Storage key to cartoning efficiency

The duration and nature of carton storage can have a significant effect on subsequent cartoning performance, research from Pira International has found.

Evidence shows that storage conditions can mean the difference between smooth running and constant stoppages on a cartoning line. In particular, changes in moisture content can cause fibres to swell, and change the shape of the flat carton or skillet.

According to Pira consultant Chris Berry, today's cartoning machines are as likely to run at 250 cartons a minute as 100. They are much more prone to failure when skillets do not have the 'spring-back' to open, but instead stay flat, and then buckle. "Wherever possible, some sort of stretchwrapping should be used to protect pallets of carton blanks," he says.

A combination of high humidity and tight packing inside a case can be particularly detrimental to subsequent performance, Pira suggests.