Shocking Solutions

—Jim Patterson, executive vice president, Julie Industries

Static Attack #3: Is it affecting your end product?

Problem: "During the humid summer months, static is virtually a non-issue. Our plant is climate controlled, but that extra bit of humidity in the air keeps our static down. In the winter months, static can be present in the raw materials from our suppliers and can build up on the substrate, especially after contacting the metal rollers in the press. Static build-up attracts dust, affects ink laydown and can cause an annoyance to our press operators and end customers. Our presses have web cleaners, corona treaters, and static eliminators at the beginning of the press, but static can be re-introduced to the web after just one roller.