Caterpillar feeder speeds tube and profile production at Eagle Elastomer
By Harry Washburn, VP of sales and marketing for Versa Machinery
(Elkhart, Ind.) – Adam Hines has been in the elastomer business for a long time. The process technician at Eagle Elastomer Inc., which makes fluoroelastomer and perfluoroelastomer tubing for a wide range of markets, has had a front row seat to see the shifting tides of the industry.
The changes include a trend toward larger tubing and profiles, and customers’ desire to mark lot numbers, batch numbers and other information onto products.
“More people are wanting things imprinted now with manufacturing dates and lot numbers whereas before, it was just specific customers,” Hines said. Over the last decade, this shift in requests and orders for larger-sized projects, combined with an increasing need for marking, have grown to become the norm, which created a huge headache for Hines.
But he's come up with a solution: an inkjet device that sprays information on materials instead of stamping them. Internally, the company still refers to its new process as stamping.
Getting out of a pinch
Several years earlier, Hines had worked with Versa Machinery to automate the company’s tube and profile cutting process from 150 pieces per minute to more than 3,000. He contacted Versa for thoughts on the new project. Versa’s 9-inch CM-22 caterpillar drive became the centerpiece around which Hines designed his new marking system. From concept to design to finished machine, the process took about a year.
Driving better results
After trading CAD concept drawings with Versa, Hines was able to bring his vision to life. The new imprinting system, combining an imprinter from Videojet Technologies Inc. and Versa’s caterpillar-style belt feeder, was originally intended for larger requests, but it can handle all of Eagle Elastomer’s marking needs. In designing the new workflow, Hines added some features to allow the Versa caterpillar and the Videojet to work in unison. Using an encoder wheel affixed to the Versa caterpillar main drive axle, Hines programmed the Videojet to spray markings at the correct distance and location on parts. This prevented continuous imprinting while the encoder wheel was turning and made the marking process easier for employees.
“We can use it on the small stuff, as well as all the way up to the large stuff,” Hines said. This gave the production team additional flexibility, allowing impression orders of all shapes and sizes, including profiles up to 1.5 inches profile.
Beyond handling larger sizes, Hines saw his overall marking capabilities increase with the Versa caterpillar system. The pinch wheel system could only mark straight down, or at a 20-degree angle. “We’ve got it set up where the stamping can be imprinted straight up and down or flipped 90 degrees. If you’re trying to stamp something, but you don’t want the caterpillar belt to hit the impression, it shoots to the side.” Additionally, cut length feeds can now be fed while the machine is still rolling for certain tubing and cord sizes.
Don’t feed the caterpillar
Using the company’s previous pinch wheel system, operators were handcuffed to the machine to manually feed the system. Now, with thee increased gripping surface, operators don’t have to guide materials through the Video Jet and can instead immediately start coiling the tubing on the other end.
“The fact that the operator can walk away and start doing the coil-up eats away at the time that it normally would take for him to stamp an entire product and then start doing coil-up afterwards. He’s basically able to do two things at the same time,” Hines said. While an official time study on the change hasn’t happened yet, Hines estimates the new Versa system is working 25 to 50 percent faster than before.
How it works
Versa caterpillar pullers provide uniform pressure over the entire traction length, exerting greater pulling force without product deformation. The belt configurations range from 2 inches by 9 inches to 4 inches by 18 inches. All Versa pullers are equipped with a hand wheel or optional pneumatic operation of the belt booms along a constant centerline to make repeatable setup almost instantaneous.
Versa’s caterpillar puller assemblies are available in either a right-to-left or left-to-right configuration to fit into any workflow. The caterpillar drive also can be customized with optional air opening/closing, gear or belt drive, and with either OSHA or CE style guarding. The non-motorized puller assembly can operate at speeds up to 550 feet per minute.
By partnering once again with Versa Machinery to upgrade the imprinting process, Eagle Elastomer was able to increase productivity, output and safety. Safe to say this is a deal Hines is happy to put his stamp on.
About Versa Pullers:
Versa Machinery is a world-class manufacturer of automated downstream equipment for the plastic and rubber extrusion industries. For 70 years they have designed and built precise, robust and reliable de-reelers, cutters, pullers, cutter/puller systems, and takeaway conveyors. In addition to an extensive lineup of standard products, they can customize solutions to specific applications. Their innovative designs lead the industry in precision and repeatability, while delivering years of trouble-free service in demanding environments. For additional information, visit www.VersaPullers.com or www.versamachinery.com; email [email protected]; or call 574-266-0780.