Engineering System Assemblies

Situation

In the printing industry, feeder machines play a crucial role in aligning printed sheets in the correct order and transferring them via a conveyor belt for finishing processes such as stapling and punching. Since magazines vary in page count and paper type, these machines must be adaptable, allowing for adjustments in the number and type of feeder stations. However, the paper used in printing is lightly powder-coated, leading to significant dust accumulation and operational challenges.

Challenge

Reconfiguring a feeder machine for a new job is labor-intensive and time-consuming. Each feeder station requires multiple connections, including power supply, control signals, and a data bus. Setting up a six-station system can take up to an hour before production resumes—time during which 20,000 magazines could have been printed. These long changeover periods result in significant financial losses. Additionally, the cubic design of the existing control box disrupts the overall system layout, causing further inefficiencies.

Solution

To streamline operations, Sangel developed a pre-installed, all-in-one solution for the latest machine generation. Each feeder station now connects using a single cable with a single plug connector, integrating the power supply, control signals, and bus connection. Built for heavy-duty use, the connector is designed for 10,000 mating cycles, ensuring a service life of approximately 20 years before replacement is needed.

This innovation dramatically reduces setup times—bringing the changeover process per feeder station down from twelve minutes to just two minutes. The control box has also been redesigned as a fully integrated component rather than a separate, cumbersome attachment. A plug-in supply transfer design simplifies diagnostics in case of errors, while a coordinated installation module replaces multiple individual components. Since the module is pre-installed and tested, installation time has been reduced by 45 minutes per station and commissioning time by 15 minutes—per feeder station!