How You Can Save Time and Cost with the udaFORMAXX Carton Feeder
The udaFORMAXX (you-dee-ay-for-max) carton feeder can be tricky to categorise in terms of coding equipment. Is it a coder? Is it a labeller? Is it a conveyor? It is probably best described as a standalone system that separates and feeds flat-form packs so that they can be counted, coded or labelled (or all three).
For many manufacturers, the udaFORMAXX is a great alternative for printing batch number, expiry date or other variable data when inline coding or labelling isn’t an option.
Most of our udaFORMAXX customers are in the food, pharmaceutical and medical sectors where products are put in folding cartons, sleeves or pouches. But it also works perfectly for coding card inserts, blister pack cards, and even tickets. With a labeller, you can apply pre-printed or print-and-apply labels.
Here’s an overview of how it works:
Time Saving Replacement for Manual Coding or Labelling
The udaFORMAXX carton feeder can deliver a very quick return on investment when it replaces manual coding or labelling. Our customers find that they can significantly reduce the time it takes to print codes, such as expiry dates, batch numbers or lot codes – or apply labels – ready for production.
Contract packing company, DMW Logistics is a good example. The company replaced hand stickering packs with a carton feeder and alphaJET continuous inkjet printer. Production Manager, Stefan Wilcockson neatly summarises the benefits:
“At peak, we operate as many as 18 lines. That’s 18 people hand labelling. With the machine in place, we’ve saved 15 people per day for 6 months of the year. Instead, we have just one person operating the carton feeder.”
Accuracy and Control
The udaFORMAXX gives you a controlled way to separate and move packs past the print head or label applicator. This gives you reliably accurate printing or labelling in the same place on every pack – no wonky labels or badly located print. This, in turn, means fewer wasted packs. You even add a camera and reject system to check packs and eject any where the code or label are missing or incorrect.
Save on Packaging Costs
Another customer, Cruga Biltong, purchased a udaFORMAXX with thermal transfer printer to save packaging costs by printing product-specific barcodes on generic packaging. With the udaFORMAXX, Cruga could print barcodes on pouches as and when needed ready for filling. This gave it the flexibility to respond to changes in customer orders while minimising wastage.
These are just three ways that the udaFORMAXX can save time and remove cost. And these aren’t the only benefits. With easy adjustment, you can process different pack sizes and types on the same machine (as long as they are in flat form). With accurate print or label placement, you can print consistently in the same location on every pack, keeping your customers happy and ensuring that your packs comply with labelling requirements. And, because it’s a modular system, you can add more than one coder for different print requirements.
You can find more information here.