Jeff Hausen, our QA manager, explained that to me the need to expand inspection capabilities.
“Historically, manual inspection methods and sampling plans have been effective in supplying quality products to meet our customers’ needs,” said Jeff. “Customer expectations, however, are changing and are becoming more demanding, whether to accommodate streamlined production processes or increased regulations.”
This means more labeling printing jobs require extra inspection, specifically, 100 percent inspection.
We’re excited to announce that we’ve expanded our inspection equipment to include six computerized inspection units, which gives us increased capabilities for 100 percent inspection.
How They Work
With a computerized vision system on press, an operator will be able to detect any label defect immediately – and know exactly how many labels were affected. This also will increase productivity because we’ll be able to catch the defects before the rewind process and eliminate a second press set-up process to replace defective labels.And by identifying and fixing any problems as they occur, we will be able to reduce both scrap and cost. This makes it a green manufacturing solution that we’re excited to use!
Our New Addition
Our manufacturing department chose the PrintVision/Helios II 100 percent video inspection systems from Advanced Vision Technology (AVT) after seeing them at the 2010 Label Expo. These units will be installed here in our Arlington Heights (IL) plant on four flexo label presses and two finishing machines.
These new vision systems will be another assurance that we'll be able to provide our customers with the label quality they expect.
“The AVT systems will provide 100 percent inspection at line speeds, a level that simply cannot be achieved with traditional manual methods or sampling plans,” Jeff added. “In addition, Weber and our customers will ultimately benefit from higher productivity and reduced waste.”
The first two units will be installed soon, and the other four will follow over the summer. We’ll be sure to post pictures and video of the units after they’re set up.
