Cast PP line In response to growing demand for wider films, SML has designed a new cast PP line that produces trimmed film measuring about 17 feet. It features a three-manifold die with a six-layer feedblock. The first chill roll in the line's cooling and take-off unit has a diameter of about 3 feet, 11.2 inches, making it twice as big as the second roll. Each chill roll is separately driven and cooled.
What's new? The line, SML's widest. It performs metallizing and laminating and is equipped with a host of specially made components, now available for sale individually or as part of a package. They include a new turret winder, the W6000, that is made for lines with final film widths of up to 19 feet, 8.2 inches. Other upgrades include improvements to the vacuum box and the softbox — a device that allows chilled air to be blown onto the film — that allow them to be moved along rails, making die cleaning less cumbersome.
Benefits The production of very wide films. The line has the ability to produce both cast PP laminate films and cast barrier films, and the arrangement of its manifold and feedblock provides flexibility when dealing with a wide range of materials and viscosities. Compared to lines that produce narrower film, the new line saves on energy and labor costs, and creates less wasted edge trim.
SML Maschinengesellschaft mbH, Gloucester, Mass., 978-394-1553, www.sml.at
