Canadian Packaging by Annex Business Media

NOVEMBER 2011 | $10

www.canadianpackaging.com

Renzo Mueller, Sr. Sales Specialist, Schneider Electric

Luc Richard, Business Development Manager, Schneider Electric

Felix Elent, V-P, Operations, Nuspark Inc.

Sergei Mikhniouk, Plant Engineer, Steam Whistle Brewing

CASE IN POINT Robotic case-packers help feisty brewer to race full steam ahead with packaging line upgrades

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Story on page 21

DOCTOR FEELGOOD Page 14

IN THIS ISSUE: PHARMA-PACK NOW • METAL DETECTION • AUTOMATE NOW

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Text videojet to 76477 or take a picture of the Videojet logo from anywhere and send it to videojet@snipp.com to receive more information about our products FOR MORE INFORMATION CIRCLE 102

www.fsc.org FSC C102574 R

The mark of responsible forestry

Why would a company producing 100% recycled cartons bother to go through the process of obtaining certiﬁcation from the world’s leading forestry stewardship organization?

Because we can!!!

As the leaders in recycling and sustainable packaging for over 60 years, it only made sense that we be accredited by the world’s leading model for environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial and economically viable forestry stewardship. After all, we save a forest of over 14,000,000 trees per year from being cut down to produce paper products.

Sustainable Packaging for a Sustainable Future®

By utilizing the latest technology and world class processes in our 100% recycled paper mills, we save the equivalent energy to power 100,000 homes for a full year, divert 3 million cubic yards of waste going to landfill, use 4.2 billion less gallons water and help to remove 1.2 million tons of carbon from the atmosphere. Why purchase your Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC)® certified paper and packaging products from us? Because it demonstrates your personal commitment to our environment, it shows your customers that you care, and

Because you can! Service Driven!TM “Responsive to your needs” Atlantic Packaging Products Ltd.

Corrugated Division Scarborough-Progress Ave., Scarborough-Midwest Ave., Brampton, Mississauga and Ingersoll 416-298-8101 • 1-800-268-5620 • www.atlantic.ca Add Ink (Atlantic Decorated & Display) Toronto 416-421-3636 • www.addink.ca Color Pak (Pre-printed Linerboard) Toronto 416-298-5518 • 1-800-584-5817 • www.colorpak.ca

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Mitchel-Lincoln Packaging Ltd. Montreal and Drummondville 514-332-3480 • 1-800-361-5727 • www.ml-group.com

UPFRONT

DEATH BY A THOUSAND(S) CUTS

EDITOR George Guidoni • (416) 510-5227 GGuidoni@canadianpackaging.com FEATURES EDITOR Andrew Joseph • (416) 510-5228 AJoseph@canadianpackaging.com ART DIRECTOR Stewart Thomas • (416) 442-5600 x3212 SThomas@bizinfogroup.ca SENIOR PUBLISHER Stephen Dean • (416) 510-5198 SDean@canadianpackaging.com ADVERTISING SALES Munira Khan • (416) 510-5199 MKhan@canadianpackaging.com PRODUCTION MANAGER Kim Collins • (416) 510-6779 KCollins@bizinfogroup.ca CIRCULATION MANAGER Diane Rakoff • (416) 510-5216 DRakoff@bizinfogroup.ca EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Lisa Wichmann • (416) 442-5600 x5101 LWichmann@canadianmanufacturing.com EXECUTIVE PUBLISHER Tim Dimopoulos • (416) 510-5100 TDimopoulos@bizinfogroup.ca

BIG MAGAZINES LP Vice-President of Canadian Publishing • Alex Papanou President of Business Information Group • Bruce Creighton

HOW TO REACH US: Canadian Packaging, established 1947, is published monthly by BIG Magazines LP, a division of Glacier BIG Holdings Company Ltd. 80 Valleybrook Drive, North York, ON, M3B 2S9; Tel: (416) 442-5600; Fax (416) 510-5140. EDITORIAL AND ADVERTISING OFFICES: 80 Valleybrook Drive, North York, ON, M3B 2S9; Tel: (416) 442-5600; Fax (416) 510-5140. SUBSCRIBER SERVICES: To subscribe, renew your subscription or to change your address or information, contact us at 416-442-5600 or 1-800-387-0273 ext. 3258. SUBSCRIPTION PRICE PER YEAR (INCLUDING ANNUAL BUYERS’ GUIDE): Canada $72.00 per year, Outside Canada $117.00 US per year, Single Copy Canada $10.00, Outside Canada $27.10. Canadian Packaging is published 11 times per year except for occasional combined, expanded or premium issues, which count as two subscription issues.

COVER STORY 21

©Contents of this publication are protected by copyright and must not be reprinted in whole or in part without permission of the publisher. DISCLAIMER: This publication is for informational purposes only. The content and “expert” advice presented are not intended as a substitute for informed professional engineering advice. You should not act on information contained in this publication without seeking specific advice from qualified engineering professionals. Canadian Packaging accepts no responsibility or liability for claims made for any product or service reported or advertised in this issue. Canadian Packaging receives unsolicited materials, (including letters to the editor, press releases, promotional items and images) from time to time. Canadian Packaging, its affiliates and assignees may use, reproduce, publish, re-publish, distribute, store and archive such unsolicited submissions in whole or in part in any form or medium whatsoever, without compensation of any sort. PRIVACY NOTICE: From time to time we make our subscription list available to select companies and organizations whose product or service may interest you. If you do not wish your contact information to be made available, please contact us via one of the following methods: Phone: 1-800-668-2374 Fax: 416-442-2191 Email: privacyofficer@businessinformationgroup.ca Mail to: Privacy Office, 80 Valleybrook Drive, North York, ON M3B 2S9 PRINTED IN CANADA PUBLICATIONS MAIL AGREEMENT NO. 40069240, ISSN 0008-4654 We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Periodical Fund (CPF) for our publishing activities. Canadian Packaging is indexed in the Canadian Magazine Index by Micromedia Limited. Back copies are available in microform from Macromedia Ltd., 158 Pearl St., Toronto, ON M5H 1L3

NOVEMBER 2011 • CANADIAN PACKAGING

NOVEMBER 2011

| $10 www.canadianpa ckaging.com

Case Made

Renzo Mueller, Sr. Sales Specialist, Schneider Electric

Popular Toronto craft brewer remains on a speedy growth path with ongoing automation of its critical packaging line operations. By George Guidoni Cover photography by Cole Garside

DEPARTMENTS & COLUMNS UPFRONT By George Guidoni NEWSPACK Packaging news round-up from across Canada. 8 NOTES & QUOTES Noteworthy industry briefs and updates. 9 FIRST GLANCE New technologies for packaging applications. 10-11 ECO-PACK NOW All about environmental sustainability. 13 IMPACT A monthly insight from PAC. 29 EVENTS Upcoming industry functions. 30 CHECKOUT By Rhea Gordon Joe Public speaks out on packaging hits and misses.

Felix Elent, V-P, Operations, Nuspark Inc.

Sergei Mikhniouk, Plant Engineer, Steam Whistle Brewing

Robotic case-pac kers brewer to race full help feisty steam ahead with packaging line upgrades Story on page 21

DOCTOR FEELGOOD  IN THIS ISSUE: PHARMA-PAC K NOW • METAL DETECTION

Page 14

• AUTOMATE

NOW

FEATURES

5 6-7

NEXT ISSUE: Labeling, Packaging for Freshness, Automate Now.

Luc Richard, Business Development Manager, Schneider Electric

CASE IN POINT agreement #40070230.

VOLUME 64, NO. 11

the Canadian f lag both metaphorically and physically, right onto the product packaging itself. Considering that the food sector is by its very nature arguably the most recession-resistant industry around these days, the timing of the impending layoffs—1,200 people in Kitchener and 247 in Hamilton, Ont.; 325 in Toronto; 332 in North Battleford, Sask., and 461 in Moncton, N.B.— could hardly be worse. These are just not any jobs either. Wages in the Canadian food-processing industry tend to be on average up to 25 per cent higher than in many other manufacturing sectors, so whatever replacement jobs the laid-off workers may or may not eventually find are unlikely to compensate for the hit in economic spinoff benefits such well-paid jobs stimulate. While the company brass has been quick to point to the strong Canadian dollar as one of the culprits behind its allegedly eroding competitive position compared to its U.S.-based competitors, this currency parity did not just happen overnight. The days of using a low Canadian dollar as a source of competitive advantage have vanished years ago, and there are many Canadian manufacturing enterprises out there who have learned to live with this new reality by discovering new competencies in other parts of their operations. “We deeply regret the impact on our people,” says Maple Leaf president and chief executive officer Michael McCain (The Toronto Star, Oct. 19, 2011), adding that the company would work to find buyers for the idled plants, while also spending $395 million to construct a new, centralized mega meat factory in Hamilton that will eventually employ up to 650 people. Frankly, using that sort of math and logic to put a positive spin on a real nasty piece of business will not do much to lift the spirits of the Maple Leaf workers facing the pink slips, we think, and it is hardly the sort of news that the Canadian public really needs to hear at this time of bruised-andbattered consumer confidence.

Publication mail

NOVEMBER 2011

ome companies just can’t seem to help themselves in keeping their names out of the headlines for all the wrong reasons. And that is especially regrettable when the company in question is often cited as one of the country’s leading and most progressive business icons. Alas, it appears that the Toronto-headquartered processed meats powerhouse Maple Leaf Foods has a fair bit of public relations work on its hands in wake of last month’s shocking, out-of-the-blue announcement about its plans to mothball six production facilities and two warehouses over the next three years—throwing some 2,700 Canadians out of work. This is the same Maple Leaf Foods, if you recall, that is still working to completely restore its trust with the Canadian consumers in the wake of a nasty, at times fatal, 2008 outbreak of Listeriosis ultimately traced to its cold-cut production plant in north Toronto—incidentally one of the six plants facing the axe in spite of the millions of dollars spent to upgrade and modernize its processing equipment to make sure this sort of thing never happens again. Two wrongs never really make a right, and it’s hard to see what Maple Leaf would have to gain from announcing its mega job cuts at a time of high consumer anxiety over the consistently gloomy economic forecasts and, wouldn’t you know it, rising food prices to boot. With an estimated quarter of a million manufacturing jobs vanishing across Canada in 2008-2009 alone, Canada’s employment picture is hardly likely to brighten up any time soon as long as such massive job cuts continue to dominate the headlines. Maybe it would have been easier to swallow if this was coming from one perennially underachieving automaker or another, but it is highly disconcerting to see such grim pronouncements from a company whose entire wholesome image was cultivated in large part by wrapping itself in

SOY MUCH BETTER Leading soybean distributor leaves nothing to chance in its bulk packaging operations with highly-automated, robotics-based bagging workcell. By Andrew Joseph 24

SAFETY FIRST Medical device innovator employs a highperformance thermoforming system to speed up its packaging throughput. By Andrew Joseph

X-RATED FOR EXCELLENCE Why the future looks bright for newgeneration X-Ray inspection technologies. By Terry Woolford

METAL METTLE Strict new food quality control protocols and guidelines drive ongoing technological progress among suppliers of metal detectors and other cutting-edge product inspection technologies. By George Guidoni

WWW.CANADIANPACKAGING.COM • 5

NEWSPACK

NEW PLASTIC MONEY SET FOR MORE ROLLOUTS

Now that the Bank of Canada has formally launched the new age of plastic cash with this month’s introduction of new $100 polymer banknotes, the central bank’s nationwide inventorymanagement Bank Note Distribution System is about to get a real workout in anticipation of the pending rollout of polymer $50 bills next month and the release of $20 notes later next year, with the $5 and $10 bills expected for mass release in 2013. According to the bank, the distribution system’s core operations unfold at two of its centers in Toronto and Montreal, where the notes are received and evaluated for their condition— with those in good shape given the green light to continue circulating, while those that are too worn or damaged are pulled aside to be replaced either by the approved paper notes or the new polymer bills.

Any counterfeit notes discovered during the thorough inspection process are sent directly to the RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) offices for subsequent investigation, according to the Bank, which uses 10 regional distribution centers across Canada where financial institutions hold inventories of cash from the Bank of Canada, evaluate the note quality, and manage the f low of notes. With over 1.5 billion bank notes circulating in Canada at any one time, the transition to new polymer banknotes—claimed to last at least 2.5 times longer than the current paper notes— is expected to be a challenging distribution project for the bank, which says “the goal is to get the new series of notes into circulation as quickly as possible.”

According to the bank, financial institutions can use holiday periods with peak consumer demand for cash to swap the new polymer notes among themselves through secure transfers arranged through a sophisticated inventorymanagement computer system. The bank says the new polymer notes are expected to improve ABM (automated bank machine) transactions for Canadian consumers because they can handle polymer better than paper—resulting in less maintenance and downtime of the bank machines, while also providing the environmental benefit of being recyclable.

KELLOGG BREAKING OUT OF THE OLD BOX

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Putting famous athletes and other popular celebrities on a box is a long-enduring tradition in the cereal business, but Mississauga, Ont.-headquartered Kellog Canada Inc. has boldly broken the ranks this month by featuring three everyday Canadian women on hundreds of thousands of Kellogg’s Special K breakfast cereal boxes retailing across Canada until the end of November. Used to decorate the 625-gram and 475-gram boxes of cereal produced at the company’s manufacturing facility From right: Ottawa in London, Ont., residents Melanie and the boxes are Veronic join Mika of meant “to cele- Burnaby, B.C., on Spebrate the small cial K boxes, glammed health and wel l- up in custom Cynthia ness v ictor - Rowley designer ies of ever yday dresses modeled at women and to the recent LG Fashion inspire others,” Week in Toronto. says Kellogg, which selected the three winners from hundreds of entries to its nationwide Special K Start Something Fabulous contest. According to Kellogg, the three women managed to significantly revamp their lifestyles by placing a bigger focus on sound nutritional eating habits and exercise. Says Kellogg: “They are representative of all those Canadian women who struggle to achieve and maintain a healthy lifestyle, and if their images helps inspire others to stick to the program, it makes it an even better experience.”

CANADIAN PACKAGING • NOVEMBER 2011

NEWSPACK

COCA-COLA TURNING WHITE TO AID A NOBLE CONSERVATION CAUSE

With more and more Canadians getting behind the idea of adopting the polar bear as the country’s national emblem, soft-drink powerhouse The Coca-Cola Company could have hardly chosen a more timely opportunity for the release of 1.4 billion whitecolored Coke cans in Canada and the U.S. to celebrate the iconic animal now facing grave survival challenges caused by the fast-melting polar ice-caps. As part of the company’s larger Arctic Home public awareness campaign, the f irst-ever change of the iconic red cans to any other color since 1922 is also matched by a US$3million donation to the polar bear conservation efforts carried out by the international WWF (World Wildlife Fund) agency, as well as a temproary switch to white caps on the bottles of Coke, Diet Coke, Coke Zero, Sprite, Nestea, Minute Maid and many other of the company’s popular beverage brands. “Polar bears really inspire the imagination,” says WWF president and chief executive Carter Roberts. “They are massive, powerful, beautiful creatures who live nowhere else except the Arctic. “Their lives are intimately bound up with sea ice, which is now melting at an alarming rate,” Roberts states. “By working with Coca-Cola, we can raise the profile of polar bears and what they’re facing, and most importantly, engage people to work with us to help protect their home.” Since the beginning of November, the familiar red cans have been quickly replaced with an all-white panorama, highlighted by the iconic Coca-Cola script printed in red, and an eye-catching image of a mother polar bear and two cubs trekking across the Arctic. The new white packaging will be on store-shelves through February of 2012, according to Atlanta, Ga.headquartered Coca-Cola, which will also be conducting an online ArcticHome.com public awareness campaign to encourage $1 donations to the WWF. The informative and educational website allows visitors to explore, experience and learn about the polar bear and its Arctic habitat by conducting live video chats with WWF scientists and tracking virtual polar bear sightings, while also spreading the word to friends and family by sharing content using the hashtag #ArcticHome. Says Coca-Cola president and chief executive officer Muhtar Kent: “We want to help the polar bear, a beloved Coca-Cola icon since 1922, by helping conserve its Arctic habitat. “That’s why we’re using one of our greatest assets—our f lagship CocaCola brand—to raise awareness for this important cause,” Kent states.

“And by partnering with WWF, we can truly make a positive difference for these majestic animals.” According to the WWF, protecting the polar bear’s Arctic habitat involves actively working with local residents to manage an area where the summer sea ice will likely persist the longest. Covering about 500,000 square miles, this area could provide a home for the polar bear while protecting the cultural and economic needs of local people. As a popular part of Coca-Cola’s marketing tradition since 1922, polar bears first appeared in a Coca-Cola print advertisement in France. For the next 70 years, these fun-loving bears appeared sporadically in ad campaigns and on Coke cans around the globe, including Spain, Italy and Hong Kong.

In 1993, they became forever connected to CocaCola with the memorable animated television commercial “Northern Lights,” depicting polar bears kicking back to enjoy their favorite softdrink while watching the sky light up above them. Since then, the bears have appeared in 10 more commercials, including multiple spots celebrating the holiday season and two ads for the 1994 Olympic Winter Games in Lillehammer, Norway. According to Coca-Cola, “The polar bear has come to represent family togetherness, refreshment, good times and the start of the holiday season. “There’s no question the polar bear has become an icon, and as such was recently awarded a permanent position on the Madison Avenue Advertising Walk of Fame—a prestigious award that is the ad industry’s equivalent of the Hollywood Walk of Fame.”

Integrity.

NOVEMBER 2011 • CANADIAN PACKAGING

Our business is founded on integrity and a respect for your bottom line. Integrity You Can Trust In: At Intelligrated, integrity means delivering on our promise — doing whatever it takes to get the job done. We think it’s the right way to do business. And so do our customers, as they choose to collaborate with us on additional projects. Keeping our promises. That’s the Intelligrated way.

Integrity. Committed. Innovative. Smart. The Intelligrated Way.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CIRCLE 500 Wentworth Street East

Unit #5

105

905.725.0550 www.intelligrated.com/integrity

Oshawa, ON L1H 3V9, Canada

NOTES & QUOTES

 Metal detection systems supplier S+S Inspection Inc., has completed the move of the company’s North American operations from Niagara Falls, N.Y., to the Chicago area suburb of Bartlett, Ill. According to the company, part of the German-headquartered S+S Separation and Sorting Technology Group, the move to the bigger, more centrally-located new facility provides for additional design and manufacturing capabilities, including an on-site optical sorting line for recycling customers and an applications laboratory with a complete range of X-ray inspecSupervacSeals_Small_CP_J:Layout 1 5/14/09 7:05 PM Page tion and metal detection equipment for the food and plastics industry sectors of the S+S business.

IF YOUR FIRST SEAL DOESN’T DO THE JOB,

then try a machine

 Erie, Pa.-based Eriez, a leading manufacturer of magnetic vibratory and inspection technologies and equipment for pharmaceutical, food-processing, plastics and other manufacturing industries, has announced plans to expand the company’s operations in the U.S., Canada, China and India to meet growing demand for its products. “We are proud and excited to report that Eriez is not only growing at home, but also across the globe,” says Eriez president and chief executive officer Tim Shuttleworth. The planned expansion includes relocation of the company’s Eriez Minerals Flotation Group to a bigger nearby facility in Vancouver, B.C., with a move expected to be completed by early 2012. Says Eriez vice-president of operations Mike Mankosa: “Our new facility will allow us to build our larger proprietary equipment in-house, rather than utilizing subcontractors.” In the U.S., the company has recently purchased a 114,000 square-foot-building, located 20 kilometers away from its Erie headquarters, to

Heat and pressure from above and below create two superior seals.

WITH TWO.

house a new service center and to manufacture the company’s column f lotation, f luid filtration technologies and recycling systems. Says Shuttleworth: “While other companies are struggling, Eriez is thriving because we believe that innovation, coupled with great customer service, is vital to maintaining our success. Therefore, it’s more important than ever for us to continue to introduce new technologies that help our customers maintain efficiency and increase their profits, while offering the world-class support our customers deserve.”  Hartsville, S.C.-headquartered packaging products manufacturer Sonoco has announced plans to build a new $15-million manufacturing facility in New Albany, Ohio, to make rigid plastic containers and packaging components for customers in the household and personal-care industries. Expected to start up in the second quarter of 2016, the 120,000-square-foot Beauty and Home Care campus will initially employ about 60 people to produce containers and components for the Bath and Body Works personal-care product line owned by Limited Brands, which also markets high-end cosmetics brands such as Victoria’s Secret, Pink, LaSenza and Henri Bendel. “Limited Brands has been an important customer of Sonoco for several years and we are pleased to continue this important relationship with the development of a new facility in the New Albany/Columbus area,” says Steve Gendreau, vice-president and general manager of the Sonoco Plastics division, which also operates a food-grade blowmolding and injection-molding plant in nearby Columbus. “We look forward to expanding our offering through this new state-of-the-art facility and hope to further grow this operation in the future.”

What do bad seals really cost? Rework. Returns. Food safety problems. Lost customers. Supervac automatic belt vacuum chamber packaging machines feature a Double Biactive high-pressure sealing system that provides two superior seals to every bag, virtually eliminating leakers and the problems they cause. Superior seals are just the start. Supervac machines reduce labor costs while increasing productivity. Their ergonomic design allows a single operator to load, style and run the packages. Supervac’s exclusive Expansion Cushion reduces evacuation times by up to 30%, pushing the operator to keep up with the machine and resulting in more packages at the end of the day. Their small footprint allows the Supervac to fit into tight areas where other machines cannot. Its low cost of ownership and stainless steel construction make Supervac the smart choice.

Supervac GK501B

Supervac GK169B

FOR MORE INFORMATION CIRCLE

 Philadelphia, Pa.-headquartered metal packaging group Crown Holdings, Inc. has announced plans to build two new beverage can manufacturing facilities in mainland China, while also adding an extra production line to another new plant already under construction in the Fujian Province city of Putian. The new facilities in Zhengzhou (central China) and Changchun (northeastern China), will each have initial annual production capacity of 720 million twopiece aluminum beverage cans, according to Crown. “The consumer market in China is growing at a rapid pace,” says Jozef Salaerts, president of the Crown Asia-Pacific division, “and adding these facilities demonstrates Crown’s commitment to support our customers’ growth in this critical market, as well as a testament to the increasing popularity of beverage cans in the region and the value they bring to consumers—from both the convenience and sustainability perspectives.” With both greenfiled plants expected to start up in early 2013, Crown will have a total of 10 manufacturing operations located strategically across China to serve all of the country’s main regional markets, according to Crown.

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1549 Yorkton Court, Unit #4, Burlington, Ontario L7P 5B7 Telephone (905) 631-6611 • www.reiser.com

CANADIAN PACKAGING • NOVEMBER 2011 Leading the food industry in processing and packaging solutions.

FIRST GLANCE NEW STANDARD The new Versatron case-packer from StandardKnapp boasts proprietary Soft Catch technology that enables it to execute high-speed packing of fragile containers, according to the company, significantly reducing breakage and bottle defects by gently ‘catching’ each container as they descend into the case, instead of just letting them drop as with regular drop-packing machines. Employing a twoaxis servo system, the Versatron case-packer uses its lift table to move the case to the “up” position to wait for a full grid, after which its shifts the riding strips to the side to initiate the bottle descent, with the lift table simultaneously moving the case downward on a velocity curve in a gentle and secure movement. According to Standard-Knapp, the Soft Touch operations also enables packers of various liquids and f luids—including spirits, wine, food, household chemicals, personal-care and automotive—to utilize reduced and/or lightweight materials in their packaging, thereby reducing the overall packaging footprint of their products. Standard-Knapp

401

MAGNETIC APPEAL Offered in 24 different sizes, including multiple lengths and widths, the new Xtreme Rare Earth Rota-Grates from Eriez feature an advanced rotating design to remove both large and small ferrous contaminants that tend to stick, clog and bridge when passed through a traditional grate magnet—facilitating highly effective removal of finely ground cohesive materials such as gypsum, barium carbonate, fuller’s earth, lime, cohesive chemicals, confectionery sugar, cornstarch, cocoa, f lour and various fibrous materials. Boasting a rugged structure to ensure long and reliable service life— including magnetic elements that are completely encased and fastened to stainless-steel end plates, as well as all-steel shaft and hubs—the dual-action grates rotate a number of powerful magnetic tubes through the materials, using the magnetic action to attract and hold unwanted iron, and rotary action to prevent the material f low from packing and plugging the processing line. Eriez of Canada Ltd.

402

BAG TO DIFFER Designed to integrate bag making, filling, sealing and printing all in one automatic process to increase productivity and reduce labor and film costs, the new r2b series of horizontal formfill-seal (H/F/F/S) baggers from WeighPack Systems Inc. uses economical laminated rollstock film to produce a divers array of bag types, including pillow, stand-up, carry handle, center-capping and corner-capping, with or without zipper closures. Available in two models, the r2b bagger is designed for high-speed, high-throughput pro-

duction, with its extensive list of features including an inline walking beam mechanism, a no-bag/no-fill sensor, variable speed control, an integrated exit conveyor, and a robust PLC (programmable logic controller) for seamless interfacing with scales, augers and liquid fillers. Incorporating servo drive technology to ensure high levels of control and repeatable performance, the bagger’s straight f low-through design allows the operator to monitor all stations from the bagger’s color touchscreen panel. WeighPack Systems Inc.

EAGLE VISION

403

parent, nonyellowing, fullymachinable films utilizing rigid vinyl as a contact layer and engineered to provide up to 50 per cent more moisture barrier resistance in applications such as solid oral-dose packaging, powders, ethical drugs, OTC medicines, generics, physician samples, veterinary medicines and nutraceuticals, according to the company, while also offering reliable sealability to all common vinyl-compatible lidstocks. Klöckner Pentaplast Group

RADIO-FRIENDLY The new BIS U series of ultra-high frequency RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) systems from Balluff Inc. can achieve noncontact read/ write ranges of up to six meters, according to the company, to enable real-time visibility in numerous supply chain, logistics and manufacturing operations with more reliable performance that the traditional barcodes requiring an unobstructed line-of-sight.

The new BOXXER line of case erectors from Eagle Packaging Machinery LLC are deigned to form well-sealed cases with squared corners at speeds of up to 40 cases per minute, according to the company, running both RSC (regular slotted carton) and HSC (half-slotted carton) style boxes of virtually any size. Designed for quick product changeover, all of the compact-footprint BOXXER series machines are loaded with an extensive array of features, including heavy-duty construcBalluff Canada Inc. tion; the high-performance Nordson ProBlue glue applicating system; an easy-load, high-capacity blank hopper; a user-friendly, color touchscreen HMI Don’t leave your coding and marking needs (human-machine to chance. Harlund is ready to help and able interface) control to provide a number of different lines. panel; a reliable caseerecting mechanHitachi Continuous Ink Jet Printers proHitachi features: ism with vacuum • A unique fluid management system vide the best price point value with the grippers; positive lowest cost of ownership in the industry. allowing for extremely low f lap folding and case fluid consumption This is not by chance. transfer; and a case • Auto Printhead cleaning resulting in • Hitachi’s many Industry firsts in total compression mandrel maximum uptime productivity system design and build resulting in equipped with shock • Extended Warranties. environmentally friendly features reducers to eliminLongest in the Industry. ate machine stress, minimize maintenance, and ensure long machine life.

What’s luck got to do with it?

Eagle Packaging Machinery LLC 404

FILM STARDOM Designed for challenging high-barrier pharmaceutical packaging applications, the new Pentapharm ACLAR PA600/02 barrier films from the Klöckner Pentaplast Group are two-layer, transBegin Saving today, contact Harlund and let us show you how you can benefit from Hitachi’s superior technologies

NOVEMBER 2011 • CANADIAN PACKAGING

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FOR MORE INFORMATION CIRCLE 107 1.877.HARLUND (427.5863) www.harlund.com sales@harlund.com Vancouver • Edmonton • Montreal • Toronto

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ECO-PACK NOW

MAKING A DENT IN LANDFILL WASTE WITH NEW REUSABLE TAKEOUT FOOD CONTAINERS While recycling is undoubtedly a vital core 3Rs strategy in the ongoing war on landfill waste, an upstart Toronto-area plastic food container manufacturer is keen to raise packaging sustainability stakes to a whole new level with an innovative line of reusable plastic carry-out food containers that are durable and attractive enough for consumers to keep around for storing all types of leftover food items, as well as for packing snacks, lunches and portable meals, long after the initial purchase at a restaurant or deli counter. In addition to being fully-recyclable, the Deli (DR) line of injection-molded rectangular containers manufactured by the Concord, Ont.-based CuBE Plastics is made using an innovative manufacturing process that employs far less plastic than similar competing products, thereby requiring less resources and energy. According to the company’s director of sales John Alexanian, the Deli (DR) containers are formed into their final shapes from a small beads of plastic, as opposed to the conventional method of cutting sheets of plastic and melting them into molded shapes—resulting in a more energy-efficient operation while also providing the containers with good durability and strength properties. “Today’s consumers are actively looking for options to reduce landfill waste when they shop for food and even when ordering take-out,” says Alexanian, citing a fast-growing list of customers in the foodservice, restaurant and retail industries in both Canada and the U.S. “Providing a safe and ecofriendly plastic product is possible,” adds Alexanian, noting the tripling of the company’s manufacturing capacity since its 2007 startup.

“Our innovation in the manufacturing process allows us to produce a quality solution that uses significantly less plastic to make products that are both recyclable and reusable,” he says, citing a number of performance benefits over conventional disposable carry-out food packaging: • High-grade virgin polypropylene construction for recyclability, reuse, safe food contact, microwaveability, prolonged freezer storage and safe dishwasher use; • Rectangular shapes for optimal stackability, space efficiency, and attractive presentation of fresh, ready-made foods or restaurant takeout side orders; • Three unique lidding options to protect against leaks, spills and squished product; • Manufactured using only Food and Drug Administration (FDA)- and Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA)approved materials, the Deli (DR) containers are independently certified to contain no BPA (Bisphenol A), CFCs (chlorofluorocarbon) or other potentially toxic additives. Says Alexanian: “From the beginning, thought leaders at CuBE have made it a priority to produce highquality, sustainable plastic food containers, while staying at the forefront of innovation and design. “Innovation in manufacturing and design means that CuBE containers can be used and reused hundreds of times, potentially reducing landfill waste,” he says, “and we’ll continue to strive to provide our clients with a quality product they’re proud to put their own name on—products that not only have great longevity and reusability, but are also competitively priced and provide continued brand exposure through our many custom options.”

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Packaging films producer Toray Plastics (America), Inc., is shedding new light on manufacturing sustainability following last month’s completion of a new US$2-million solar power farm at its 70-acre campus in North Kingstown, R.I., as part of a broader initiative to minimize its carbon footprint. Housing 1,650 solar phototvoltaic (PV) panels, the three-acre farm site will generate 625 megawatt hours (MWh) a year, according to the company, cutting its annual carbon-dioxide emissions by about 340 tonnes. A wholly-owned subsidiary of Japaneseheadquartered plastics and textiles group Toray Industries, Inc., the North Kingstown manufacturing complex is the largest North American-based producer of polyester, polypropylene and bio-based films for f lexible and rigid packaging, lidding, graphic and industrial applications, having recently achieved its long-term goal of becoming a zero-landfill waste business. “This farm has been a dream of Toray Plastics America, and a personal one of mine, for the past three years,” says Toray Plastics president Rick Schloesser. “Its completion is a tribute to how government and business can come together to work toward a mutual goal,” Schloesser noted at the farm’s off icial unveiling attended by the Rhode Island governor Lincoln Chafee and local business and community leaders. Started up in 1985, the sprawling production campus has undergone an estimated US$650-million in various capital expansions and upgrades since then, becoming one of the state’s biggest manufacturing employers. “We’re proud to have you here and keep up the good work,” noted Chafee, praising Toray’s clean-energy project as a model for other industrial enterprises switching to renewable energy sources. “Energy conservation is fundamental to the well-being of Toray’s business,” adds Schloesser, noting the new farm is the biggest solar power generator in the state. “By choosing solar energy as part of its energy strategy, the company further strengthens its position in the marketplace, enhances its relationship with the community, and reduces its carbon footprint.”

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CANADIAN PACKAGING • NOVEMBER 2011

ECO-PACK NOW

LEADING CANMAKER STAYS RIGHT ON THE BALL WITH BIG GHG REDUCTIONS Bloomfield, Colo.-headquartered metal packaging products group Ball Corporation says it has exceeded its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction goal set in 2004 as part of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s Climate Leaders program well ahead of the target date. Using 2002 as the baseline year, Ball had committed to reduce its direct and indirect GHG emissions globally by 16 percent by 2012, but by aggressively managing energy efficiency programs throughout its worldwide operations, the manufacturer reduced its GHG emissions by 18 percent as of the end of 2010, according to Ball, while taking additional steps to reduce the emissions further.

“We have conducted numerous energy efficiency projects, including reducing compressed air use, improving lighting efficiency and recovering thermal heat, that have had a positive impact on reducing our GHG emissions and helped us surpass our original goal,” says Ball’s vice-president of marketing and corporate affairs James Peterson. “Our success is also due to placing greater emphasis on reducing energy usage globally and the commitment of our employees, who continually look for ways to conserve resources in our facilities and add efficiency

and value to our manufacturing processes.” Joining the EPA Climate Leaders program in 2004, Ball had originally set the emission cuts target to cover just its North American manufacturing sites, but impressive early progress encouraged Ball to extend the commitment to include its manufacturing facilities in Europe and Asia. Although the EPA industry-government partnership to achieve comprehensive climate change wound down in 2008, Peterson says Ball remained fully-committed to achieving and surpassing its GHG reduction goals.

NEW PROTECTIVE SHEET FOAM TO SHOW OFF GENUINE GREEN INTENT Making the right packaging choice for greater environmental good is a noble decision, and there’s nothing wrong with letting your customers know all about it. And thanks to the newly-launched Microfoam Green low-density polypropylene (PP) protective sheet foam from the Deerfield, Ill.-based Pregis Corp., progressive brandowners can now visually communicate their best green intentions to customers receiving their products wrapped in this high-performance, degradable packaging alternative that leaves little doubt about their eco-friendly mindset. “We created a green-colored version of our long-standing white Microfoam sheet foam because many of our customers wanted to visually communicate the product’s environmental pluses,” explains Pregis director of marketing Dache Davidson. According to Pregis, the product’s photodegradable properties were recently validated by an independent lab, whereby three samples subjected to UV and temperature conditions specified by the ASTM G154-6 testing protocol showed Microfoam Green completely disintegrating

in between 44 and 77 hours. Manufactured using 40 per cent less resin than polyethylene foam in the same thickness, and being lighter-weight than small air-cushioning at equal square footage, Microfoam Green also offers significant source reduction benefits and notable reductions in shipping costs, according to Pregis. “It’s important to brand-owners that they communicate to consumers that the packaging choices they are making are positive ones, and Microfoam Green gives them one more alternative for doing so,” Davidson says. “As the only U.S. manufacturer of PP sheet foam, we are pleased to be able to add this line extension to the Pregis family of products,” Davidson says, noting that Microfoam sheets also offer a sufficiently high coefficient-of-friction (COF) to enable them to cling tight to the covered items it is protecting—unlike low-COF materials that slide back and forth to expose the products to potential abrasion or impact damage. “Products typically vibrate and shift a fair bit during transit,” says Davidson. “When they have polished metal surfaces, it becomes even more important that the cushioning material used for protection is not the very thing that causes

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unsightly product damage.” In addition to superior cushioning and surface protection properties, Microfoam PP sheet foam offers excellent vapor transmission, thermal and insulation, says Davidson, adding the product can also be effectively used as void fill and interleaving for items that are “layered” in product packs. Moreover, the foam’s high melt-point of 320°F makes it ideally-suited to handle parts which may reach the packaging stage at elevated temperatures—making it a pragmatic choice for furniture and other big-ticket items that are typically shipped shrinkwrapped. Being chemically inert also ensures that Microfoam Green will not tarnish or corrode the protected products, and because it is made without any curing agents, there is no grease residue to transfer onto the products during transit. Available in 1/16-inch thickness and a choice of 24-, 36- and 72-inch roll widths, Microfoam Green is formulated to cover a diverse range of protective packaging applications across the agriculture, automotive, construction, electronics, appliances, food, fulfillment/mail order, furniture, housewares, moving/storage, pharmaceutical, publishing and transportation markets, according to Pregis.

AUTOMATIC TRAY SEALERS HYGENIC - RELIABLE & HIGHLY EFFICIENT With the new Multivac automatic in-line tray sealers, we have combined our industry-leading hygienic design, machine reliability and easy to use control system to offer simple packaging solutions. Our driving design principles focus on resource conservation and production efďŹ ciency with abilities to change tray sizes within 10 minutes. These innovative machines deliver optimal packaging results with air, MAP, skin (VSP), SkinFOIL, foil, FreshSAFE, slicepack and Mirabella applications. In addition, their ground-breaking intuitive user interface makes them simple to operate and to change tools. Our automatic tray sealers are ideally suited for a wide range of applications including: food, medical products, consumer and industrial goods.

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www.multivac.com 110

ACCESS THE GLOBAL PACKAGING NETWORK ACCESS THE GLOBAL PACKAGING NETWORK

Food Safety

The apple of Leahy Orchards’ eye By Export Development Canada For 40 years, family-owned and operated Leahy Orchards has put a lot of effort and financial investment into making sure its products are safe and pure before leaving its facilities in Franklin Centre, Quebec. In fact, Leahy has achieved certification for meeting the requirements of SQF Level 3 for a Comprehensive Food Safety and Quality Management System, as well as several other certifications and compliance with a program of regular third-party audits and safety inspections. This investment in high quality and food safety has paid off: Leahy Orchards currently has approximately 70 percent of the market share for applesauce sold in Canada and three percent in the U.S., and the company also exports its products to Israel, Puerto Rico, Australia and Japan. But according to Don Keddy, Director of Sales and Marketing for Leahy’s U.S. market, on-site quality control can’t stand alone in ensuring food safety—they must also rely on equally rigorous quality controls from their packaging suppliers. “Food safety is such a big issue these days,” says Keddy. “You can make the best product in the world and have all the quality controls in place, but if the packaging doesn’t hold up and properly protect the contents, the product is rendered worthless or could even be dangerous. That’s why we must rely on reputable packaging suppliers to be our partners in this important part of the process. Quality packaging is a critical component of our continued success.” The food safety process starts at Leahy’s state-of-the-art facility in Franklin Centre, Quebec, where over 170,000,000 pounds of fruit is processed annually. Here, Leahy invests in timely renovations and equipment updates to ensure

the process is as clean, efficient and fast as possible. “The faster the equipment, the faster the freshness is locked into a sterilized container, and the faster it gets from the orchard to the customer,” Keddy says. Leahy uses three types of packaging for its apple sauce—glass, tin and plastic cups with foil lids. “We rely on our packaging suppliers to ensure that our packaging, no matter the format, is consistent and consistently meets our specifications. There’s also a UV barrier impregnated in our plastic containers, so they have a longer shelf life.” Exporting to external markets Although food safety starts at home, quality-control processes must transcend borders. The containers also help support Leahy’s HACCP (Hazards Analysis Critical Control Points) accreditation, an internationally recognized approach to guaranteeing food safety, especially to external markets. According to Keddy, “This includes a management system of packaging that, if an emergency situation should ever arise due to food safety, the production code alone allows us to trace the product right back to the orchard and bin from which it originated.” Lynn Côté, Sector Advisor at Export Development Canada (EDC), says the renewed global focus on food safety provides many opportunities for Canadian companies in the packaging industry. “Countries such as Mexico, Chile, Columbia and China and many emerging markets offer huge opportunities for food packagers, processors, equipment makers and exporters,” says Côté. “EDC can provide

comprehensive information about markets that are interested in advanced packaging technology that keeps food fresher, prolongs shelf life and eliminates food-safety risks.” “Putting safety standards into practice takes a real commitment, but it’s an important part of doing business,” Keddy sums up. “It’s something we must take very seriously and I believe it’s made us a better company.”

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Ernst & Young Global Packaging Index — ﬁve-year 140

5-year EY GPI

130

5-year S&P 500

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The Ernst & Young Global Packaging Index tracks the performance of the most widely traded global packaging companies relative to the benchmark S&P 500 composite index. During the third quarter of 2011, there were many significant M&A transactions in the North American packaging space, including Cascades Tissue Group, Inc.’s acquisition of the remaining 50% stake in Papersource Converting Mill Corp., the acquisition of U.S. Corrugated, Inc. by KapStone Kraft Paper Corporation, and the merger of International Paper Co.’s Shorewood Packaging business with Atlas Holdings’ AGI World consumer packaging business.

We are pleased to provide this important packaging investment report from PAC member Ernst & Young

Ken Brooks, Global Packaging Leader +1 514 874 4412 ken.m.brooks@ca.ey.com

Ernst & Young Global Packaging Index — ﬁve-year 140

5-year EY GPI

130

5-year S&P 500

120 110 100 90 80 70 60 50 Se p 0 De 6 c 0 M 6 ar 0 Ju 7 n 0 Se 7 p 0 De 7 c 0 M 7 ar 0 Ju 8 n 0 Se 8 p 0 De 8 c 0 M 8 ar 0 Ju 9 n 0 Se 9 p 0 De 9 c 0 M 9 ar 1 Ju 0 n 1 Se 0 p 1 De 0 c 1 M 0 ar 1 Ju 1 n 1 Se 1 p 11

We are pleased to provide this important packaging investment report from PAC member Ernst & Young

Ken Brooks, Global Packaging Leader +1 514 874 4412 ken.m.brooks@ca.ey.com

Find out more about PACsecure at www.pacsecure.com | To learn more about EDC go to www.edc.ca

november 2011 • CANADIAN PACKAGING

WWW.CAnADIAnPACKAGInG.Com • 13

PHARMA-PACK NOW The RMAC Surgical facility in Mississauga, Ont., employs a Multivac R 145 thermoformer to repackage pouches of sterile medical labels for use in hospitals and medical clinics.

SAFETY FIRST Medical labels manufacturer keeps things clean and sterile with new thermoforming machine ANDREW JOSEPH, FEATURES EDITOR PHOTOS BY COLE GARSIDE

round the world, hospital staff are always on the go, quickly moving from one emergency to the next with little time in between. Because such a fast-paced environment is inevitably prone to mistakes of all sorts, one Torontoarea company has developed a set of specification labels designed to help healthcare staff properly follow all the pertinent medical protocols and procedures to ensure medication errors are duly eliminated throughout the process. Based in Mississauga, Ont., RMAC Surgical Inc. is fully-dedicated to providing a better way for hospital personnel to keep track of sterile medications in the field to keep patients safe. Founded in 1996 by company president Ronald MacLeod, a former registered nurse and a certified cardiovascular perfusionist, the company first found its market niche by developing a set of medication labels known as PharmaTags: Sterile

Leeson Speedmaster controls the power and speed of a Weber Packaging 5300 printer-applicator used to create ID labels for the outside of PharmaTags pouches.

14 • WWW.CANADIANPACKAGING.COM

Medication Labels (Pharma Tags: SML) for use in operating rooms, cardiac catherization labs, interventional radiology suites, and ambulatory surgical clinics throughout Canada and the U.S. “When I came up with the idea for the sterile labels, I was still working in the operating room. It was my job to stop the heart and keep the blood f lowing and keep the patient stable while surgeons did their job,” MacLeod told Canadian Packaging during a recent visit to the 5,000-square-foot, perfume-free facility staffed by 12 dedicated employees. “One weekend when I got called in and saw just how rushed the staff were, I noticed that it was very easy for medications to get mixed up during the mad rush to save a patient’s life,” recalls MacLeod. “That’s when the idea of a sterile medication labeling kit hit me as a way to help prevent errors in the operating room.”

In use, the differently-colored clearly marked labels are taken from a sterile packaged kit and are opened up within the sterile medical area. Expiry dates and dosage amounts are then handfilled, with the labels placed onto the appropriate medicinal packaging of such items as Normal Saline 0.9%, Triamcinolone Cream 0.5%, Bupivacaine, Lidocaine Plain, Lidocaine with EPI 1:100,000, Ropivacaine/Naropin, Oxymetazoline/Afrin 0.05%, Betadine, Omnipaque, Methylene Blue, Bacitracin Ointment, Cocaine, and Ancef (Cefazolin) 1gm, to name just a few. Because these labels are used for liquid-based medications, RMAC utilizes a synthetic label stock for its PharmaTags:SMLs rather than a paper-based label which can absorb water and break apart. In fact, MacLeod guarantees that his PharmaTags: SML will never rip, break apart or leave an adhesive residue when removed from stainless-steel solution bowls, basins or medical cups. The standard pre-printed medication label sets come with a permanent waterproof, non-smearing marking pen—manufactured by East Hanover, NJ-based Viscot Medical, LLC—that unlike

Simple Stuff Being such a simple creation makes one wonders why it was never thought of before MacLeod came up with it. But despite containing everything medical staff will need prior to the actual surgical operation to ensure there will be no errors in handling medicinal supplies, the PharmaTags packs took a while to catch on. MacLeod says that for the first couple of years of operation he only had a single customer, doubling that in 1998. But since then, positive word-ofmouth and industry buzz have enabled the business to bloom, as RMAC now produces millions of medical safety packs annually. “Right now, owing to the larger volume of medical clinics and hospitals, the U.S. is our primary market, followed by Canada, with some of our products being sold to facilities around the world,” MacLeod relates.

RMAC Surgical Inc. president Ronald MacLeod stands beside the company’s new Multivac R145 displaying pouches of PharmaTags sealed by the thermoformer.

CANADIAN PACKAGING • NOVEMBER 2011

PHARMA-PACK NOW full line of surgical skin through a validated sealer,” recalls MacLeod. “And markers; and a RMACwhile that was fine for awhile, we reached our designed STOP TENT maximum packaging efficiency back in 2010.” (Surgical Time Out Not wanting to stagnate the company’s growth Procedure) pause card potential, MacLeod then purchased a brand new that is placed over scalR 145 thermoformer from noted global packaging pels to act as a final equipment manufacturer Multivac Inc., and procheck for surgical staff. ceeded to watch his business blossom. After physically signThe R 145 thermoformer packs and seals 40 packs ing off on the card before of PharmaTags product per minute, he relates, and the actual initial cutting when RMAC also adds in the time spent to label, of the skin, MacLeod it now takes a total of 48 minutes to do an order of explains that the STOP 300 packs of its most complicated kits. TENT becomes a bindCompared to the pre-Multivac days, MacLeod says ing, legal document that the same job would take three hours and 36 minutes. may be placed in the “Now, that’s efficiency,” smiles MacLeod. patient’s chart. Purchased in February of 2011, the stainlessSEW-Eurodrive MOVITRAC frequency A Baldor motor ensures smooth and effiBeing an ISO steel, modular-design R 145 features a touchscreen inverters provide optimal energy efficiency 1345-registered, cient operating productivity for an Emplex control panel, production data acquisition and for the Multivac R 145 machine. MPS 6000 pouch sealer. USFDA (United storage, a hygienic chain guard design and stateStates Food and of-the-art lifting system. Being IP 65-rated for full standard surgical skin markers will not smear or Drug Administration)-established and Health washdown compatibility, it boasts other hygienic bleed when writing on the PharmaTags labels. Canada-licensed privately-owned medical device aspects that are perfect for the medical, pharma“We also offer free custom-ordering services to manufacturer, RMAC has seen the market segceutical and nutraceutical segments. best suit the needs of your medical facility,” notes ment get f lush with various imitators in recent “It has a smooth, sloping surface with no recesses, MacLeod, “to ensure you get exactly what you years, according to MacLeod. corners or sharp edges, making it very easy to need rather than what RMAC assumes you want.” “It’s a very competitive business,” says MacLeod. clean,” notes MacLeod. “And its chain-guide, MacLeod has also recently developed Pharma “It used to be just us in North America, but now chain and motors inside are all easily accessible Tags: Anaesthesia Roll Labels (PharaTags:ARL), there are about a dozen other companies involved. through the fully-removable side panels.” designed for use in procedural areas of hospitals “But we were the first to bring this technology The machine also offers an optional automated CIP and day-surgery clinics. to market, and we still think we manufacture the (cleaning in place) capability that allows for the cleanAseptik, Canadian Packaginging Buyer‘s 200 mm, CC-en24-AZ098 07/11 According to MacLeod, these labels are larger best product out there. When we make improveto beGuide, tracked133 andxrecorded. Continues on page 16 than any other brand of anaesthesia labels curments to our sterile label kits, we often see our rently available in the market, noting that a larger competitors make the label allows for larger text fonts and greater color same changes shortly recognition for the user reducing the chance of thereafter.” misidentification. It’s a bold claim, Like the Sterile Medication Labels, the PharmaTags: but it is duly backed ARL use colors that are consistent with ASTM up with a company’s (American Society For Testing and Materials) standards commitment to confor user-applied medication labels in anaesthesia tinuous improvement and critical care. through automation. In addition, they are also 100 percent Joint Commission “When we first on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations got started, we were (JCAHO)-compliant, including the revisions to in our Class 10,000 NPSG3d that were made in February of 2006. cleanroom, hand-plaOther innovative healthcare aids offered by cing labels, the STOP RMAC include: The Mini, a one-third-the-size/ TENT and M.I.S. one-third-the-cost single-patient use pre-operaSunshine, into our tive surgical skin marker; low-cost disposable sterpre-formed pouches ile surgical light sources called M.I.S. Sunshine; a and then feeding it

Safety for sensitive products – aseptic filling with krones. www.krones.com Plant employees placing PharmaTags product components in the lower web of the newly-installed Multivac R 145 thermoformer used for sterile pouch formation. FOR MORE INFORMATION CIRCLE

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NOVEMBER 2011 • CANADIAN PACKAGING

CC-en24-AZ098_07_11.indd 1

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PHARMA-PACK NOW Doing millions of packages a year, with plenty of room to grow, MacLeod says that just MacLeod has also been prior to purchasing the R 145 completely impressed by the he had been contemplating Multivac experience. Not only adding the additional cost of a did technicians come in and second shift to keep up with quickly install the machine, but demand for his products. also provided on-site training “With the Multivac R 145 until the operators were comthermoformer, I am now able Housed within the control panel of the pletely sure of its workings. to actually allow myself to Multivac R 145, a pair of 24-volt Siemens “We’re still getting used to take on more customers as I it, and are fine-tuning the way Sitop power supplies ensure efficient and increase my production f low,” we can best utilize it for the consistent thermoformer operation. he adds. “My ROI (return-onspecific materials we are packinvestment) time is not going ing,” notes MacLeod. “We’re currently running to be very long at all, and I now have the ability the R 145 at a speed of seven cycles per minute, to take on contract medical packaging business for but as our knowledge grows, we’ll soon ramp up companies that need to outsource their packaging the speed to 10 cycles per minute.” needs,” he states. SAFETY FIRST Continued from page 15

Another key selling point for RMAC is the fact that Multivac has a nearby office a mere 20 minutes away, so should the need ever arise, all the replacement parts for the R 145 can be quickly supplied. “By using the Multivac, we were actually able to go to a slightly smaller packaging length and width because of the way the thermoformer forms the tray,” explains MacLeod adding that the bottom web of the packaging material is made of Tyvek, a slightly thicker and more expensive film manufactured by DuPont, but that the shift in size to a smaller package has helped RMAC be more cost-efficient. “We actually save about $500 a month on the film required for the pouches,” notes MacLeod. “But what really matters is that we get a more professional-looking pouch.” The new thicker-pack pouches are labeled via a Weber model 5300 printer-applicator, with each label containing company data, product name, lot numbers and expiration date information.

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Corrugated cartons manufactured by Norus Packaging are used to pack completed pouches of RMAC Surgical’s PharmaTags.

Other packaging equipment and supplies used at the facility include: • a TB-399 inkjet printer from Rena Systems, Inc. to manufacture the color labels; • an MPS-600 pouch sealer from Emplex Systems Inc.; • corrugated cartons manufactured by Woodbridge, Ont.-based Norus Packaging Ltd. “As a repacker of sterile medical instruments, it is important to ensure that what we provide our customers is a truly helpful set of products that can help them save lives, as well as assure them that what they are receiving from RMAC comes in a sterile, wellsealed package,” concludes MacLeod. “With our Multivac R 145 thermoformer providing our pouch packs for us, we don’t have to worry about our packaging, and can instead focus on providing a great line of products for our customers.”

For More Information: Multivac Canada Inc. Weber Packaging Solutions, Inc. Leeson Canada Rena Systems Emplex Systems Inc. Norus Packaging Ltd. DuPont SEW-Eurodrive Co. of Canada Baldor Electric Company Siemens Canada Limited

481 482 483 484 485 486 487 488 489 490

Visit www.SEreply.com Key Code g598v Visit www.schneider-electric.us/go/biometric ©2011 Schneider Electric. All Rights Reserved. Schneider Electric and Harmony are trademarks owned by Schneider Electric Industries SAS or its afﬁliated companies. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. • 998-3791_US

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CANADIAN PACKAGING • NOVEMBER 2011

“We found a sustainable Packaging solution in canadian Packaging” —Mike Pearce, Black Fly Beverage Co.

Black Fly Ontario’s first Micro-Distillery develops and produces top selling vodka and tequila mixed drinks that are packaged and shipped across Canada. Black Fly found an answer to an environmental packaging objective in an ad in Canadian Packaging Magazine. Mike explains, “Intertape OXO-Biodegradable stretch wrap advertised by Canpaco fits perfectly with Black Fly’s green packaging objectives. Such green initiatives contributed to Black Fly’s recent award for Environmental Commitment & Ongoing Green Initiatives from the Liquor Control Board of Ontario (LCBO). Now we are asking all our suppliers to use this biodegradable film too.” canadian Packaging magazine works! call today for details on what an integrated print and digital ad campaign can do to boost your sales.

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BULK PACKAGING

SOY MUCH BETTER NOW New robotic bagger opens up big new productivity opportunities for soybean exporter

ANDREW JOSEPH, FEATURES EDITOR PHOTOS BY PIERRE LONGTIN

he humble soybean has generally been recognized for the past 4,000 years as a prime staple food and medicinal ingredient in Asia, but it has only recently been widely embraced by the rest of the world as a tasty legume packing incredibly nutritional value for human consumption. Broadly used today in its green immature pod form of edamame, salty packages of soy sauce, soft and jiggly tofu, fermented protein-rich natto, silkysweet soy beverages, tasty miso pastes or merely as the dry crunchy soy bean, its versatility is arguably second to none in modern food production. While the soybean was first introduced to U.S. farmers as far back as 1765, Canada did not see the cultivation of soy on its soil until 1855. But despite its relative late entry to the game, Canada has become a major player in growing food-grade soybeans for the Asian market, with the privatelyowned S.G Ceresco Inc. helping to lead the way. With its head-office situated in Saint-UrbainPremier district along the south shore of Montreal, Ceresco employs more than 70 people to handle, store and package vast quantities of soybean shipped in bulk from approximately 450 soybean producers across Quebec, collectively harvesting thousands of acres of purple f lowering fields. “We are not specifically soybean farmers, and we don’t process it,” explains director of operations Manuel Gendron. “After we receive the harvested soybeans, we screen the product—what we call conditioning—place it in storage, and then bag

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The Premier Tech Chronos PTH-920 open-mouth bagging line at the Ceresco facility in Saint-Urbain-Premier has enabled the soybean distributor to vastly improve its production line efficiencies.

Positioned inside the PTH-920 bagging workcell, a FANUC Robotics LR Mate 250iC robot waits its turn to move a filled soybean bag from the filler onto a conveyor line for sealing.

and distribute it to our customers who will further process it.” Founded by the Gripon family back in 1981 with a purchase of a 100-hectare farm, the company originally used the farm’s existing grain-cleaning equipment to meet the needs of a few local producers involved in oats, barley and soy cultivation. By 1988, the Semences Gripon began selling its cleaned soybeans to European customers and by 1990 shipping to Asia with an initial shipment of 50 containers, totalling over 1,000 tons of soybeans to new customers in Hong Kong, Malaysia and Singapore.

beans are non-GMO (genetically modified organism), with 40 per cent being the so-called Identity Preserved (IP) varieties and the rest being conventional or IP varieties from other seed companies. All Ceresco soybeans are produced primarily for human consumption markets in Asia, Europe and North America, he adds. “About 60 per cent of our volume is sold to Japan— we have a sales office in Yokohama—with an additional 20 per cent for the rest of Asia.

Early Growth “By 1993 the company made some major investments with the construction of storage silos and warehouses and the purchase of a second soybean conditioning line,” recalls Gendron. “It then acquired the commercial rights of the Colibri variety of natto soybeans and by 1996 had taken the lead in exports to Japan of soybean intended for human consumption.” After changing its name to Ceresco in 2001, paying tribute to the mythological Roman goddess of agriculture, harvest and fertility, the company experienced incredible growth over the next decade, establishing its own research center in Saint-UrbainPremier over 500 hectacres of prime fertile farmland in the Montérégie region of the province of Quebec. Gendron says that 100 per cent of Ceresco soy-

S.G. Ceresco’s supervisor of production Patrice Perras (left) and Manuel Gendron, director of operations, show off some of the company’s soybean product.

CANADIAN PACKAGING • NOVEMBER 2011

BULK PACKAGING “Europe takes 10 per cent, with the remaining 10 per cent distributed to customers in the U.S. and Canada,” Gendron told Canadian Packaging magazine during a recent visit to its large 25,000-squarefoot facility boasting four floors of plant screening and 30,000 metric tons of silo storage capacity. “We are presently developing our market reach in China and Europe—two areas we feel hold great potential for us,” he adds. By establishing the highest-quality standards in the industry, Ceresco has acquired an excellent reputation worldwide that has helped it attract and retain high quality processing customers, according to Gendron. Thanks to the purity and wide variety of its seeds, stringent quality control measures, meticulous soybean screening and prompt customer service, Ceresco has become synonymous with premiumquality soybeans—today trading over 15 varieties of soybean, each with differing levels of characteristics such as proteins, oils, size, etc.

Eat The Rich “Soy is one of the richest natural foods on the planet,” begins Gendron. “It contains a large quantity of proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, vitamins A and B, potassium, calcium, magnesium, zinc and iron. “As well, regular consumption of soy can reduce hot f lashes, menopausal disorders, the development of osteoporosis and memory problems, along with providing measurable control of diabetes, a reduction of cardiovascular disease, and some cancers, such as colorectal, prostate and breast,” he continues. With such amazing health benefits traced to the soybean, consumption around the world has soared. While Ceresco does produce soy for its own processing, approximately 99 per cent of the product comes from other farms in Quebec, with some also imported from the U.S. “Our screening facility is open all-year-long, 24-hours-a-day, which is why we have the large silo storage facilities,” explains Gendron. “We only stop operations two weeks per year in order to do major preventative maintenance on our equipment, although minor preventative maintenance is performed regularily throughout the year,” he adds. Roughly 15 per cent of Ceresco’s product is packed in 30-kilogram and or 25-kg food-grade paper bags; five per cent is packed in one metric ton tote bags; 80 per cent is packed in bulk 20-foot and 40-foot containers, according to Gendron. “Paper has become our material of choice for the smaller bags, as our main customers in Japan are unable to dispose or recycle polybags unless they pay a fee,” mentions Gendron, adding that Gelpac Inc. of Marieville, Que. has for many years performed as an admirable supplier of the hardy three and four layer paper bags Ceresco uses depending on the customer. Helping Ceresco out is a new fully automated bagging line purchased through the Rivière-duLoup, Que.-based Premier Tech Chronos, an international leader in the development of hightech bag packing equipment. “With 15 per cent of the product being packaged in bags, we have been using an automated scale and palletizer since 2000, but with the on-going increase in volume sales and our expected increase in volume sales we had to purchase a new scale, bagger, sewer, tag and palletizing equipment that was more efficient,” Gendron relates. “We looked around, but the choice almost right from the beginning was surprisingly simple—we

NOVEMBER 2011 • CANADIAN PACKAGING

purchased a full line from Premier Tech because they have the best equipment.” Installed in June of 2011, the Premier Tech line has enabled Ceresco to achieve much faster throughput rates, Gendron confides. Whereas the older line was only able to produce about six to seven bags per minute, the new line basically doubled the output while also providing a better quality final package, as well as saving some bucks along the way. The PTH-920 open-mouth bagger provides a unique solution for users like Ceresco, according to Premier Tech. Designed specifically for free-flowing materials like soybeans, it works equally well with laminated polywoven, polyethylene and paper bags. While the PTH-920 itself is a semi-automatic machine, Ceresco fully automated it with Premier Tech’s ANDY, a patent-pending robotic transfer unit that helps increase the overall speed of the production line up to 20 bags per minute, depending on the bag size. “We are very proud of our ANDY,” reveals Gendron. “We are also one of the first companies in the world to utilize this technology, which has certainly made our production line faster, more accurate, and more reliable with minimum maintenance required. “We can now do up to 16 bags per minute, which adds f lexibility to our loading.” He adds: “We have also improved the quality of our bagging, as this machine has helped improve the efficiency of the sewer that seals the bag.”

Making Sense Noting that the bagger comes with a sensor that detects bag and sewing imperfections, Gendron says the bagger is very easy for the employees to work with—making troubleshooting both easier and rarer, as external adjustments for different widths and lengths can be easily performed with minimal downtime. “Along with the fact the bagger has a capacity to hold up to 250 bags at a time, I like that it has a bag

An Eriez E-Z tec metal detection system is used to search out fine particles of ferrous, nonferrous and stainless-steel particles to ensure optimal product safety.

detection system on the spout which helps avoid spillage of soybeans onto the f loor,” says Gendron. “It’s little things like that which help make this a great machine for us.” Gendron says Ceresco selected Premier Tech after going to the Pack Expo International 2010 trade show in Chicago to compare similar equipment. “After we talked with our suppliers, they all mentioned Premier Tech,” says Gendron. “And after talking with Premier Tech, my impression was they were the only ones who asked us about our specific needs. That was very important to us.” From the very beginning of the purchase process, Ceresco’s project, maintenance and production teams interacted with Premier Tech’s technical staff to ensure its needs were fully understood, and that the limitations of the equipment could be explained to them long before the issue of price was raised. “The Premier Tech representative was also technical in his facts, which I appreciate very much,” notes Gendron. While quality and price were also a factor in the decision to purchase from Premier Tech, Gendron says going local also played a large role in the decision. “Because we are in Quebec, we wanted an autoContinues on page 20

After passing through an Eriez metal detection system, bags move up a conveyor and into an AP-425 high-level palletizer built by Premier Tech Chronos. Inset: A pair of SEW-Eurodrive AC motors are used to power the Premier Tech AP-425 palletizer at the Ceresco bagging facility.

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BULK PACKAGING

Manufactured by Videojet Technologies, a Marsh PatrionPlus large-character coder applies product data, lot code and best-before information to each bag of Ceresco product.

A WCA-Smart turntable stretchwrapper stabilizes and secures loads of bags of soybeans prior to shipment. SOY MUCH BETTER NOW Continued from page 19

mated screen in the French language—something that was an issue with other suppliers,” explains Gendron, adding Ceresco didn’t want a custommanufactured line that would come with custommanufactured problems to be ironed out. “When you invest money in equipment, it has to be reliable.” After soybean conditioning, the product is carefully measured out in 30-kg increments on a Premier Tech Chronos E-55 net weigh scale, the

PTH-920 bagger fills a bag and a Fanuc Robotics LR Mate 200iC robotic system sold and integrated by Premier Teach Chronos, takes the bag from the bagger and places it onto a conveyance system where a Packing & Palletizing Company dualtagger adds up to two tags per bag detailing customer name, crop and lot data, expiration date and the soybean variety, after which it is sealed via a Fischbein LLC 400 sewing machine. “The secret to having a good automated sewing line,” offers Gendron, “is to always keep the gusset, the side of the mouth of the bag, closed. That’s something the PTH-920 bagger does working in perfect harmony with the Fanuc robotic system to produce such great results for us.” After being sewn shut, the bags pass a Marsh PatrionPlus largecharacter coder, manufactured by Videojet Technologies Inc.,

that applies lot code data to the sealed bags. Afterward, an Eriez model E-Z Tec metal detection system, purchased in 2010 and adapted to the new Premier Tech line by Ceresco engineers, is used to scan for foreign materials before it is stacked on an AP-425 high-level palletizer and readied for transport by a WCA-Smart turntable stretchwrapper, manufactured by Wulftec International of Ayer’s Cliff, Que., a division of the M.J. Maillis Group. Gendron says that the soybean market is a tricky place to make a buck, owing to very thin margins and nature of the niche market. “In order to remain profitable, Ceresco is always concentrating on the details,” he says. “Whether it’s saving a few dollars on the film for the bags or gaining faster production time to enable us to take on more customers or creating a better soybean, Ceresco is always looking at the details. “We are not in a high-volume, lowest-price business,” relates Gendron. “So we try to be different by offering better varieties, more packaging customized for each customer—basically providing higher-quality product overall. “We do what we have to do to be reliable, f lexible and adaptable,” he sums up, “which is why we need our equipment to perform the same way.”

An AP-425 model high-level automatic palletizer with harmonic motion is used to stack bags of soybeans squarely onto the shipping pallets.

For More Information: Gelpac Inc. Premier Tech Chronos FANUC Robotics Canada, Ltd. Fischbein LLC Packing & Palletizing Company Inc. Videojet Technologies Canada Eriez Manufacturing Co. Wulftec International

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CANADIAN PACKAGING • NOVEMBER 2011

AUTOMATE NOW From Left: Steam Whistle Brewing communications director Sybil Taylor, Nuspark vice-president of operations Felix Elent, Schneider Electric senior sales specialist Renzo Mueller, Schneider Electric business development manager Luc Richard, and Steam Whistle Brewing plant engineer Sergei Mikhniouk pose alongside the Nuspark model NTL-50 case-packing machine installed in the summer of 2007.

FULL STEAM FORWARD Thriving Toronto craft brewer taking its growth to the next level with modern packaging automation technologies

BY GEORGE GUIDONI, EDITOR PHOTOS BY COLE GARSIDE

ime never really stands still in today’s highly competitive and fiercely contested beer market, and it’s clear that the folks in charge of the Toronto-based beermaker Steam Whistle Brewing have been putting that time to good use in terms of both extending the company’s reach into new markets and by continually upgrading production and packaging capabilities of their highly successful brewing enterprise located near the Toronto lakeshore at The Roundhouse, a one-time locomotive servicing and repair facility that has served as its home digs since the company’s startup in 1996. Having just recently secured distribution rights to market its f lagship Steam Whistle Pilsner brand

throughout the Province of Manitoba—significantly boosting the company’s Canadian market presence that also covers Ontario, British Columbia and Alberta—Steam Whistle appears to be pulling off an unheard-of feat of posting double-digit growth rates in what is widely held to be a generally f lat and mature marketplace with few opportunities for quick organic growth. According to the brewery’s plant engineer Sergei Mikhniouk, demand for the company’s f lagship pilsner product—still the one and only beer made by the company as a matter of principle and choice—has been growing by 15 to 20 per cent over the last two years, requiring additional investment in brewing and packaging capacity that is now starting to swing into full gear underneath the roof of its historically-designated facility that is also one of Toronto’s most popular tourist attractions, blessed with close walking proximity to the Rogers Centre stadium, ACC hockey arena, CN Tower and a host of other nearby landmarks.

Quality Edge

Bladder-type rubber grippers installed on the ELAUdriven delta-type robots employed inside the NTL-50 case-packer used to pack bottles into cases help ensure smooth and gentle handling of the green glass bottles.

NOVEMBER 2011 • CANADIAN PACKAGING

“It is quite a remarkable performance for the beer industry, but it just shows what one can achieve when you make a good quality product that consumers enjoy, as well as package it in a way that leaves them with long-lasting positive impression,” Mikhniouk told Canadian Packaging on a recent visit to the lively Steam Whistle plant, perpetually buzzing with activity even on nonproduction days. “We use specially-made bottles that are about 30-percent thicker than the industry-standard glass beer bottles, which means that they will keep the beer colder much longer than the competing brands, and we use state-of-the-art bottle inspection technology to make sure that all our bottles are defect-free and perfectly filled each and every time,” states Mikhniouk, relating that the plant’s ongoing production capacity growth is being capably supported with some innovative, fullyautomated case-packing technology manufactured in Canada by the Toronto-based machine-builder Nuspark Inc.

Utilizing two ELAU servomotors driving delta-style robots, the two model NTL-50 casepackers—one for the bottling line and one for the canning—have had a significant impact on improving packaging efficiency and product quality, according to Mikhniouk, who worked closely with Nuspark vice-president Felix Elent and industrial automation components manufacturer Schneider Electric to enable the two case-packaging systems to achieve optimal operational efficiency and f lexibility to suit the brewer’ evolving production requirements. “Using these case-packers enables us to run our bottles at about 220 units per minute—and up to 250 bottles per minute if necessary—and our cans can now run at about 270 units per minute,” says Mikhniouk, who first oversaw the installation of a NTL-50 case-packer on the bottling line in March of 2008, shortly followed by the arrival of the second NTL-50 unit in June of that year. “After the success we had with the first machine on our bottling line,” he recalls, “it was natural for us to turn to Nuspark again to help speed up the packaging on the canning line as well.” Before the 2008 arrival of the Nuspark case-packing equipment, the Steam Whistle plant was producing 60,000 bottles per day, Mikhniouk recalls, Continues on page 22

Imported from Central America, the distinctive green bottles used to package the Steam Whistle Pilsner brand are about 30-percent thicker than the industry-standard glass bottles, enabling superior product protection and much improved insulation properties.

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AUTOMATE NOW FULL STEAM FORWARD Continued from page 21

“and between 10 and 15 per cent of those bottles would be rejects, caused by rough handling of the bottles by the original drop-packer we had in place. “After installing and modifying the NTL we went to producing about 79,000 bottles per day, so you can certainly call this installation a big success for us,” Mikhniouk explains, “and today we can easily fill and package up to 85,000 bottles and around 90,000 cans per day. “Moreover, the bottle rejects problems we were experiencing before have virtually been eliminated, due to the gentle handling action of the grippers,” says Mikhniouk, praising the smooth bottle handling enabled by the 24 bladder-type grippers installed with the ELAU-driven delta robots to pack bottles. “Once we have a set of 24 bottles collated at the infeed conveyor, they pass through the NTL machine via a tunnel in a single row, where the 24 bladder-type grippers gently lift all the bottles at once and swiftly load them into the beer cases in one smooth movement,” he explains. “The grippers leave a little space around the crown on top of the bottles, which have sharp edges, and actually ‘squeeze’ each bottle around the neck to get a secure grip before depositing them into the proper slots in the case,” he says. For its part, the second NTL model case-packer on the canning line employs vacuum-operated suction-cup grippers to manipulate and pack the filled cans of beer into the distinctive-green cartons supplied by the Concord, Ont.-based paperboard and corrugated packaging converter Packaging Technologies Inc. (PTI). “We have had some real success with these casepackers this past summer,” recalls Mikhniouk, explaining that it was the first summer during which the plant would sometime run both the bot-

tling and canning lines on the same day to keep up with buoyant market demand for the Steam Whistle Pilsner brand. “While the plant currently runs its packaging operations only three to four days a week, using the rest of the time for machine maintenance and facility upkeep and cleaning, based on our growth projections it is just a matter of time before we will need to raise our production outputs,” he says, “and it is good to know that the case-packing systems we have in place right now will continue to serve us into the future to meet our growing needs.” So far, the biggest obstacle to boosting production levels in a major way has been attributed to the fact that the plant’s existing bottle-washer can only handle 12,000 bottles per hour at maximum speeds, but the pending arrival of a new, state-of-the-art Krones bottle-washer from Germany—scheduled for installation in February of 2012—will effectively address that limitation, according to Mikhniouk.

Big Plans “We have some very big and exciting plans for this plant in the near future,” he remarks. “The new washer will have the capacity to wash 18,000 to 20,000 bottles per hour, so we’ll really be able to ramp up our production capacity here in a big way,” says Mikhniouk, adding the plant typically employs about a dozen people per shift to run its bottling operations, with another seven employees running the much more space-restricted canning operation in the adjacent production room. In fact, the small footprint and limited f loorspace in the canning room provided Steam Whistle and Nuspark with significant installation challenges, recalls Mikhniouk, which were resolved by first installing the NTL case-packer into place and then designing the mezzanine and conveyor systems around it to fit into the available space. More recently, he adds, the Steam Whistle plant

A SACMI bottle filling line quickly fills bottles of Steam Whistle Pilsner at the Toronto brewery.

has also automated its end-of-line packaging operations with the installation of a model A-Arm stretchwrapping system from local machinebuilder Cousins Packaging Inc. to ensure reliable product stability and protection of its shipped loads of beer cans, bottles and the heavy-duty kegs sent to Steam Whistle’s hospitality industry customers, which still account for about 30 per cent of the company’s sales. According to Nuspark’s Elent, both high-performance NTL case-packers take full advantage of Schneider Electric’s advanced ELAU technology to ensure highly energy-efficient and f lexible operations, adding that this technology is also widely incorporated in Nuspark’s other packaging systems such as case-erectors and palletizers, among others. “This technology really provides us with the means to enable true plug-and-play operation,” Elent remarks, noting that both NTL case-packers, A close-up view inside the NTL-50 case-packer used on the brewer’s canning line employs vacuum-operated suction caps to place filled cans of beer into their proper spots in the passing beer-cases below. A SEW-Eurodrive motor ensures optimal power distribution on material handling equipment employed at the Steam Whistle brewery.

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CANADIAN PACKAGING • NOVEMBER 2011

AUTOMATE NOW

The innovative beer cases used by Steam Whistle Brewing feature unique easy-tear strips for quick opening of the cases for immediate attractive display at retail level, while providing a handy second carrier for the empty cans.

cases of canned beer for quick-and-safe opening and effective display capabilities.

Market Appeal each offering 50-kilogram payload capacity, were up-and-running within two days of their arrival. Says Elent: “When it comes to electrical controls, Schneider Electric is the standard technology that we like to use on all our equipment, especially when we use multiaxis, servo motion-control technology. “There is no PLC (programmable logic controller) used in these machines—just the standard ELAU motion controller,” he says, adding that while Nuspark can incorporate other manufacturers’ control technology in its machine designs, “we simply like to use the best technology that is available in the marketplace. “The ELAU system is a very powerful machine controller that offers both motion and logic control. In 80 per cent or more of the cases, our machinery does not really need to have an additional PLC in it,” says Elent, estimating that Nuspark currently has an installation base of about 400 packaging machines around the world, employed in the foodand-beverage, packaging, pharmaceutical, automotive and other key industries. With about a third of Nuspark’s nearly 50 An Omnivision I empty bottle inspector ensures thorough high-speed inspection with excellent repeatability and reliability with minimal false rejects.

employees being fully-trained engineers, “We are a company that is very well-respected in industry circles for being able to execute all sorts of hard, challenging and unique projects for our customers, and I do believe that our comfort and familiarity with the Schneider Electric control technologies is one of the key factors that gives us a good competitive edge in the marketplace. “We never compromise on the quality of our machines—it is the Number One rule in our company,” he states, “which is why we never cut corners by using cheap components. “When we sell a machine to our customers, we really put our reputation on the line, so we have to be able to stand behind our technology at all times after the purshase—even long after the warranty has run out.” This mindset perfectly complements Steam Whistle’s own proactive approach to product quality and packaging presentation, according to Mikhniouk, explaining why the company will only buy the best packaging products available, including high-quality aluminum cans from Crown in the U.K., extrathick green-tinged glass bottles sourced from Central America, and highly-decorative beer cartons from PTI boasting unique packaging features such as the easy-open tear-strips running the full length of the

“From a marketing perspective, these robotic packers have really been able to improve the presentation of our products to our customers in a significant way,” adds Steam Whistle director of communications Sybil Taylor. “Long ago, we used to get complaints from our customers about the bottles being chipped when thy clanked together during case-packing, but that just doesn’t happen any more thanks to the delicate bottle placement that this NTL machine performs. “We have excellent packaging design capabilities inhouse, and we use them to full effect to make packaging a really beautiful piece of marketing collateral, with interesting design elements, that Canadian consumers really seem to enjoy and appreciate—enabling us to keep growing right across the country.”

For More Information: Nuspark Inc. Schneider Electric Omnivision Filltec Packaging Technologies Inc. Crown Holdings Inc. Sacmi Filling SEW-Eurodrive Co. of Canada

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METAL DETECTION

X-RATED FOR EXCELLENCE

Rising food safety and quality concerns drive demand for X-ray inspection technology BY TERRY WOOLFORD

ith food and product safety increasingly becoming a hot-button industry issue, more and more progressive food manufacturers are turning to new-generation X-ray inspection systems to protect their brands from becoming victimized by poor product quality that can do irreparable damage to their reputation with the consumers. With a high-quality X-ray inspection system, manufacturers are able to control and verify product quality right on the production line by identifying unwelcome contaminants such as metal, stone, glass, dense plastics and calcified bone while also reducing their overall maintenance and ownership costs, since many new X-ray systems now combine the jobs that would normally need more than one machine to perform. For example, in addition to contaminant identification, X-ray systems can carry out recipe management, while also simultaneously perform inline quality checks such as measuring mass, counting components, identifying missing or broken products, monitoring fill levels, inspecting seal integrity, and checking for damaged products and packaging. When selecting an X-ray machine, manufacturers should always consider speed as a key factor, and for the most part, new-generation X-ray inspection systems are designed to meet the most demanding high-throughput rates demanded in most manufacturing environments and application requirements. While some food manufacturers may feel reluctant to invest in X-ray technology over concerns about the quality of their end product being undermined by X-ray radiation, available scientific evidence from the World Health Organization (WHO) confirms that food radiation levels up to 10,000 sievert (the standard unit for the amount of absorbed radiation dose) do not affect food’s safety or nutritional value. Typically, food that passes through an X-ray inspection system spends about 250 milliseconds in

The PRO Series of X-ray systems from Eagle Product Inspection provide enhanced interfaces and improved contaminant detection via optimized MDX dual-energy algorithms for increased contaminant detection in difficult product applications.

the X-ray beam—an extremely short time gap during which the product receives a radiation dose of around 0.2 millisievert, or 0.002 sievert. As for concerns about the risk of operator exposure to harmful radiation generated by the X-ray inspection systems, it is worth noting that the average human is already exposed to about 2.4 millisievert of natural background radiation per year, and that the maximum dose rate immediately adjacent to an operational X-ray inspection system is 0.001 millisievert per hour—meaning an operator would have to be in direct contact with an X-ray system for 40 hours a week to receive 2.0 millisievert over a year.

Easy Use Like all modern industrial technologies, X-ray inspection systems continue to evolve, today offering enhanced graphical interfaces for operator ease-ofuse. Combined with the versatility of new software solutions, they also provide on-screen self-diagnostics, as well as full multilane and multiview capability to enable operators to monitor the systems on one screen. Most new systems also come equipped with Material Discrimination X-ray (MDX) dual-energy algorithms that increase contaminant detection of foreign bodies previously unseen by X-ray or any

EAGLE PI (formerly Smiths Detection PID), the global leader in X-ray technology for the inspection of food products, is pleased to announce, that due to continued growth in the Canadian marketplace, it has appointed Plan Automation Inc., as its sole distributor for Canada. The success achieved by Plan Automation in providing quality automation, and unrivalled customer support of the EAGLE PI product line to our customers, is a clear reflection of their position as the market leading distributor of packaging automation in Canada.

other conventional means—including historically undetectable inorganic contaminants such as glass shards, rocks, rubber and plastic. One of the more interesting new applications to have emerged for X-ray technology recently is fat analysis—the process of determining the fat content in a given product—which is becoming crucial for food manufacturers to meet the requirements of increasingly health-conscious consumers. So far, the so-called DEXA (dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry) technology has emerged as the most accurate and repeatable method of fat analysis. Designed to measure the amount of X-rays that are absorbed by the fat content and lean meat through the use of two specific X-ray energies—via evaluating the ratio of energy absorbed at a high energy to the level of energy absorbed at a lower energy—the technology infers the average atomic numbers of the product scanned to provide the chemical lean value, thereby determining how healthy and lean the food product is. Because of the ever-changing trends in the food industry, producers of X-ray inspection equipment need to consider new innovative packaging designs by being able to analyze all the new package shapes, sizes and materials, such as flexible packaging and pouches. As food and drug safety regulations continue to intensify, compliance and traceability through every stage of a product’s life-cycle will grow in importance—increasing the role played by inspection equipment serving, as both management and process control tools, to give company management the data it needs to make informed decisions in ensuring full safety and quality compliance. Terry Woolford, general manager of Eagle Product Inspection in Tampa, Fla., may be contacted at (877) 379-1670; or via email eaglesales@eaglepi.com

For More Information: Eagle Product Inspection

Who and what is Jowat Canada? Jowat is a world-class company founded in 1919. Our highly acclaimed Toptherm adhesives are setting a new reference in quality and performance in the packaging market. To support this Toptherm push a new Territory Manager, Eddy Di Credico, has been appointed to work in conjunction with our Eastern Canada Sales Manager Jean de Sousa to support our large existing clientèle and to develop furthermore the territory. The same support is brought to our Western Canada Sales Manager, John Wallace, with the appointment of Karrie Lalonde as Territory manager for Ontario. Her role will also be to work with John, supporting and bringing to market our exceptional packaging line of products.

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It’s about FOOD SAFETY.

• bulk (unpackaged) meat, poultry, seafood – AMI rated • packaged products • over 100 installations in Canada Interested in GFSI, BRC, HACCP? EAGLE X-Ray can deliver inspection results that can help you meet new program guidelines.

x-ray

IN-LINE X-RAY INSPECTION FOR FOOD

CANADA’S SOLE DISTRIBUTOR PROVIDING EAGLE TECHNICAL SALES AND SERVICE SUPPORT Packaging Automation Professionals

(416) 479-0777

www.planautomation.com

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Factory Certiﬁed X-Ray Field Technicians Based Across Canada Full X-Ray Technical Centre In Richmond Hill, Ontario Local Spare Parts Complete Radiological Certiﬁcation Services

METAL DETECTION

METAL METTLE

Stringent food safety compliance requirements set to drive industry-wide switch to new-generation inspection systems

The Anritsu model KD746 X-ray system can detect various types of metals and many other potential contaminants as small as 0.3-mm.

less important, since there isn’t much to be found in a true stainless-steel environment, and while some manufacturers decided to concentrate on upgrading their technology to include stainless-steel detection, others realized there was huge market need for more advanced inspection technologies not only to detect a far broader range of potential contaminants, but also to facilitate full product analysis, vast data storage capacity and, perhaps most importantly, full product traceability capabilities. “These are all the things that you will find in today’s X-Ray inspection systems,” Perrault states, while also quickly acknowledging that conventional metal detectors are still not likely to vanish any time soon.

Closing Gap

An E-Z Tec metal detection system from Eriez is used to pinpoint even the tiniest metal debris particles to prevent them from contact with the frozen-food products moving along the food-grade, polypropylene conveyor.

BY GEORGE GUIDONI, EDITOR

particles in response to foodmakers upgrading their machinery to stainless-steel construction as required oo much of a good thing is never really by HACCP (Hazardous Analysis and Control Points) enough in the food industry circles these and other similar food safety guidelines, most condays. Especially when it comes to food ventional metal detectors were never originally safety, as evidenced by a seemingly endless f lood intended to handle the steadily expanding list of of high-profile product recalls for a other potential contaminants such as bone broad array of foods ranging from fragments, glass, plastic, stone, etc. deli meats and dairy products to canSuch limitations are fairly signifitaloupes, lettuce and countless other cant challenges in light of today’s everyday food staples—frightening increasingly stringent food safety bewildered consumers and wreaking protocols and expectations of high havoc on unfortunate food companies product quality and purity, accordvictimized by nasty incidents of food The PHANTOM Stealth ing to JP Perrault, senior managseries metal detectors from contamination. ing partner with the Ontario-based Fortress boasts a userWhile the food industry’s use of automated packaging equipment disindustrial metal detection systems to friendly Icon graphic touchtributor and systems integrator Plan find and eliminate tiny ferrous and screen interface to enable Automation. nonferrous metal shards from worn- users of all skill levels to set Shift Change down processing machinery traces up products, perform tests With the experience of marketing back to the development of first indus- and produce reports. and distributing the full range of trial metal detector by Goring Kerr product inspection systems made by back in 1947, the technology is starting the Tampa, Fla.-based Eagle Product Detection to show signs of its limitations insofar as providing and the Toronto-based metal detectors manufacmodern-day food producers with a highly reliable turer Fortress Technology Inc., Perrault says automatic means of failproofing their products from he expects more progressive food manufacturcontamination on their high-speed, high-throughers to start embracing the new-generation X-Ray put production lines processing evergrowing volinspection systems to meet the higher compliumes of product and handling a vastly expanded ance requirements mandated by strict new quality range of package designs, shapes and materials. assurance protocols such as the Global Food Safety While still commanding over a half of the Initiative (GFSI). Canadian food inspection technologies market“The shift to stainless-steel machines in the food place estimated at about $100 million, the standard plants has really turned the food inspection sysindustrial metal detectors—based on a three-coil tems market upside down with new requirements design using an AM (amplitude modulated) transfor reliable, high-performance automatic inspection mitting coil and two receiving coils to detect technology offering many more detection capabiltramp metal particles of less than 1.0-mm—are ities than the rudimentary response to metallic presinherently limited by only detecting ferrous (ironence somewhere along the conveyor belt,” Perrault content) and nonferrous (iron-free) metal particles. told Canadian Packaging in a recent interview. Although some manufacturers have been able to “Suddenly finding mild-steel particles became update their technology to detect stainless-steel

26 • WWW.CANADIANPACKAGING.COM

“We still sell about eight to 10 metal detectors for every sold X-Ray system,” he allows, “but only two years ago that ratio was about 20 to one, and that is only going to narrow as X-Ray systems continue to come down in price and more food producers realize that with a little extra investment they get the latest X-ray technology with powerful software that provides a complete automatic quality tool for full contamination detection.” Utilizing conveyor belts to push processed food through a series of X-Ray beams and detector diodes to quickly scan the product, the highly energyefficient X-Ray systems generate an instant image that is immediately subjected to the software’s algorithms to decide whether the scanned food has been contaminated in any way, with their multilayer contaminant detection capabilities identifying anything from bacteria and mold to metal, glass, stones, bone, plastic, rubber and other materials—achieving full metal detection of particles less than 0.4-mm with virtually zero false-reject readings. While their widescale adoption was held back in the past with significant cost premium over metal detection systems—being up to three times more expensive—as well as less-than-stellar reliability of the X-Ray tubes subjected to work in punishing high-vibration environments, Perrault says that companies like Eagle have effectively addressed both shortcomings with a new breed of high-performance, low-cost X-Ray inspection systems that put the technology within the financial reach of any company with sound understanding of total machine cost-of-ownership.

S+S Inspection’s GENIUS+ Sanicon metal detector, keeping a watchful on the production line of chocolate manufacturer Marsha’s Homemade Buckeyes, uses advanced detection coil technology with multifrequency, dual-channel analysis for high sensitivity to all metal types.

CANADIAN PACKAGING • NOVEMBER 2011

METAL DETECTION

The PRO Series X-Ray systems from Eagle Inspection offer food industry end-users performance benefits of dynamic processing of different products on same/different lanes, multiple views of the inspected product on the touchscreen interface, and a full definable image processing network.

“Eagle now has X-Ray systems that cost about $40,000, or less than a half more than what one would spend to install a new metal detector, as well as incurring additional costs of operating a separate checkweigher system,” notes Perrault. “And the company’s hermetically-sealed X-Ray tube design is so reliable that Eagle systems come with a four-year guarantee for the X-Ray tubes. “But the real beauty of the technology extends far beyond the cost, which will only continue to come down,” says Perrault. “It is the ability to perform sophisticated product analysis—such as fat analysis, salt-content analysis and many other product evaluations—which has already made Eagle systems virtually an automatic choice for many leading North American meat processors, and it won’t be long before other industries follow suit.” Doug Pedersen, inspection systems sales manager with the Bartlett, Ill.based S+S Inspection Inc., concurs.

sion on performance versus cost versus risk needs becomes critical,” Pedersen states. “Inspection companies who only sell one or the other technology tend to argue towards what they have to sell, but the point is to establish what is detectable, what is not, and address the application based on performance versus cost versus risk to decide on the optimal solution,” says Pedersen, adding that S+S Inspection, North American subsidiary of German-headquartered S+S Separation and Sorting Technology group, is perfectly-positioned to benefit from its diverse product offering. “One of our biggest strengths is that we have several technologies to offer for providing contaminant detection solutions (magnetic separation, metal detection and X-ray) and technologies to allow for multiple points of inspection on the line for the purpose of obtaining product purity,” he explains. “And our extensive experience in providing contaminant detection solutions to a whole crosssection

NOVEMBER 2011 • CANADIAN PACKAGING

Continues on page 28

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“Nowadays metal detection is just one of the many types of technology available for contaminant detection, which also includes magnetic separation and X-Ray technology,” says Pedersen, “and superior product safety or product purity is obtained by determining the risk and then applying one or more of these technologies in the most effective manner at key areas within the process to address the risk. “True quality inspection is more than just a single metal detector or X-ray at the end of the line: it requires contaminant removal throughout key areas in the process such as incoming ingredients, midprocess and after packaging,” he explains. Adds Pedersen: “The highest level of product purity in products that people eat and use is what drives us towards continuous development of the various inspection products that we offer at S+S, which has just recently celebrated its 30th anniversary, to enable us to maintain a technological leadership position in the marketplace.” While most Canadian food production lines already employ at least one metal detection system, Pedersen says, “The challenge of an aging population of these machines and the cost to replace the old technology with either a new metal detector or an X-Ray system is a challenging decision for a food processor. “This is where having an open discus-

of industries in addition to food provides us with the opportunity apply technology lessons learned in other areas for foodstuffs,” he explains. Unlike the highly-diversified S+S Inspection, Canadian-based Fortress Technology prefers to stick with a well-proven strategy of upgrading and enhancing its existing metal detection technology to provide its food industry clients with modular add-ons to keep up with stricter compliance requirements—ensuring that its existing installation base does not slip into obsolescence. According to company founder and president Steve Gidman, “We will continue to focus on developing metal detection systems that use the best technology available, hidden behind the simplest easy-to-use interface. “We are now one of the leading providers of metal detectors in the world with global support facilities,” points out Gidman, who has spent 33

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METAL DETECTION METAL METTLE Continued from page 27

years working in the inspection systems industry, founding Fortress Technology in 1996. Says Gidman: “There are a lot of food safety initiatives coming at the food industry from all sides—government agencies, supermarkets and consumers groups—and keeping up with all the demands can be very challenging for metal detector suppliers who share a responsibility to assist producers in staying ahead of those requirements—both current and future. “But it’s not enough to just install a detection system and assume that all is well,” Gidman point out. “We need to make sure that the detection system is being used as a process measurement and improvement tool—putting proper procedures in place for controlling rejects and, most importantly, facilitating timely examination of rejected contaminants to determine the source and decide on appropriate action. “This is where a metal detection system can really show its value,” says Gidman, citing the company’s newly-launched PHANTOM Stealth series of metal detectors outfitted with Icon touchscreen interface, multilevel password protection, and comprehensive menus to allow users of all skill and competence levels to easily set up products, perform tests and produce reports. States Gidman: “We develop all of our new models to be backwards-compatible with any of our existing detectors. “Our latest technology can be installed in a

detector built 15 years ago to ensure that our customers aren’t left behind when new technology is developed, so that they keep up to date with all the new food safety initiatives,” he notes. “The two big food safety challenges are testing procedures and record-keeping,” adds Gidman, “and our new Stealth technology can significantly assist our clients by automating record-keeping and data-collection capabilities for avoiding mistakes and reducing costs, while offering the benefits of simple operation, outstanding reliability and exceptional performance.” Jeff Kaveney, product marketing manager with the York, Pa.-based equipment manufacturer Eriez, agrees that traditional metal detectors are unlikely to be completely replaced by competing inspection technologies in the food business any time soon.

Size Matters

“While we do believe that many of the larger food processors and packagers will be installing X-Ray equipment in their plants,” Kaveney relates, “there are still many small- to mid-sized food companies that simply cannot justify the extra expenditures for an X-Ray system, and these companies and others will continue to purchase metal detectors for their facilities. “That’s why Eriez is continuing to invest in making improvements to our existing line of metal detectors and developing new ones,” he says, noting that Eriez is nevertheless a well-diversified manufacturer boasting a comprehensive comwww.sesotec-usa.com plementary selection of X-Ray systems, magnetic separators, vibratory equipment and lifting magnets. “With regards to our metal detection equipment, our strategies have not changed from what they were five to 10 years ago,” Kaveney remarks, “which is to focus on designing, developing and manufacturing a metal detector that offers the best possible sensitivities, is easy to operate, and is highly reliable.” Having been in the metal detection business for 30 years, Eriez We know it is costly when contaminants are found in your product. enjoys an extensive Our latest X-ray and metal detection solutions installation base of will ensure contaminants are removed from thousands of active systhe production line saving you valuable time tems across the food, and money. pharmaceutical, chemSensitive, multi frequency detector heads ical, rubber, plastic, and inspection systems mounted on conveyors with integral high speed rejection combine paper, wood, aggreto effectively remove contaminants with no gate and other indusdowntime and minimum loss of good product. trial sectors—enabling Product contamination is expensive. S+S it to provide end-use equipment can reduce this risk and really is customers with a wide ‘worth its weight in gold’ range of customtailored solutions. “Just within the metal detection product line alone, we have

Metal detection, X-ray inspection technology worth its weight in gold.

Contaminant detection at its best Compact, modular design, easy to clean and maintain IFS and HACCP compliant Outstanding reliability Easy to use, state of the art technology S+S Inspection Inc. 1234 Hardt Circle, Bartlett, IL 60103, USA T: 224-208-1900 T Canada: 519-621-6536 E: info@sesotec.us W: www.sesotec-usa.com

Designed to detect the tiniest particles in free-flowing bulk products, the new X4 Bulk X-ray machine from Loma Systems uses a high-speed USB sensor and Windows XP operating system for instant graphical touchscreen display of all detected metallic and nonmetallic components such as stone, glass, calcified bone, rubber and high-density plastics.

a variety of models that can detect objects from as small as a 0.4-mm ferrous sphere to something as large as a steel beam. “For those customers who have ferrous metals in their product, in addition to nonferrous and stainless-steel metals, we can provide them with a magnet to remove the ferrous contamination prior to running the product through a metal detector, to capture any ferrous metals not plucked by the magnet and all other types of metals.” For his part, Elk Grove Village, Ill.-based Anirutsu Industrial Solutions USA president Erik Brainard says widespread migration from standard metal detection to a new breed of HD (highdefinition) X-Ray systems is inevitable in the food industry, notwithstanding the fact that Anirutsu currently has more than 45,000 metal detectors in service worldwide, along with over 60,000 checkweighers and 6,000 X-Ray inspectors. “The market today is driven primarily by technology to effectively and efficiently detect smaller contaminants in both process and final packaging applications,” Brainard explains. “To achieve this goal, traditional metal detection remains a constant, but advanced HD X-ray technology is providing contaminant detection benefits not previously seen in the ranges of 0.7-mm for metal and/or 1.0-mm to 2.0-mm glass, stone and bone. “With the newer ultra-HD systems, even detection of metal as small as a 0.3-mm sphere is achievable now,” he says. “The smaller detectable sphere standard translates into the detection of smaller ‘real world’ contaminants such as wire and metal shavings.” Adds Brainard: “Beyond the metal contaminants, many products which contain harvested materials retain field-introduced contaminants from harvesting such as glass, stone, rubber, bone, plastic and other lower-density contaminants that often can only be effectively seen by HD X-ray technology. “In some cases, the installation of advanced X-ray technology not only improves the overall quality of their product, but effectively saves end-users money with the ability to save a history, with images, of their entire production run to effectively offset erroneous quality claims by consumers.”

For More Information: Plan Automation Fortress Technology Inc. S+S Inspection Inc. Eriez of Canada Ltd. Anritsu Industrial Loma Systems

420 421 422 424 425 426

The S+S Group, Headquartered in Germany, operates worldwide through subsidiaries in: France | UK | North America | Asia Pacific | China

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CANADIAN PACKAGING • NOVEMBER 2011

EVENTS Nov. 28-30 Paris, France: Sustainable Cosmetics Summit, conference by Organic Monitor. To register, go to: www.organicmonitor.com

conference and exhibition by Tarsus Group plc. At Hotel Transamerica. Contact Camilla Colborne at +44 (0) 20 8846 2731; via email ccolborne@ labelexpo.com; or go to: www.labelexpo.com

Nov. 29 - Dec. 2

April 18-19

Shanghai, China: Labelexpo Asia 2011, labeling technologies conference and exhibition by Tarsus Group plc. At Shanghai New International Expo Center. Contact Camilla Colborne at +44 (0) 20 8846 2731; via email ccolborne@labelexpo.com; or go to: www.labelexpo-asia.com

Cleveland, Ohio: CPP EXPO, converting and package printing exposition by H.A. Bruno LLC. At I-X Center. To register, go to: www.cppexpo.com

Dec. 6-8 Cologne, Germany: Thin Wall Packaging 2011, international conference by AMI. At the Maritim Hotel. To register, go to: www.amiplastics.com

April 18-21 Shanghai, China: CHINAPLAS 2012, international plastics and rubber show by Adsale Exhibition Services Ltd. At Shanghai New International Expo Center. To register, go to: www.ChinaplasOnline.com

May 7-9 Seattle, Wash.: TAPPI Place 2012 Conference, by Technical Association of the Pulp and Paper

2012

Industry (TAPPI). At Grand Hyatt Seattle. To register, go to: www.events.tappiplace.org

May 9-11 Montreal: SIAL Canada 2012, North American food marketplace exhibition by Comexposium. Concurrently with the SET Canada 2012 food processing, foodservice and retailing equipment and technologies exhibition. Both at the Palais des Congrès. Contact Julien Paquette at (514) 2899669; or go to: www.sialcanada.com

May 22-24 Philadelphia, Pa.: EastPack, packaging technologies exhibition by UBM Canon. Concurrently with MD&M (Medical Design & Manufacturing) East, ATX (Automation Technology Expo) East, Atlantic Design & Manufacturing and Green Manufacturing Expo. All at Pennsylvania Convention Center. Contact Lonnie Gonzales at (310) 996-9418.

Jan. 24-27 Moscow, Russia: Upakovka/Upak Italia, packaging technologies exhibition by Messe Düsseldorf GmbH. Concurrently with the Interplastica 2012 international trade fair for plastics and rubber. Contact Messe Düsseldorf North America at (312) 781-5180; or go to: www.mdna.com or www.upakovka-upakitalia.com

Feb. 8-9 Paris, France: Aerosol & Dispensing Forum 2012, trade show and conference by Oriex Communication. At Paris Espace Champerret. Contact Jonathan Ouziel at +33 1 48 91 89 89; or via email jouziel@oriex.fr

Feb. 20-22 Orlando, Fla.: Innovation Takes Root, biennial conference on biopolymers by NatureWorks LLC. At Omni Orlando Resort. To register, go to: www.innovationtakesroot.com

Feb. 28 - March 3 Milan, Italy: IPACK-IMA 2102, international processing and packaging exhibition by Ipack-Ima Spa. At the Fiera Milano exhibition center. To register, go to: www.ipack-ima.com

April 1-5 Orlando, Fla.: NPE2012, triennial international plastics industry exhibition by Society of the Plastics Industry (SPI). At the Orange County Convention Center. Contact Martino Communications at (914) 478-0754; or go to: www.spe.org

April 11-14 Jakarta, Indonesia: indopack, indoplas, indoprint, packaging, plastics and printing exhibition by Messe Düsseldorf GmbH. At the Jakarta International Expo center. Contact Messe Düsseldorf North America at (312) 781-5180; or go to: www.indopack.com

April 17-18 Guadalajara, Mexico: Label Summit Latin America 2012, labeling technologies

NOVEMBER 2011 • CANADIAN PACKAGING

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ImPorTANT: Please complete the following questions What is the primary business at your location? Which of the following do you plan on purchasing within the next 12 months?  Advesives  Checkweigher  Machine Vision  Adhesive Applicator  Colour Label Printer  Metal Detector  Bar Code Equipment  Conveyors  Modified Atmosphere  Capper  Filler Packaging Machinery  Cartoners  Ink Jet Equipment  Palletizer  Case Packer  Intermediate Bulk Containers  Pallets  Case Sealer  Labeler  PLC’s, Sensors, Controls Approximate number of employees? Is this company a:  Package User  Custom Packager  Package Maker  Supplier

 Print & Apply Label Applicator  RFID Equipment  Robotics  Scales & Weighing Equipment  Shipping Containers  Shrink Film  Shrink Wrapper

 Strapping Equipment  Stretch Wrapper  Stretchwrap Film  Shipping Containers  Tape  Vacuum Packaging November 2011

CHECKOUT RHEA GORDON

MULTISNACK PACKAGES A HOLIDAY TREAT FOR ALL

ith the holiday season in full swing again, there is no better time to stock up on ready-to-serve food products like jars of Strub’s Banderilla Skewers from the Concord, Ont.-based Strubs Food Corp.—an artful assemblage of skewered pickled olives, pearl onions, gherkins and red pepper that are good to go straight from the jar. Aside for being “Great with Martinis, Caesars or other mixed Cocktails,” as the label proudly proclaims, this handy multiproduct jar is equally great for garnishing any worthy sandwich or relish tray for guests, without the hassle of purchasing fresh ingredients separately to prepare your own spread later. Most of all, the actual taste and quality of the pickled goodies inside the Strub’s jars—using white lids for the regular mild recipe and fiery-red for the spicier version—virtually guarantee a steady stream of compliments to the hostess throughout the evening, and who could blame someone for taking a little credit for putting all those things together just right?

Cat-lovers are a curious bunch, always seeking ways to reward their beloved felines for meowing to be let out of the house, shredding your upholstery, coughing up furballs, sticking their cold noses in your face at the crack of dawn to feed them … the joy is endless! And there’s no time like the holiday season to indulge them in a bit of festive decadence—brought to you by those sharp-thinking folks at Nestlé Purina Petcare in the shape of Friskies Party Mix Cat Treats resealable, 60-gram stand-up pouches.

I can only surmise that the term ‘Party Mix’ has yet to be trademarked, as there seems to be an uncanny resemblance between the Friskies brand pouch and the popular Humpty Dumpty Party Mix Snack Mix Original pillow-bags of seasoned munchies produced by Humpty Dumpty Snack Foods Inc., with the notable absence of the iconic Humpty Dumpty mascot’s tip-of-the-hat near the top of the bag. Both bags make liberal use of hot-pink color and 3D-like product images to entice the shopper to give them a second glance, as well as a light sprinkling of confetti and streamers for that true party-like vibe. And it would have to be one coldhearted cat-owner to turn away from an adorable image of a wideeyed, lip-licking creature using its raised paw to grab at the mix pieces f loating above, some of them shaped into little pink fishes, cows, and chickens. A real cat’s meow of a package!

British humor may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but it’s hard not to admire the cheeky puns like “Soap & Glory” and “Mist You Madly” decorating the box of body spray made by The Soap & Glory Cosmetic Co. of London, England, featuring a beaming pin-up model practically whispering a breathy callout on the front of the package: “At the same time I felt desperate, overwhelmed and fantastically happy, I … Mist You Madly.” Emotional overkill aside, a properly-used hyperbole can be a great source of amusement, especially when complemented by the product’s alliterative description of “A Flirty Floral Fragrant Body

ADVERTISERS’ INDEX R.S. No.

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Atlantic Packaging

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For more information on Classified Advertising please contact: 416-510-5198

• Qty 2. Complete Nail Polish Filling & Pack Lines • Kalish 36in Stainless Steel Turn Table K21 • Sollas Auto Cellophane Overwrapper 17-100 • Lepel Heat Induction Sealer, Model TR300A • Visual Pak 6 Station Blister Heat Sealers • Sollas Auto Stretch Banding Machine SB250 • Bivans Convey-O-Mat 54L & Bivans Tuck-O-Mat 82 • Damark Heat Tunnel, STR-16 • New & Used 3’-21’ Stainless Steel Conveyors • 3M-Matic Top & Bottom Case Sealer 77R • Image Ink Jet Coder 1000 S8 • New Net Weigh/Fillers (customizable)

30 • WWW.CANADIANPACKAGING.COM

Capmatic

114

Eriez

108

Fortress

107

Harlund

124

Henkel Corp

105

Intelligrated

111

Krones Machinery Inc

116

Markham-Image Inc

110

MultiVac

Title

115

Plan Automation

Company Name

113

Premier Tech Systems

106

Robert Reiser & Co. Inc.

117

S&S

118-123 SEW Eurodrive Co. of Canada 104,112 Schneider Electric

6,16

101

Tsubaki

102

VideoJet Technologies Canada 3

Rhea Gordon is a freelance writer living in Toronto.

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NOVEMBER 2011

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I used to think that it was very “cheap” of me to be reusing things like wrapping paper and emptied rigid packaging containers, but now that such practices have been elevated to ecologicallyfriendly consumer behavior, it’s nice to bask in the knowledge of simply being ahead of the curve. Seriously though, there are many brand-owners out there who deserve to be applauded for providing consumers with well-made, reusable packaging that can last for years—with the transparent plastic zippered bags for pillows and bedding being my perennial favorites for storing out-of-season bedding and clothing. Naturally, I was happy with the purchase of the Mainstays Rod Pocket Window Panel drapes package at a nearby Walmart outlet—packaged in starkly minimalist style with just two removable cardstock product information labels on the front and the back of the upright plastic package, topped off with a convenient plastic hook for long-tem post-purchase storage. A little thing perhaps, but it’s often the little things that really matter in making a big difference in the long run.

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Spray.” Try saying that 10 times in a row! Clever winged phrases aside, this box really stands out on many levels with its tall and slender shape, silvery accents, and generous use of the f lamingo-pink and buttercup-yellow color choices borrowed from kitchen appliances and powder-room fixtures so popular in their 1950s and early ’60s heyday.

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CANADIAN PACKAGING • NOVEMBER 2011

MECHANICAL DRIVES DECENtRALIzED DRIVE SyStEMS

MoVIgEAR® Movigear® is distinguished by its high level of system efﬁciency, a signiﬁcant factor in reducing energy costs. The integration and coordination of all the drive components lead to a long service life and system availability. Movigear® is an intelligent system with its own control concept. Its high-quality networking helps reduce startup time and supports monitoring and maintenance tasks. When combined with a functional user software, drive tasks can be solved as quickly and easily as possible. FOR MORE INFORMATION CIRCLE 118

In many industries and applications, implementing economical automation concepts means utilizing decentralized systems throughout. Long rows of control cabinets with complex wiring, expansive space requirements and long distances between control cabinet and motors are too rigid and not very economical. Only the combination of ﬂexible, versatile, economic and target-oriented modules will provide an efﬁcient solution. This is the reason why system operators opting for decentralized drive systems from SEW-Eurodrive are always ahead of the game. FOR MORE INFORMATION CIRCLE 122

our Drive Solution Pyramid.

MoVItRAC® LtE B The range of functions provided by MOVITRAC® LTE B is particularly well adapted to less complicated applications. Its user-friendly design makes integration quick and easy, it also meets the high quality requirements of everyday requirements. The Movitrac® LTE B is also available in IP55/NEMA 12k making it suitable for special ambient conditions. These frequency inverters operate reliably and ﬂexibly even when exposed to dust or water.

VFDs: RELIABLE, CoMPACt & VERSAtILE

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SerVo PacKaGe: SIMPLE, fASt & DIVERSE

PSC Planetary servo gear units The low backlash PSC planetary servo gear units are designed for torque classes from 30 to 305 Nm. They are designed to offer the greatest possible flexibility and ROI, as not every application demands machines designed for maximum performance. These planetary servo gear units are the basis for versatile, dynamic, and above all cost optimized drive solutions. FOR MORE INFORMATION CIRCLE 120

MoVItRAC® Ltx Simple, fast and diverse: as part of the Smart Servo Package, SEW-Eurodrive offers the new Movitrac® LTX servo inverter for universal use. It stands out with advantages such as ease of operation, short startup times as well as optimized costs. Available in two sizes and covers a power range from 750W to 505 kW. The Movitrac® LTX is particularly suitable for use in applications such as secondary packaging, handling, and logistics. FOR MORE INFORMATION CIRCLE 121

DecentralizeD control: MoDuLAR, fLExIBLE & ECoNoMICAL

The demands on material handling systems today have never been more wide ranging or more challenging. That’s why SEW-Eurodrive offers drive solutions for every kind of industry application. From the simple to the sophisticated, our pyramid of solutions allow you to control costs and limit complexity by giving you the ability to tailor our products to the exact intelligence and performance specs you require. Reducing energy consumption is also an important imperative today for the modern production line. Just ask Coca-Cola, who achieved a sensational 75% reduction in energy consumption by incorporating 40 of SEW-Eurodrives’s revolutionary decentralized MOVIgEAR® units in a recent overhaul of a European bottling plant transport line. Driving the world FOR MORE INFORMATION CIRCLE 123

Toronto (905) 791-1553

Montreal (514) 367-1124

Vancouver (604) 946-5535

www.sew-eurodrive.ca

The Future of Packaging is Bright

Sustaining the Future of Packaging

To receive your sample of case and carton seal adhesive visit: www.henkeladhesivesna.com/packagingadvantage

Adhesives & Coatings for Every Packaging Application Carton Sealing | Case Sealing | Bottle Labeling | Flexible Packaging | UV & EB Coatings

Except as otherwise noted, all marks used are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Henkel and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and elsewhere. ÂŽ = registered in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. ÂŠ Henkel Corporation, 2011. All rights reserved. 8074 (11/11)

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