How do you store and transport rolls of food contact film?

Hello everyone.  

  we are a flexible packaging company that is about to start producing food contact material.   how does everyone store and transport their rolls of film?  Do you wrap and unwrap at every station? (ie: print, lamination, slitting)  and how do store your film on the shelves?  We are trying to figure out what we need for and cant really find specific material handling answers 

Thanks

Hello,

We also are a food contact packaging manufacturing company, we cover our films from extrusion, unwrap for printing, cover afterwards and unwrap for shirring into sticks for final packaging into lined boxes, During storage we make sure the films are wrapped in clear plastic film and then wrapped in black plastics placed on a pallet with a slip sheet underneath. the finished boxes are placed on a pallet and the top layer covered with a slip sheet as well to prevent dust etc.

Thanks,

Phil

thanks Pipa that helps.  How wide are your rolls?  We are starting with a 40 inch (100cm) wide rolls that are heavy.  We think we will have to have special made carts made to help lift the rolls onto the machine and back onto the pallets.  It would be helpful to know what machinery your company uses but I understand if that is proprietary information

John, 

Like Pipa, we cover our rolls through the process. We have 100% direct food contact customers, so any materials we are scrapping or considered non-conforming (due to quality and not food safety concerns), we use to wrap our products along with slipsheets on the pallet.  

Our rolls can range from 10" width to 70" width, so when we have heavy rolls, we make sure the employees assist each other. There are many automated machinery to assist with safety during lifting of heavy objects, but after researching about the cost and functionality of the machines, it was easier for us to teach team work to prevent safety concerns.

Also, we do not create a roll over 60 lbs. If we do, we require team work during packing of the finished products.  

good luck!

DN,

Thanks for answering!  Unfortunately the rolls we are looking to run are going to be 150lbs-250lbs.  Teamwork is great but 250lbs might be a little heave for even 3-4 people.

thank you again

John

Another question guys, does anyone know of a requirement of having the storage of materials in a separate room from our printing press?  Putting up walls to make a physically separate room will make us have to rearrange the entire floor plan(expensive).  Can anyone lead me to something that tells me i don't have to have walls?