Case Study

Keeping Cases Sealed in the Summer Heat with PearsonMelt

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Project Overview

A leading southwestern-US snack manufacturer was having a challenging time keeping their boxes of single-serve bagged snacks sealed during transport. The hot summer temperatures were softening the glueon their cases to a point that the case flaps were popping open before they ever reached the store shelves they were destined for.

The manufacturer was becoming increasingly concerned about product integrity, and even moreso the monetary losses they continued to incur from rejected loads and expensive rework. They also feared they might lose their contracts with the big box retailers and club stores they supplied to if they couldn’t correct the problem quickly.

Objectives

• Eliminate pop-open cases leading to rejected loads and rework expenditures
• Reduce maintenance and associated machine downtime

Achievements:

Cost Savings

Stemming from a more efficient hot melt product and a reduction in damaged products/rejected pallets

Secure sealing + improved rates

High tack glue formula with high melting point strengthened the seal on cases to reduce pop opens and shorten compression times

Minimal maintenance & reduction in part replacement

Less stringing from clean machining and cutoff characteristics, and less glue component wear from high thermal stability

Sequence of Operations

The customer worked with Pearson’s hot melt specialist to determine PearsonMelt 110 was the best-suited glue formula for their needs. As a high-performance metallocene product, the formula supports a wide temperature service range, safeguarding against melting during transport through some of the country’s hottest regions like Nevada and Arizona.

The formula’s high tack (rubber) content also helped improve the seal strength despite a lack of counter pressure from the air-filled bags that filled the cases, yielding a 100% fiber tear rate - an indication of superior bondage - on all respective case surfaces.

The result? The elimination of rejected loads stemming from pop open cases.

Additionally, the formula change reduced glue stringing, equating to an 80% reduction in maintenance to clean or replace application nozzles over the first three months. The glue formula’s high resistance to thermal degradation will further reduce the frequency of expensive hot melt spare part replacements for the manufacturer over time. And, as an added benefit, the customer experienced an increase in throughput rates from shortened glue compression times.

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