Dynamic Ensis invention
improves box quality
Reference: 06/182
A new invention by Ensis that measures the stiffness of
corrugated boxes will provide the paper packaging industry
with the ability to improve the quality of their products,
and help exporters reduce the risk of product damage through
faulty boxes.
The instrument, a “Dynamic Stiffness Tester”
or DST, can be used by corrugated board manufacturers to
monitor and minimise damage that may occur during the manufacturing
process.
Ensis senior scientist Ian Chalmers says the strength of
corrugated boxes can be deduced from the stiffness of the
paperboard components and this is a good indicator of their
general performance. “Until now, there has been no
easy way of measuring the shear stiffness of corrugated
board,” Mr Chalmers says. “By providing a reliable
quantification of board quality, shear stiffness measurements
will reduce these deficiencies.”
World leading packaging and recycling company Visy has been
one of the first to install the instruments.
Adrian Dalgleish, of Visy, says: “The DST provides
a quick reliable measure that is sensitive to ‘crush’
that enables us to control the corrugating and converting
processes to tolerances that were not able to before.
“This reduces the incidence of box failure in the
marketplace and we are now looking to implement more DST
machines into our North American operations.”
The DST works by oscillating or vibrating a sample of board
to measure its torsional stiffness. Mr Chalmers says: “The
instrument requires only a small sample cut from the board
or box, which is then placed in the DST. Ten seconds and
four oscillations later, an accurate result for stiffness
is produced.
“The invention came about after Ensis was asked what
was available in the Australasian marketplace to test this
property of corrugated board, and we realised there was
nothing available to do the job.
“The instrument’s
ability to measure damage to corrugated boxes has been shown
to be quick, reliable, repeatable and cost-effective.
Ensis senior scientist
Ian Chalmers says the strength of corrugated boxes can be
deduced from the stiffness of the paperboard components
and this is a good indicator of their general performance.
“There is clearly
a market for the new device, which is exciting. We have
already received orders from local corrugated board manufacturers
and also envisage marketing it offshore through an international
licensee. We are confident we have developed a product that
will maximise the efficiency of corrugated board and boxes,
and therefore be beneficial to the industry.”
The project is part of
the wider Smart Packaging research program at Ensis Papro
aimed at developing innovative technologies to enhance the
function, performance and cost-competitiveness of paperboard
packaging.
