Airknife Drying of Jam Jars Prior to Labelling

Wilkin and Sons install a Secomak PowerStrip airknife drying system at its packaging plant.

To ensure its world famous Tiptree preserve jars are properly dried prior to labelling, Wilkin and Sons has installed a Secomak PowerStrip airknife drying system at its Essex packaging plant.

Traditionally, jam was deposited into containers and stored in warehouses until the final stage of packaging, at which point the labels were applied. This ensured that jars had plenty of time to dry off. However the introduction of new equipment designed to speed up production meant jars no longer needed to be stored prior to labelling and would therefore still be wet when they arrived at the label applicator machine.

PowerStrip Drying System

After looking at a number of options, Wilkin and Sons addressed this problem with a Secomak PowerStrip Drying System.

John Brownlie, Engineering Manager at Tiptree, remarked, 'The advice given beforehand and the support and service during installation were first class, and the overall result is excellent. Our clients worldwide expect first class presentation and the Secomak Dryer helps us to achieve that'.

PowerStrip systems are modular in design, allowing the standard machine to be configured for a range of different applications. They can be used on bottling lines with speeds ranging from 80 to 1,000 bottles per minute and can lines up to 1900 cans per minute. Configurations can incorporate a number of different drying technologies, such as high performance blowers, compressed air or vacuum, to provide the most energy efficient systems available.

Secomak makes a complete range of drying solutions, from simple airknife kits, to fully engineered systems.