretch of the film. Machine wrapping, on the other hand, can give you anywhere from 200 to 300 percent. Stretch wrappers are now being introduced that get up to 500 percent pre-stretch. By automating the stretch wrapping process, you&#;ll save money on film. This is because the right stretch wrapping technology will pre-stretch the film, allowing you to get more done with less and stretch the use of a single roll of film further.

To sum things up, stretch wrapping machines are used because they&#;re a much better alternative to hand wrapping loads. They&#;re faster, more reliable, and more cost-effective, amongst numerous other benefits.

If you&#;re planning on making the switch from hand wrapping to machine wrapping, Robopac USA has semi-automatic pallet wrappers and other state-of-the-art secondary packaging equipment that can benefit your business. We create our machinery with the latest, most efficient technology and are dedicated to providing our customers with the information and support they need to get the most out of their machines. Come and shop with us today!

If you want to learn more, please visit our website Orbital Stretch Film Packaging Systems.