Roll-Fed Labeling Assures Fast Delivery
Roll-fed labeling allows fast changeover in Penn Champ’s aerosol packaging plant.
The proliferation of private labels and new products in the aerosol industry keeps the Penn Champ division of Bissell running at full capacity. Penn Champ packs more than 500 different stock keeping units (SKUs) of aerosol products in necked-in cans using roll-fed labeling equipment at their plant in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Penn Champ was among the first companies to use roll-fed labeling for aerosol applications when it used straight-sided cans. According to Roger Roelofs, general manager, Penn Champ, "Using necked-in cans was a new idea, and we relied on our suppliers to help implement it. B&H contributed its roll-fed Endura shrink technology and worked with us until we found the right combination of label material and equipment." Salem Label Co. provided the label material.
The Endura shrink tunnel was the key to Penn Champ’s success with roll-fed labeling of necked-in aerosol cans. After labeling, the cans go through a tunnel that heat shrinks the label into the recessed areas of the container, enabling the label to snugly fit the container’s contours. Individually controlled heat applicators warm the different parts of the label area at temperatures tailored to the label material. Cans rotate in front of each heat station while they are conveyed through the system.
Penn Champ’s customers demand perfectly decorated aerosol containers and fast production response. "What the customer demands from us right now is that we turn on a dime — and that is one of the things we can do with labeled cans," says Roelofs. Just-in-time labeling, using universal brite cans, allows Penn Champ to save warehouse space, reduce changeover time and eliminate the need for large inventories of pre-printed cans. Labels can be obtained much quicker and in smaller quantities than pre-printed cans, allowing new projects to be in production more rapidly. "Being able to label brite cans is a godsend, particularly for our small-order customers," says. Roelofs. "We can turn their orders around just as fast as we can get the other components, like overcaps, in house."
Penn Champ averages three label changes a day, so it must pay close attention to the ability of its labeling equipment to do fast changeovers. B&H labelers are pre-programmed with Penn Champ’s most common setups.
Located in Ceres, California, B&H Labeling Systems introduced the first viable roll-fed label application system in 1969. ADF
