Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG (Heidelberg) presents its new case packer for the Stitchmaster ST 350 and Stitchmaster ST 450 saddle stitchers, and is the only saddle stitcher provider offering this technology. The system consists of an inline assembly that is inserted downstream of the banding machine and compensating stacker. It automates the packing procedure for wire-stitched print products and significantly increases productivity, filling up to 300 cartons per hour. It allows operators to concentrate on other tasks and spares them some of the physical effort involved in this work.

According to an analysis by Heidelberg, more than 60 percent of saddle stitched products are packed in cartons. At a saddle stitcher, for example, up to two people have to stand at the compensating stacker, take the product stacks and place them manually in a cardboard carton. Once this carton is full, the lid must be fitted. The new Heidelberg case packer saves operators the time required for this manual and cost-intensive work - time that also limits the speed of the machines. Corrugated carton is used to provide the print products with better protection than can be achieved with a single-wall cardboard carton. The carton is easy to open and close and, because it can be used repeatedly, the environment benefits as well.

The case packer is available from November 2010 and is ideal for industrial finishing companies and full-service print shops.

Cartons on the move
The case packer automatically takes banded product piles, arranges them, stacks multiple layers and packs them in cartons. The cartons are fed to the case packer in the form of blanks that the machine then shapes and assembles around the product pile. Glue is applied to the carton which  is completed around the pile. The carton is made of corrugated board and is designed as a quick-locking carton ("click carton") that can be opened and closed repeatedly at will. The case packer places the filled and finished cartons at an ergonomic height. From here, they can either be placed on a pallet manually or put onto pallets inline by a palletizer. The case packer processes A4, A5, A6 and DL products in portrait or landscape format. Currently, two different cartons with the following dimensions are available: 305 x 215 x 220 mm (12.01 x 8.46 x 8.66 in) and 320 x 215 x 220 mm (12.60 x 8.46 x 8.66 in) (width x depth x height).