Things that matter. Sharing what we know and who we are.
At BMG, we take pride in sharing our perspective on the thermoforming world, offering technology tips that benefit the broader community, and providing insight into our employees' daily lives. Take a moment every quarter to see what we're up to and gather some interesting or entertaining content that will help you better understand who BMG is and what we stand for.
Automation moves the things we make.
So, why take the next step to automation?
At BMG, we know how critical the right automation equipment solutions are to achieving operational excellence. We have assembled an incredible team that will be with you every step of the way, working together to develop engineering and manufacturing solutions that best fit your automation process. Companies choose BMG because we have developed an extremely user-friendly engagement process that allows us to interface effortlessly into any engineering thermoforming process.
Why choose BMG to find the right fit for your automation needs?
Well, for starters, BMG is a renowned global leader in engineering process automation technology. Our automated robotic handling systems are the next generation in handling products. These systems are the leading food- and non-food-packaging automation solutions for full-line material handling and packaging. We design, engineer, and manufacture unique automation solutions for the production of paper and plastic cups, containers, lids, plates, and trays, as well as non-food packaging items. Other verticals that we serve are medical, automotive, and general retail. Our integrated robotic platforms deliver innovative solutions to material-handling challenges through application or design-specific end-of-arm tools, ‘smart’ change-out tooling, and expert robot simulation. They are compact, configurable systems that fit within your facility and can be engineered to interface with any thermoforming packaging process. Automated product containment throughout the process dramatically reduces jams and product loss while creating a more safety-conscious workflow environment for employees.
Dialing in and optimizing your automation performance process does not have to be a guessing game. Let BMG help by partnering in the planning stage. We offer end-to-end solution auditing, engineering, and manufacturing for an automated future. We work together so you can plan for complete control over each phase and achieve an affordable automation solution. BMG delivers accuracy, reliability, and easy replication of proven automated processes to enable faster, safer, more sustainable manufacturing of eco-friendly packaging. It’s truly the best way to find the most cost-effective and sustainable automation solution for your manufacturing process!
Let's talk about ease of operation.
We pride ourselves on ensuring that what we engineer not only gets the job done but also makes it easier for operators to do their work. Our user-friendly UI not only creates an interactive production environment but also makes it the easiest to train on in the industry.
A little bit about those who make us great!
Jake Floriana - Fremont, OH, USA
Jacob is a lover of all animals. This must be drawn from his youthful ambition to become a marine biologist and his love of fishing in open waters. While his favorite color is red, that doesn't relate to his love of the Cleveland Browns, but it plays nicely when he discusses his favorite college football team, “The Ohio State Buckeyes.” When he’s not following football, he enjoys spending an afternoon watching golf. He is a self-proclaimed lover of protein and really enjoys a great steak and a baked potato. He loves running headlong into the weekend full steam ahead, looking forward to spending time with his two-year-old son, and can’t wait to welcome a second member to the family in May. He and his wife are expecting a bright new baby girl this May to keep her brother company.
Jacob’s most memorable classes in his school years were those on fluid dynamics and thermodynamics. Both areas of study prepared him quite well for his career at BMG. He started 17 years ago at the then-named Freeman corporation, which is now part of BMG. He started there working summers and grew it into a full-time position, where he now manages production output in the machine shop. This entails not only shop management but also personnel management, machine maintenance, and the setting of operational expectations. Jacob enjoys being the person that people go to when they need assistance. Whether that requires an engineering perspective, a quality/form/fit perspective, or a perspective on handling plans that don’t align. He would love to travel to Tokyo, Japan, someday and breathe in the culture. While he waits for that to happen, he could always just enjoy a great beach and a few exotic cocktails while watching the sunset.
Tech Talk and other interesting tidbits.
It has always been BMG’s perspective that an educated client is a prosperous client. When you succeed, we succeed. Because everything we create is a complex collection of precisely engineered processes that constantly need attention to operate at their potential, we feel it is necessary to share technical information as often as possible to give our clients the information they need to succeed in a fast-paced industrial environment. As part of our ongoing client relationships, we want to share key insights and process information every quarter that may help keep production technology up and running without a hitch. We are all well aware that downtime is the demon we work very hard to keep at bay. So, please check back every quarter to see what we have included in this section. You won’t want to miss any of it.
Troubleshooting: Shot-to-Shot Misalignment
Sometimes shots become misaligned from one side of your thermoformer to the other side. This causes defects in the final formed product and sheet indexing issues. There are several causes of this misalignment. Let’s look at common problem-solving steps you can utilize for this issue.
Initial items to check:
- Make sure the cooling tube heights are set to twice the material thickness. Do NOT exceed .020” to .030”. This is accomplished with a gauge between the top of the chain and the cooling tube.
Set the piercing wheels at the infeed of the chain rail so the sheet is pushed all the way down onto the pin.
- Keep the distance from the edge of your tool to the chain down to a maximum of ½” per side. Always watch the clearance between the chain rail chain adjuster bolt head and the side of the form tool (the large hex-headed bolt that has been machined down).
- Start with the chain rails parallel to the form tool. Each side has 3/8”-1/2” clearance between the outside of the form tool and the chain on the rail.
- The chain rails need to be set up parallel from the form station stabilizer to the exit end of the machine. If “V” is needed, it should be applied from the machine infeed to the form station stabilizer rod; this will reduce sag. The rails must be set parallel from the form station to the exit end of the machine.
Chains sometimes stretch
- To check for chain stretch, you must remove both chains from the rails, lay them on the floor, and place the pins on the chains, facing each other. Make sure the chains are pulled tight. We recommend that if one chain is stretched, both chains are replaced.
Additional areas to inspect:
- The stripper plate should not extend below the sheet line when stroked. It should stroke as the platen is retracting.
- The exit pan, between the rails and after the tool, should be set at the sheet line. The pan should be set so that the sheet cannot sag as it indexes out of the mold.
- Sheet orientation can cause problems
- To check: you must submerge a piece of your material (6” x 6”) into hot cooking oil (400 degrees Fahrenheit) and measure the difference from the cold to the heated material in both index and across index directions. Most applications recommend that the sheet orientation be 10% or less.
- You may need to adjust the chain rail stabilizer rods at the back or front of the mold.
- If the shots or locating cones are not aligned, move the rail in the direction the cone is off. Always work with the rear cone. If the cone is inward, move the rail inward with the stabilizer rod, being careful not to hit the form tooling.
- The chain rail must be mounted stationary. If there is any play in the mounting of the rails, the rails will move and cause problems.
- Improper heating of the sheet or oven-related problems, such as an inoperative temperature-controlled zone.
- Your sheet will sometimes pull off the pin chain due to hard stripping.
- The addition of stationary strippers on the pin chain rail may be required in the form station area. It is very important that the sheet stays on the pin chain while stripping.
- Tool misalignment from the center line of the machine. Keys or Segens must be used to ensure proper alignment.
Improper cooling in the mold
This may be caused by tooling getting plugged, by trying to run too fast, or by a heat exchanger/chiller with insufficient capacity. Check the web temperature with an IR gun. The temperature variance across the front, middle, and back should not exceed 5°F.
NOTE: Do this in one spot per shot to ensure the same measurement procedure is used for each point you measure.
Check the rails for the center
- Set the rails parallel with each other, with the center stabilizers loose.
- Attach the centerline bar at the infeed and exit ends of the main frame. The bar must be placed vertically between the rails, with its top at the sheet line.
- Attach a string from the infeed bar. Run the string through the machine and attach the other end to the exit bar.
- Measure from the pin chain to the string to ensure the string is centered over the rails (Make sure you check directly over the chain rail adjustment screws). You should have the same measurement from each of the four adjustment screws to the centerline.
These checks and balances should correct your shot-to-shot misalignment. If you still experience issues, contact our Service Department, which is available to you 24/7, 365 days per year.
These are just a few key items to consider, whether you are performing scheduled maintenance or a situation has evolved, and you need assistance in confirming a solution. It is essential to gather all relevant information and parts beforehand and ensure you have everything you need. If you need assistance with a solution during the repair process, please reach out as soon as possible, and BMG will assist you with whatever means necessary to complete the job.
Check out our incredible ebook collection!
We have compiled a few interesting reads for your review.
As we have improved technology and other innovations in our day-to-day travels down the thermoforming highway, we realized that many of the findings and processes we encountered might be of interest to our clients and the general public. With that in mind, we have established a repository on our website where you can download our ebooks and read them at your convenience. We might even have to do one on creating free moments! Anyway, just scan the barcode below or click the link to access all the e-books we have created to date. Don’t forget to check back periodically, as we continually add new content.
Review our Ebooks
“How to” Tech Talk videos have arrived.
It has always been BMG’s perspective that an educated client is a prosperous and successful client. When you succeed, we succeed. Because everything we create is a complex, intricate collection of precisely engineered processes that constantly require attention to operate at their full potential, we believe it is essential to share technical information as often as possible, providing our clients with the information they need to succeed in a fast-paced industrial environment. As part of our ongoing client relationships, we want to share key insights and process information every quarter that may help keep production technology up and running without a hitch. We are all well aware that downtime is the demon we work very hard to keep at bay. So, please check back every quarter to see what we have included in our video section on the BMG website. You want to miss any of it.
Helpful Videos
Working together towards a sustainable future!
In an ever-changing and unpredictable global marketplace, BMG continues to create category-leading sustainable, renewable thermoforming solutions, providing best-in-class engineering and manufacturing, enhanced by unparalleled support, all delivered to a worldwide market from our/your backyard.
If there is anything that you would like to see us address in our Tech Talk section in the next edition of Trade Trends, drop us a note here. We will certainly put your suggestion into action, and thank you in advance for helping us provide important information to those who find it useful.