Reliable transport, efficient production.

This specification describes how the packs are arranged in the tool: '2 lanes / 1 row', for example, gives 2 packs per cycle. Lanes run side by side across the direction of travel, while rows follow one another in the direction of travel. After cutting, multi-lane formats can be merged into a single lane with the Variotrack.

Merges packs from multiple lanes and rows into a single lane. This simplifies downstream processes such as metal detection and checkweighing. At VARIOVAC, this is the job of the Variotrack, which merges up to 4 lanes.

Thermoforming packaging machines pack products fully automatically. The bottom film is unwound from the film mandrel and transported into the forming tool. The forming tool consists of an upper and a lower part, and this is where the bottom film is heated and formed. Forming is done either purely by vacuum (as on the VARIOVAC Maximus RE) or with compressed air (VARIOVAC Rapid Air System). The film with its formed cavities then moves into the loading area. Here the product (e.g. sausage or cheese) is placed in the cavities by hand or by robot. To prevent heavy packs from sagging, pack guide rails are available for the different formats. Next, the top film is laid over the filled cavity and sealed in the sealing tool. The sealing tool also consists of an upper and a lower part. For certain products, the top film has to be formed as well; this takes place in the top film forming station. Sealing the top film onto the bottom film creates a seal seam. From this point on, the products are protected from environmental influences and keep for longer, because the ambient air has been removed from the pack or replaced with protective gases using one of several methods. In the next step, the individual packs are separated (cross-cutting and longitudinal cutting). Various knives can do this: guillotine, punch, circular knife, rotary shear cutter or crush knife. Depending on the technology and packaging material used, the finished packs can be opened very easily or even resealed. Finally, the individual packs leave the machine on a discharge conveyor. From there, the packs can be transferred to a line converger (Variotrack), where they are conveyed individually.

This line converger merges several lanes of packs into a single lane, which simplifies downstream processes such as metal detection and checkweighing. It handles up to 4 lanes and is available as Eco 2.0 with frame widths of 360 and 460 mm and as 3.0 with 320 to 460 mm. It can be combined with all thermoforming packaging machines in the food line, from the Maximus RE to the Primus MP.