At a Glance
Case sealer problems are often indicative of greater issues. Here are some of the most common ones, and what their real causes are:
Problem Reported
Typical Cause(s)
Case stalls halfway through sealer
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Out-of-tolerance corrugate (for machine or recipe), loose side belts, or low overhead
Flaps collide when the case is closed
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Glue compression (often backing) issues that aren’t reported by the machine
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A sealer with overlapping or tight flaps, or tight side belts causing too much case compression
Cases stall before closure
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Old case settings carried over
Sensor misread or stopped reading
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Environmental factors (e.g. dust, product residue) cover the sensor
The hardest sealer problems are often rooted in an inexperienced workforce. Examine processes and turnover, discuss issues with your team, and evaluate machine tolerances with your vendor early.
Introduction
Case sealer problems – jams and stalls, marks and damage – are often symptoms of larger concerns. Maybe it’s a machine stall that signals an inconsistent supplier, or a sensor misread signaling electrical damage. Or maybe it’s just a process problem, and all it takes is a discussion with your team.
Regardless of the issue, machine problems are never solved when they’re ignored. It’s always best to see the issue, evaluate its cause, and put measures in place to fix it. When little failures go by unnoticed, they turn into expensive maintenance calls that threaten your uptime.
In this article, we’ll cover:
- Common case sealer problems, causes, and solutions
- Signals of workforce-driven failures
- Vendor questions for understanding a sealer’s tolerance
- Tips and details to lengthen the life of your case sealer
What Causes Common Case Sealer Problems?
1. Materials-Driven Stalling
Problem: The case travels partway through the sealer, but then stops and sticks.
When a case stops halfway through the sealer, it’s natural to blame the machine. But these failures are most often caused by the case itself – not the sealer. It’s usually a materials failure that self-reports as an equipment failure.
The first question to ask is, “Are the case dimensions right, or is the case out of tolerance?”
Typical Causes:
- Corrugate variability
- Out-of-square case
- Oversized case
Some other causes for this issue could be loose side belts or a low overhead (which is often caused by the out-of-tolerance case). When we asked our team how often this issue occurs, they answered, “It happens all the time.”
To Fix: Measure the case against the recipe you’re running. If it’s too tall, your overhead is sitting too low to accommodate. Just lift the overhead, and that’s likely to solve the issue.
Note: If the case is oversized compared to your recipe, lifting the overhead may solve the problem. But that’s still a case that you never intended to run. Whether it is overfilled, damaged, varied from standard, etc., compensating with the machine is not going to fix the case itself.
A Problem No Machine on the Market Can Solve?
As far as we’re aware, no sealer on the market can solve out-of-tolerance corrugate – our machines included. Some sealers tolerate variation better than others, but nobody has designed the problem away.
Newer machines are usually built with tighter tolerances. This can allow for faster speeds, higher accuracy, etc. If you are dealing with chronically out-of-spec cases, your best fix lies in a conversation with your supplier.
2. Adhesive Failures
Problem: The case came out of the sealer in-tact, but popped open shortly after.
Oftentimes this issue has to do with glue compression and/or backing. Glue sealers don’t currently have a method to validate whether their glue was properly compressed. So, a lot of the time, the first sign that something is off is when cases pop back open downstream.
Typical Causes:
- Under-compressed glue
- No compression support inside case (backing)
To Fix: Try adjusting the overhead position to increase compression pressure. Then look at the product profile – if the product doesn’t back up to the flap, glue may be the wrong closure for that case.
3. Machine-Driven: Flap Forming Collisions
Problem: Flaps collide while case is being closed.
Typical cases have four flaps – two major and two minor. Our sealer works sequentially. It pulls the major flaps open so that the minor flaps can fold cleanly. Then the major flaps fold as well, and the case is sealed.
Minor Flaps: On the smaller / shorter sides, folded in first.
Major Flaps: On the longer sides, folded on top.
Some case sealers don’t have any functioning to manipulate case flaps at all. That’s not a defect, it’s a design difference. And it can cause a repeated problem with flap collisions. It necessitates operators to manage flap collisions by hand.
If that’s not the case with your sealer, the problem may lie with flaps that are overlapping or too tight. It is also possible that the side belts on the machine are too tight, causing the case to compress into itself.
Typical Causes:
- Non-sequential flap forming
- Overlapping or tight flaps
- Tight side belts causing compression
To Fix: Check the width measurement of the case and verify with the recipe. If needed and possible, loosen the side belts. If the problem persists, it could be a supplier issue, and removing some material from the flaps (we usually recommend 1/8”) could be needed.
4. Machine-Driven: Pre-Closure Stalling
Problem: The case stalls before reaching the closure.
Another machine-driven problem can be cases stalling before reaching the point of closure. A common cause we often see here is just incorrect machine settings. What the machine was commanded to do for one case, doesn’t work for another.
Some other causes for this issue could be low overhead, trailing minor flap timing, or a metering gate issue.
Typical Causes: A setting carried over from a case you are no longer running.
To Fix: Confirm the loaded recipe, and if needed, adjust.
5. Sensor Misreads and Electronic Faults
Problem: Sensors misread or stop reading, and/or electronics fail.
Technically, sensors and electronics can fault for a number of reasons. The simplest one, which we commonly see, is from a dusty or sticky environment. If your machine is experiencing these issues, and there’s evidence of grime nearby (e.g. on the floor around the machine or in the crevices), you’ve found the culprit.
Typical Causes: Airborne particles land on flat surfaces and get pulled into the machine. This happens because the system is moving air, and picks up surrounding particulate.
To Fix: Develop a weekly regimen for cleaning, and regular checks for proper working conditions.
A Quick Look at Common Reports and their Typical Causes
Fault Reports
Typical Mechanical Source
“The case popped open after coming out of the sealer.”
Glue compression – the glue was under-compressed, or the product gave the flaps no backup.
“The case got stuck halfway through the sealer.”
Case dimensions – case is out of tolerance, often taller than the recipe allows, and the overhead sits too low to accommodate.
“The machine faulted and threw up an alert about the tape.”
Machine-sensed tape issue – Tape issues show up as faults on the machine; check tape mechanism.
“There were marks on the cases that came out of the sealer.”
Witness marks – marks caused while moving through the machine, often due to overfill or loading errors.
“We’re finding belt material lying around the machine.”
Continued with stalled case – a case stalled and the machine continued running, peeling the top surface off a side belt.
“Product isn’t feeding in right,” or “Product is tipping over.”
Environment – the coefficient of friction changed with temperature or moisture; readjust friction settings.
Why Do Some Operations Have More Failures?
Machines fault for a number of reasons, but sometimes it can seem like certain operations get stuck with the most problems. Why? The answer might have little to do with the machine, and a lot to do with the operators who run it.
Why Do Some Operations Experience More Issues than Others?
The biggest differentiator between operations with frequent issues and operations without, is their staff:
Frequent Issues
Often experiencing high turnover and staffing difficulties
Rare Issues
Often have a steady team of highly experienced operators.
A starting technician is often years away from developing the instincts needed to recognize machine problems right away. Experienced technicians, however, can hear a noise, and immediately know that something’s off. But even experienced technicians take roughly 6 months to sync with a new facility.
Staffing is by no means the only differentiator between these facilities, but it’s the clearest one. Staff experience changes how early malfunctions get caught.
What Happens When Problems Go Unnoticed?
Unnoticed problems – things that could be fixed with minor servicing and a good clean – become maintenance issues. And if the in-house team can’t remedy the issue, it becomes a service call to your provider. And each service call is potential machine downtime and a costly expense.
What Should I Be Asking My Vendor?
The last thing you want from a new case sealer, is to find out it’s unreliable. Unreadable fault alerts, unpredictable stops, frustrating specs – these are not the impressions you’d like to bring to stakeholders after a purchase.
The key to finding a machine that’s reliable, is to find the vendor who’s reliable and who designs for ease. Run through these questions with your vendor the next time you’re considering a case sealer:
- How does the sealer handle corrugate that is out-of-tolerance? What happens when a case runs taller than the recipe?
- Does it handle flaps sequentially, or does it not manipulate flaps?
- Is there any way to verify glue compression by looking at a finished case?
- What happens to the sensors and vacuum system in a plant with our environmental conditions?
- Does the sealer retain recipe settings across changeovers?
- What standards do you build your sealers to? How do they address our environmental conditions?
Note: Going over these questions with a vendor will also reveal something about the quality of their service. Keep track of how they respond to your questions, how readily their knowledge is, and what lengths they go through to support their customers.
No Machine Can Fix a Workforce Problem
Having a successful case sealer only partly rests on the work of the vendor. The other half lies with your team and your facility. It’s important to know the tolerance and quality of your machine, but it’s also important to find the operators who are going to go the extra mile.
A starting technician can’t force experience, but they can be attentive. Successful operators are not always the experienced ones; they’re the ones who notice when parts of a belt lie on the floor around the machine, and who do something about it.
Looking for an OEM Who Will Answer the Call?
Give INSITE a call. Our specialists can answer questions, evaluate your case sealer, and provide reliable support for the life of your machine.
