Proteus Packaging Maximizes Folding Carton Production

KENNESAW, Ga.—Following the installation this summer of a high-performance Diana X 115 folder-gluer and Diana Packer packing system from Heidelberg, Proteus Packaging aimed to make the most of its capability for fast, efficient production of short- and long-run folding cartons for pharmaceutical, food, and other markets. With several months’ worth of production under its belt, the company claims to have exceeded all expectations.

The Heidelberg gluing machines are designed to produce a broad spectrum of premium folding cartons in a highly economic manner. Features of the technology include its processing quality, short makeready times, and ease-of-use in processing up to 200,000 cartons per hour, depending on the size of the blank.

“What made sense for us, given the speed of the Diana X 115, was to put a packer on it to reduce the need for manual labor, and we’re very happy that we did,” said executive vice president and COO Tim Wayman. “The performance of both machines has been a revelation. The full-rated speed of the Diana Packer is two-to-four times what we experienced with hand packing. We’re now able to handle a greater number of high-volume jobs faster and with greater efficiency than ever before. In addition, our output is up, and our per-piece costs are down.”

In this initial phase, Proteus has placed an emphasis on becoming proficient with run speed maximization. Once that is accomplished, Wayman said, the company will focus on further minimizing set-up times on both Diana machines.

At Proteus, the Diana X 115 and Diana Packer support an equipment lineup that includes a Speedmaster XL 145 VLF press, a Speedmaster XL 105, and, in postpress, a Dymatrix 145 diecutter.