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 Therma AG (Electrolux), Schwitzerland
Next generation of clear view packaging for appliances.
Dust proof, theft safe,
5 sided protection
Therma AG, a member of the Electrolux Home Products Group, has recently invested in new End of Line Packaging Equipment to optimize pro-
duction safety and cost reduce their product packaging at their
production facility in Schwanden, Switzerland.
The investment consists of a highly sofisticated and effi-
cient stretch hood system from the Danish company Lachenmeier.
Therma supplies high volumes of home appliances such as dish washers and build-in ovens not only for the domestic market but also for markets outside Switzerland, and therefore required a fully automatic packaging system capable of packing more than 80 pro-
ducts of various dimensions per hour.
Taken the fact that Therma wanted to change packaging concept from their thermo heated PE film to another PE alternative due to their existing system being outdated and expensive in operation, various tests with both stretch hood and stretch wrapping were performed at Lachenmeier's test facilities in Denmark.
The stretch hood system was chosen over stretch wrapping because the stretch hood method guarantees a dust proof, 5 sided protection, consolidated load, overcoming the problems that can occur with conventional stretch wrapping.
Another significant advantage that Therma recognized is that the stretch hood method caused an actual PE film saving of up to 55% compared to thermo shrink PE film. Significant savings has also been considered when comparing energy costs between Therma's old shrinking oven and the new non-heated stretch hood system. No test were carried out with thermo shrinking as gas is not available in Schwanden.
The Lachenmeier stretch hood system receives the products and automatically gauges the height of each product prior to entering the machine. A hood of the correct lenght is manufactured and applied over the load.
Only one film size is required as the stretch film is laid out in order to provide good holding force to different product sizes.
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