Norwood Marking Systems/Allen Coding Systems recently introduced its ACF-400 Carton Coder. Available with either thermal transfer or hot foil printing technology, this off-line carton coder handles the widest range of cartons, sleeves, blister packs and leaflets from 0.1 to 6 mm thick with fast and easy changeovers. As the only carton coder in the world that handles both “crash lock” cartons and blister cards, the ACF-400 offers production flexibility.
Ideal for foods, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, cosmetics, chemicals and other products, the stainless steel ACF-400 operates in either intermittent or continuous motion mode and can be quickly switched via a setting on the touchpad. Machine parameters such as speed, index length and batch quantity are also set via the touchpad.
The servo-driven ACF-400 transports cartons using a bottom belt and an upper pressure roller, which allows the coder to handle complex shapes, odd sizes and thinner material while achieving excellent registration. Unlike traditional belt roller systems with a “dead area” within the print area, the ACF-400 can print anywhere within the capability of the printhead. The unique belt configuration also allows operators to safely remove printed cartons from the discharge area while the system is running.
The ACF-400 handles cartons from 2 x 2.75 inches (50 x 70 mm) to 15.75 x 15.75 inches (400 x 400 mm) in size. If equipped with Norwood / Allen’s large format NGT 8 thermal transfer printer, the ACF-400 can achieve a print area as large as 8.4 x 4 inches (213 x 100 mm). If equipped with Norwood / Allen’s 60/35S hot stamp printer, the ACF-400 can produce a print area up to 2.4 x 1.4 inches (60 x 35 mm).