AN Ishida X-ray inspection system and checkweigher combination has helped a contract packing business implement a new solution for a major customer.
Universal Flexible Packaging, based in Leicester, is a long-term partner of food brand Itsu. Itsu wanted to reduce the amount of packaging for its noodle cup range with a new cup and foil sealed lid. However, this meant quality checks using traditional metal detectors would not be possible, and for a filling and packing system where the majority of the equipment is built of stainless steel, that meant X-ray provided the best solution.
The challenge was to keep the lightweight cups upright. With most other X-ray solutions, Ishida explained that the cups would topple as they passed through the protective curtains to enter the inspection chamber.
Ishida’s solution was to use its entry-level IX-EN-2463 system with a lower 50kV voltage and remove the protective curtains. As the pots enter the chamber, an extended guarding is said to provide full protection from the X-ray process without the need for curtains.
“We have a long-standing working partnership with Ishida, so they were the obvious choice for this particular application,” said Steve Potter, Universal Flexible Packaging’s engineering manager. “As well being able to come up with a suitable solution, the company’s IX-EN X-ray inspection system was very competitively priced.”
The IX-EN is integrated with Ishida’s DACS-G checkweigher, which provides a final weight check to ensure all ingredients in the pot are present. The system incorporates Ishida’s Retail Reject Confirmation (RRC) software that checks and confirms that any out-of-spec products or packs have been removed from the packing line, in line with individual UK retailer quality standards and codes of practice. Two reject bins identify packs rejected by either the X-ray or the checkweigher.
“The installation and integration with the rest of the line was seamless, and both machines have proved very reliable and easy to operate,” Steve Potter added.
The X-ray and checkweigher combination is handling two designs of pot at around 80 packs per minute and is in operation for up to 24 hours a day, five days per week.
The system joins the existing seven multihead weighers and 15 checkweighers currently in operation across Universal Flexible Packaging’s two factories in Leicester.
