Converter Accessory Corporation

WIND GAP, Pa.—Founded in 1974, Converter Accessory Corporation is celebrating its 35th anniversary this year.

Package printing is moving in the direction of digital, but what impact will digital printing and functions have on the building blocks of material control? Industry insiders offer their opinions. THE WORD "DIGITAL" is fast becoming commonplace in the package-printing industry. From fully digital presses to digitalized finishing processes and prepress functions, there's something digital about nearly every part of package printing. Within this digital realm, some elements of the printing process haven't gone hi-tech, including cores, shafts, and chucks, right? It's not a cut-and-dry issue, according to experts. Some industry insiders, like Larry Taitel, owner of Convertech, don't think cores, shafts, and chucks

Roll handling equipment helps maintain productivity and protect employees, but it can also make the process of mounting hard-to-handle substrates a cinch. TODAY'S POPULAR PACKAGING substrates aren't the easiest to handle. Materials like films and foils telescope and have more issues with core damage than hardier substrates like paper, which complicates the should-be-simple process of placing a roll on press. There are roll handling remedies, however, that help make these types of materials easier to deal with, while helping companies keep their employees safe from work-related injuries. From simple machine add-ons to custom-made technology, roll handling equipment manufacturers have the solutions. "The equipment

The technology behind cores, shafts, and chucks appears basic, but further inspection reveals a world of science aimed at efficiency, safety, and ease of operation. ERGONOMICS HAS BECOME an increasingly important focus for package printing and converting companies. Also called human engineering, ergonomics is the science of "designing jobs and workplaces to match human capabilities and limitations," according to Sean Craig, product manager for Tidland. "Interest in this science has grown steadily, along with the rising number of workers' compensation claims for work-related, non-traumatic injuries or disorders involving soft-tissues (nerves, tendons, muscles, and supporting structures), known as work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs or MSDs)." According

Proper web guiding, tension, and register control are basic ingredients needed for good print quality results. PRINT REGISTRATION IS one of the first things packagePRINTING's Excellence Awards judges inspect when assessing the print quality of contest entries. For our expert panel, it's an easy variable to assess, and is used as an initial culling point to "separate the men from the boys." Entries will not contend for a first-place finish if they are not produced with good print registration. This is clearly understood in the industry, but not everyone pays enough attention to some of the web-handling issues that directly impact registration, says Henry

An update on cores, shafts, and chucks technology. CORES, SHAFTS, AND chucks can easily be compared to "all the little people" of the film industry. From light technicians to make-up artists to set designers, the work of the people behind the scenes makes a big impact on a movie's turnout. Likewise, despite the seemingly harmlessness of cores, shafts, and chucks, their performance is very important to the outcome of every print job. Core knowledge Cores provide the backbones for many substrates and tapes. While there may appear not to be much difference between company offerings, there are. Double E. Co. (West Bridgewater, Mass.) offers

The latest equipment for handling materials and processes with care. Roll handling system reduces injuries, fatigue, roll damage Converter Accessory Corporation (800) 433-2413; Fax (610) 863-7818 A new two-station rotating roll handling device from Converter Accessory Corporation, the Rol-handlR, is designed for rolls that weigh up to 2,000 lbs. Dual lift stations with two pivot points allow a roll to be readily maneuvered into true vertical and true horizontal positions, helping to eliminate damage to roll edges, and allowing rolls to be securely and safely placed in the desired positions. The Rol-handlR's CAC® System consists of a unique "L"-shaped pivot arm and