Showing the co-extrusion laminating machine, Ajay Tandon, president & CEO, engineering and new product development, Uflex, said, “It’s 100% our development. We have multiple customers for the laminators, including our converting business. We have already sold four machines, which include Kolkata-based Flex Tone Industries and Lakhotia Metallizers, besides in-house deals. Following the open house, we may get at least five more orders.”

Explaining the reason for the open house, Tandon added, “Plant tours play a major role in finalising capital equipment.”

Tandon said the machine is a good alternative for converters planning to import such machines from Korea or Taiwan. “Gradually with more perfection, we will be able to represent ourselves as suitable alternative to European and American laminators as well,” he added.

At the same time, the company is not taking too many orders as yet. Citing the company policy, Tandon said, “First, we use the product in-house. Once we are fully satisfied with it, we promote it in the market,” he said.

The co-extrusion laminator can handle material of 1300mm width and run at the top speed of 250m/min. Extrusion thickness ranges from 8 to 35 microns. And it can handle substrates like oriented polypropylene (OPP), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), paper, nylon, foils, cast polypropylene (CPP) and polyethylene.

“Coating in our laminator is done by mica, which is water-based. It creates better bond and barrier for better design. We are creating the barriers between the laminate and heat,” Tandon explained. “In the lamination process, poly works as an adhesive. Thus, negatives like adhesive migration and use of solvent are ruled-out. The machine can reduce the thickness of bonding from 10 to 8 microns.” explained Tandon. The machine is currently available in semi-automatic gauge control version, and Tandon said the next lamination machine will be fully automatic.

According to Tandon, another much-awaited product from Uflex, the CI Flexo Uflexo1409 eight colour gearless central drum flexo-press which will be commercially launched in the coming weeks. It has been developed with technical collaboration from Italy-based Comiflex. It can print at 400m/min handling web width of up to 1400mm.

Benefits of the co-extrusion laminator

Corona treaters to seamlessly integrate treater into flexible packaging extrusion coating & lamination lines (available as option)

Independent drives for all segments of the machine

Heavy Duty (Sturdy) structure

Motorised up-to three axis movement of carriage for air gap setting

Chamber type doctor blade for anchor coating or gravure coating

T-Die with internal duckling and lip opening up to 1mm

Unique design of lamination drum to maintain even temperature across the width

Sleeve type coating nip as optional

Turret type unwind & rewind

AC vector grade motor with digital AC vector drives

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