Bosch brings new flow wrapper machine to Asia

Unveiled in Europe and Asia, the Pack 403 is a fully-automated narrow horizontal flow wrapper for medium to high speed wrapping. It can produce up to 800 packages per minute at a film speed of 90 meter. Supported pack styles include pillow, gusseted and easy-to-open packs.

Succeeding Pack 401, this next-generation flow wrapper is for wrapping bars, biscuits, chocolate, cookies and crackers. Significant features on this machine include a removable discharge belt, upgrades to the cross-seal and fin seal units, and a highly intuitive, user-centred design.

“Our new Pack 403 offers mid- to large-sized manufacturers a fully-automated packaging solution that is exceptionally easy to operate, clean and maintain. This minimizes downtime and increases Overall Equipment Effectiveness,” says Fransien de Ruijter, product manager at Bosch Packaging Technology in Schiedam, Netherlands.

Bosch Packaging Technology launches its Pack 403 fully automatic narrow horizontal flow wrapper in Asia where the markets for biscuit, bars and chocolates are growing.

User-friendly design for easy handling

For ease of operation, the Pack 403 has clear signage, instructive decals and setting scales on each component facilitate changeovers between products. It minimizes waste and downtime caused by “trial-and-error” adjustments. A key feature, the cantilevered discharge belt is removable and exceptionally easy to clean. Its detection function rejects faulty packages and automatically ejects them using compressed air. For even more user-friendliness, the film tower has an easy-to-adjust pivot arm and sequentially numbered film rollers for easy film threading have been added. The Pack 403 also comprises an automatic film splicer with clear instructions to secure fast and smooth film changes without having to stop the machine.  

Improved film control and sealing units

Compared to the previous machine series, several updates were made to improve process efficiency and film control, including as standard the servo-driven power feed roller to optimize film tension and tracking. The new fin seal unit consists of pressure-controlled fin wheels to easily adjust the machine when running a variety of products with different films. Due to the cut-out deckplates each package now passes over the fin wheels more closely, which results in even tighter packages. “Operators are now able to remove the fin fold-over unit without tools and have full access to the cutting head area for cleaning and maintenance, which increases OEE,” says de Ruijter. The cross-seal unit in turn stands out for its narrow cutting head, which operators can manually open up for cleaning and clearing using a hand wheel. Air and fork gusseting is available for gusseted packages. In a final step, the mechanically driven overhead roller tightens the package seals on the discharge belt station.

The next-generation Pack 403 model carries new features for ease of operation and to improve process efficiency.

Fully-automated packaging solutions in high demand on Asian market

The Asian biscuit and bars markets in particular are booming. “According to our research, the biscuit market is growing by 5.3%, while the bar and chocolate market records a 3% growth rate. Manufacturers throughout the region are turning to fully-automated processing and packaging equipment in order to increase productivity and keep up with consumer demand,” de Ruijter explains. As a global provider, Bosch Packaging Technology understands the different regional market trends and customer requirements. The new Pack 403 not only offers a high level of quality, performance and reliability, but also provides access to global comprehensive customer services, e.g. the regional service hub in Thailand.

Bosch is exhibiting the Pack 403 at ProPak Asia in Bangkok, Thailand, June 12 to 15, 2019 and at FachPack in Nuremberg, Germany, September 24 to 26, 2019.