Sealing board games, playing cards and puzzles with sealing labels instead of wrapping them in film is definitely a more sustainable path. However, its efficient implementation is challenging as the labeling process must be performed with extreme precision and the utmost care.
Ludo Fact, Europe’s leading independent board game and puzzle manufacturer, makes products for almost all well-known games publishing companies – around 250,000 units per week, including many bestsellers such as Catan, Carcassonne, Halli Galli and Ticket To Ride.
This is why the company, based in Jettingen-Scheppach in southern Germany, uses an individually customized tamper-evident solution from HERMA consisting of two HERMA 500 applicators.
“We make products whose packaging is extremely variable, from very small for a card game to quite large for a game box measuring 50 x 25 centimeters, for example,” explains Andreas Kulle, Production Manager at Ludo Fact. This means that in each shift there are several, sometimes quite extreme changes in format.
As the games are packaged on a continuous production line and, after sealing, are transported on a conveyor belt, the new tamper-evident machine must be operated and reconfigured largely from one side. This saves operating personnel from having to walk long distances around the assembly and packaging system.
Despite the high processing speed of 120 cycles per minute, damage to and scratches on the boxes – which are no longer wrapped in a protective film – must be avoided. “The solution from HERMA is very clever, smart and smooth,” Kulle says.
The trick with the split conveyor belt
As soon as the boxes enter the system, they are met by variable guide rails with rounded edges to gently keep the products at the correct position and, in particular, to prevent damage to the extremely vulnerable edges. In addition, an adjustable top conveyor together with downholder ensures that the box lid is positioned cleanly and does not lift off.
To prevent deviations in the vertical axis, the boxes are transported on a split conveyor belt, which can be quickly widened according to the format.
“Only in this way it can be ensured that all packages remain steady and do not wobble on the belt if one side of the box is heavier than the other, which is often the case,” Kulle adds.
There is a HERMA applicator on the left and on the right of the conveyor belt. The moment the box passes through a light barrier, the system uses the speed of the product to determine when the labels need to be dispensed so that they are placed precisely at the defined positions. All label formats and their positions are stored in the control unit and can be retrieved reliably at the push of a button.
“The HERMA machine is characterized by a high degree of practical know-how and suitability for everyday use,” Kulle says. “Here, somebody has given a great deal of thought to how an extremely complex task can be solved in a simple way.”
