Increased coding efficiency at Valio UHT

The leading Finnish dairy group equipped its Turenki factory with MARKEM hot melt coders and achieved exceptional levels of reliability and cleanliness.

Major companies like Valio take their coding processes very seriously. They must deliver maximum productivity whilst meeting all the demands of packaging legislation and customer requirements. They look for trouble-free operation, with few line stoppages for maintenance and cleaning.

An efficient coding operation has become a competitive advantage to companies who are prepared to investigate the latest technology. The value of the latest high-speed automated filling and packaging lines is reduced if their performance is limited by outdated coders. Even a brief unscheduled stoppage can make a hefty dent in profitability - and servicing, ink replenishment and clean-up procedures can eat into production uptime.

So, when MARKEM distributors HTT Merkintähuolto were approached by Valio UHT, Timo Ruohonen and Heikki Ketola had no hesitation in recommending a solution based on ‘Touch Dry’ hot melt inkjet technology.

‘The thermoplastic ‘ink’ is completely non-toxic and, in its ambient state, is a solid, dry block’ says Timo Ruohonen. ‘This is heated to reach the required viscosity and pumped on demand to the print-head. The print then dries upon impact with the substrate, producing clear, smudge-free codes, without solvents or re-circulation of the ink.

‘The whole process is extremely clean’ adds Heikki Ketola. ‘Touch Dry ink can be replenished without interrupting the coding process, and existing customers report high levels of long-term reliability.

‘The Valio plant at Riihimäki installed this technology on a new line and their SAP system reports that malfunctions have declined to a minimum.’

Tests at Valio Turenki confirmed the reliability of the MARKEM coders. The plant makes milk and baby food products so cleanliness and safety were vital considerations.

‘We wanted coders that are reliable and simple to operate’ commented Timo Saarenpää, Packaging Manager at Valio UHT. ‘We have 8 aseptic packing lines each running at 8000 packs per hour and it’s important that coding issues do not interrupt the production flow. HTT Merkintähuolto supported us throughout installation and everything is working well here.’

There are no problems with line and batch changes. The correct coding data is automatically sent to the coders and the lines can operate at full production speeds. Inventory costs have also been reduced. Instead of the detergents, solvents, inks and spare parts, the maintenance stores now only need to keep a supply of Touch Dry ink blocks.

A MARKEM hot melt coder on one of Valio’s aseptic packaging lines.