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Automatic Handling makes slabbing and core cleaning smart

Automatic Handling has been providing material handling technology to the paper industry for decades. The Erie, Michigan based company focuses its expertise on improving paper manufacturing operations.

Reclaim 100% of the Fiber

Whether there is an imperfection in the material grade or an issue with the actual manufacturing process that deems the material broke, Automatic Handling's Smart Roll Slabbing and Core Cleaning systems help customers reclaim 100% of the fiber from the broke material. Both of these machines are designed to safely and effectively recover broke fiber. Removing on-roll material with automation is a safe, reliable, and cost-effective way to increase mill efficiency and the company’s core cleaning technology is one way to extend the life cycle of cardboard cores used in the manufacturing of parent rolls. Additionally, Automatic Handling’s Smart Slabber technology help mills with smaller pulpers to efficiently reclaim fiber from narrow slit and parent broke rolls.

Reclaiming paper rolls for broke is a routine operation in a tissue mill, and automating routine procedures is part of a complete broke management system. Manually recapturing or salvaging broke with a steel razer or handheld knife is highly inefficient and unsafe. No matter how ergonomically the handle is designed, the process is inefficient and hazardous for the mill and the worker. “Whether manufacturing bath tissue at a massive mill operation or a compact mill, our Smart Slabbing and Core Cleaning technologies are configurable, module in design and can be made to handle automatically slab, strip, and clean parent rolls, butt rolls, and narrow slit rolls, no matter what your paper machine width, says Nathan Pienta, Marketing Manager, Automatic Handling International.

For a smaller facilities in particular, it's not just about cleaning the core off - the money is in the fiber. With Smart Slabbing Technology, operators are able to clean the core safely and efficiently, they can measure and use the broke to create an optimum pulper recipe.


When it comes to our core management systems, we time stamp every rack. The core is never left idle for long, and so it doesn’t have the opportunity to get damaged. It circulates throughout the system, ensuring the quality remains intact.

Scott Croy, Director of Operations, Automatic Handling International

 

Recycle and save money

Automatic Handling’s patented core joining can significantly reduce a company’s overall core waste by repairing the mushroomed ends of cores and automatically cutting them to desired lengths. The company’s patent-pending core management technology completely automates the entire process with full core storage. As the company develops innovative solutions that integrate the latest technology with proven machine designs that improve clients’ bottom lines, makes safer workplaces that stand up to the harshest environments, Automatic Handling designs, fabricates, machines, builds and tests custom systems in one location. “Being 100% vertically integrated means we control the quality throughout the process to ensure our products exceed the highest expectations our customers have come to expect,” Pienta concludes.

 

Tissue and towel solutions

Core management is at the heart of Automatic Handling’s activities, which is vital to tissue and towel producers. Whether it be for Automatic Core cleaning and buffer systems, Core storage systems or core joining, the company ’follows the fiber’ through the entire process, says Pienta.

“From pulp bale handling and dewiring to shaft and core parent roll handling and film wrapping, Automatic Handling covers it all. For example, parent roll wrapping can be stand-alone or integrated into the main parent roll handling system. The axial wrap, also known as cocoon wrap, protects your product during internal and external transportation. Automatic labeling, upending, accumulation, tracking and AGV interface are all available options,” Pienta notes.

The Smart Slabbing Process

The broke roll is placed on mandrels, which can be fully automatized from a buffer, or via a manual entry point. Conveyors or overhead buffer systems can be designed to store and retrieve rolls automatically, and conveyors, crane operations or a fork lift or clamp truck can be used as manual entry points. The broke roll is measured and verified against profile input data, and the classification of any parent roles from a particular batch as ‘broke’ is treated as essential data for calculating the pulper feed. “Depending on the operator's input and the current load on the pulper conveyor, the Smart Slabber will remove and drop specific, measured amounts of broke via automatic torque-driven knife cuts,” Pienta explains. “The knife blades have been developed to handle the particular demands of making thick and precise cuts in tissue and towel. “

 

Making the Final Cut

After the dual knife blade cuts, the tomahawk blade clears the final layer of paper, and the unwind belt peels away any extra fiber without damaging the cardboard core or introducing impurities into the broke mix. The core is automatically inspected for any additional broke fiber or deformed or damaged core ends. After being checked, cores can be either reused, flagged for manual inspection, or sent to an automatic core joining system which will repair and renew the core ends.


About Automatic Handling

Automatic Handling® is a worldwide manufacturer of custom and patented handling, packaging, and fiber recovery systems. Using these technologies, Automatic Handling strives to improve their customers' production efficiencies, limiting waste and boosting production times as well as protecting valuable machinery and increasing overall productivity through automation. Additional information about the company and its systems is available at www.automatichandling.com


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