EUROPE – Ishida Europe has introduced a new in-line seal tester for snacks and other dry product packs, offering high precision seal integrity testing at speeds of up to 150 packs per minute.
The new Ishida TSC-AS is said to combine high accuracy leak detection with gentle bag handling to offer manufacturers excellent quality control to meet the stringent standards of the retail sector.
The seal tester measures the air pressure and fill level of every pack directly from the bagmaker and can detect apertures as small as 3mm and checks each pack for leaks. It also looks out for incorrect inflation and double packs.
New features on the seal tester include an advanced Human-Machine Interface (HMI) touch screen that has been designed to resemble a smartphone for easy intuitive operation.
As well as enabling rapid set-up and changeovers, the screen can also provide a wealth of real time production data, alerting operators to potential issues so that they can take immediate action, thus minimising wastage and unscheduled downtime.
A new gull wing cover has also been incorporated into the new tester, for fast access without interfering with adjacent equipment.
The seal tester also features an open frame construction, with the removal of any flat surfaces, to avoid product becoming trapped and to support quick and easy cleaning.
Options include programmed settings of the in-feed belt, which enables it to be automatically adjusted for different pack lengths as part of a product’s pre-set, which greatly speeds up product changeovers.
The independently controlled belts also ensure that the packs from the bagmaker are correctly aligned and spaced prior to inspection.
Ishida says that conditioning brushes can be specified to gently agitate and smooth out product inside the bag before inspection, to ensure correct thickness measurements.
“With the TSC-AS, there is no need to compromise between throughput, pack quality and thorough pack inspection,” said Jim McGregor, Applications Engineer at Ishida Europe.
“Our new seal tester combines high accuracy leak detection with gentle handling to deliver effective quality control and minimise the risk of product recalls.”