One of the new machines Rexroth is showing off at trade shows this season is a vertical flexible fill and seal machine. The flexible pouches this machine works with have some game-changing benefits for food producers:
- They use less packaging material, helping to reach sustainability goals within companies as well as those required by retailers.
- They require less water — again, a sustainability measure, but it also means lower weight and reduced shipping costs.
- The material is much lighter than a can or box, again reducing waste and shipping costs.
- They’re flexible enough to pack well in a variety of case packs to meet the needs of mega-markets and dollar stores alike.
From the point of view of manufacturing, though, these pouches are not that great. They won’t stand neatly like a box while the machine fills them.
The solution is simply more servo motors. More individual movements are required, so more servo motors are needed.
Rexroth has figured out a way to get the servo out of the cabinet so more can be connected. The new tech is easier to retrofit to older motors, drives, and controls, and also easier to connect with Industry 4.0 communication devices.
It’s also designed to deal with wet, frozen, and delicate products. The new machine confirms once again the brilliance of the servo motor concept.