An Interview with Hakan Pfeiffer, Bobst’s Folder-Gluer Product Line Manager

What do you have to consider when developing peripherals?
Peripherals are designed to support the operations of a conversion shop. Our customers seek to utilize their folder-gluers to the maximum level possible for all types of production volume. Our peripheral equipment is simple to use and gives users increased running speeds and a reduction in production stoppages, despite practically identical change-over times. Operators can concentrate on production quality. Each type of production has its own suitable peripherals. For long runs, they are likely to be highly automated such as a batch inverter, Easyfeeder GT prefeeder and, at the end of the line, a Cartonpack GT for the collection of the glued boxes. The Cartonpack GT version premiered at IPEX 2006 included a system for the regular taking of samples, typical of our “intelligent” peripherals. Companies that specialized in pharmaceutical packaging, for example, immediately saw the benefits of the unit. As for peripherals such as the Handypack GT, semi-automatic packer, this was developed to handle lines which fold and glue a varied mix of products where the requirements of speed and automation are, of course, different.