AWARD WINNING COMPANY PUTS MONEY ON THE SMART CARD
OAO DPO Plastik, Russia has installed its third machine from Soma with the addition of a Lamiflex S laminating line.
The machine joins an existing Lamiflex S model and Soma Flex Mini flexographic printing press and expands the company’s range of barrier film products to include aluminium foil laminates. Production of laminates for 2010 at DPO Plastik was over 1320 tonnes and the new Lamiflex S will enable this to be increased to an anticipated 2014 tonnes in 2011 and provide the potential for future growth. Converted laminates currently include PET/PE for tarpaulins and vacuum packing, OPP/PE for frozen foods and PE/PE for STS packaging.
Comments Alexey Radimov, Deputy Technologist,“We work to a very high quality standard and the machine and the efficiency of its tension control system contribute to 75 per cent of this. Soma has long standing experience and expertise in the flexible packaging field and its system gives us excellent results. We can precisely regulate the amount of glue required for the job as well as the quality of sleeves. The quality of the material introduced to the machine and the expertise of our operators determine the rest.”
Now the one of largest manufacturers of plastics in Russia, OAO DPO Plastik has earned a string of national and international awards and commendations for its products and started life in 1965 as a satellite company of the Gorky automotive plant. It has now developed into a self-sufficient, large industrial complex with its own road network and warehouse facilities offering various technologies for polymer processing including, rigid PVC, PE, injection and compression moulding, extrusion, PVC compounds and fiberglass. The company also provides a complete, in house printing service from design to artwork and plate production, through to finished product and combines this with delivering a range of services and solutions tailored to customer requirements.
“We were already convinced of the reliability and flexibility of Soma’s equipment based on our experience with the Soma Flex Mini flexographic printing press and the first Lamiflex S,” says Radimov. This second model will enable us to achieve optimum quality and increase capacity. The decision making process for the new laminator was short. The price to quality ratio of the equipment from Soma Engineering is unique and we put our money on the smart card”.
The Lamiflex S machines at OAO DPO Plastik are capable of operating with solvent free adhesives and feature roll to roll laminating. A wide range of substrates can be processed including BOPP
, PET, PE, LDPE, OPA, Cast films, PP, aluminium, foil and paper. Design features include shaft-less rewind for ease of reel handling
, a larger working area and easy access windows for roller cleaning and maintenance. Mixing heads are mounted directly on adjustable hoses that travel across the web width to reduce external fitting and lengthy pipe work. A short web thread path reduces waste during job changes. Unwind and rewind systems are driven through AC servo motors to optimise control accuracy and include the Soma Parabolic Tension Control system to eliminate telescoping of the finished reels.
The eight colour, 800mm web width Soma Flex Mini was supplied in 2004 and is a compact model with simple, but fast roll loading and a small space saving footprint that is due to the location of the unwind and rewind units. Both are positioned behind the central drum on cantilevered shafts that can be manually or automatically operated with access from the side of the press.