High Production Capacity Automated PET Wiper Coating Production Line

Process Overview

1. Automatic Jumbo Unwind & Splice Servo-driven arms manage 1,500 mm diameter PET rolls with zero-speed splicing to ensure continuous operation and minimal waste, optimizing production efficiency.

2. Corona & Plasma Pre-Treat Inline atmospheric plasma and high-frequency corona stations elevate surface energy above 58 dynes, guaranteeing flawless adhesion for hydrophilic, antistatic, or solvent-borne coatings.

3. Precision Coating Head A closed-loop gravure cylinder with ±0.5 µm TIR and ultrasonic gap control ensures uniform add-on, maintaining precision even at high-speed applications. Optional slot-die or micro-roll modules can be retrofitted in just 30 minutes, providing flexibility for multi-layer or stripe coating.

4. Floatation Dryer An 18-meter, three-zone air flotation oven dries with 0.5–3.5 m/s air velocity, maintaining web temperature within ±1 °C, ensuring high drying uniformity while minimizing energy use. Integrated VOC capture coils and a catalytic oxidizer reduce emissions to below 20 mg/m³.

5. IR Moisture & Basis-Weight Scanner Dual-head NIR gauges monitor moisture and basis weight, adjusting the coating pump speed and oven profile in real-time to maintain a coating variation of less than 2% for unmatched accuracy.

6. Clean-Room Rewind The ISO-7 laminar-flow cabin houses an edge-guided turret winder, capable of 600 mm finished rolls with automatic core loading and label printing. Static bars and tack-down rollers ensure a clean, particle-free environment.

This turnkey line is engineered to convert PET rolls into high-clean, uniformly coated wiper substrates or protective films at speeds up to 120 m/min and web widths of 1 100–1 600 mm. It integrates unwinding, corona or plasma pre-treatment, gravure or slot-die coating, IR/UV/ hot-air drying, in-line thickness & defect inspection, and tension-controlled rewinding—all driven by a full-servo, closed-loop bus-control architecture.

Key Process Modules

• Dual-Station Turret Unwinder with non-stop splice for 24-hour continuous operation, ensuring high efficiency and minimal downtime.

• Reticulated, high-precision coating head with a coating weight tolerance ≤ ±1 gsm at high speed (120 m/min), providing high accuracy for uniform coatings.

• 3-Zone Open Stainless-Steel Oven (hot-air/steam/thermal-oil options) with laminar airflow, achieving ISO 5 cleanliness and contributing to energy saving through optimized thermal management.

• All transport rollers are plasma-coated to eliminate scratches, with surface roughness Ra ≤ 0.2 µm, ensuring durability and precision.

• In-line Laser Thickness Gauge & CCD Defect Camera provide closed-loop feedback to the coating head in under 2 seconds, ensuring high-quality, consistent results.

• Electrostatic Clean-Room Compatible Winder with automatic edge trim and static elimination (residual charge <50 V), maintaining clean and precise winding.

Automation & Intelligence

• Full servo drives and EtherCAT bus for smooth and efficient control. The 15-inch HMI displays real-time data (tension, speed, temperature, coating weight), ensuring precise monitoring.

• Recipe Management: 200+ product parameters stored, allowing for fast change-over in under 5 minutes, improving operational efficiency.

• AI-Based Predictive Maintenance alerts for bearing or blade wear 48 hours in advance, minimizing unplanned downtime and optimizing productivity.

• SCADA Layer enables remote OPC-UA data exchange, integrating seamlessly with factory MES/ERP systems, enhancing system flexibility and management.

Output & Flexibility

• Mechanical Speed: 40–120 m/min (continuous), enabling flexible production speeds for various applications.

• Coating Weight Range: 0.5–30 gsm (both solvent or water-based), allowing versatility in product offerings.

• Substrate Thickness: Compatible with 12–250 µm PET, PE, or laminated films, accommodating diverse substrate needs.

• Typical Productivity: 1.2–1.8 million m²/month in a 3-shift operation, optimizing production capacity and high efficiency.

Quality & Compliance

• Designed to meet ISO 14644-1 Class 5 clean-room standards, ensuring the highest levels of cleanliness and reliability.

• Compliant with FDA 21 CFR and EU 10/2011 regulations for all contact parts, ensuring safety and compliance in sensitive environments.

• A complete GMP documentation package (IQ/OQ/PQ) is supplied, supporting smooth hot laminating operations with full regulatory adherence.

Automation & Data

The system is powered by a Beckhoff IPC running TwinCAT/BSD, OPC-UA, and MQTT for seamless MES integration. Recipe management can store up to 500 product settings. The AI-based predictive maintenance module, analyzing data from 120 sensors, forecasts bearing and belt life with 96% accuracy, optimizing uptime. Engineers can access the system remotely via VPN for troubleshooting within 15 minutes.

Quality & Sustainability

Designed with sustainability in mind, all wetted parts use 316L stainless steel or hard-anodized aluminum, complying with FDA and REACH standards. A 120 kW heat exchanger recovers energy, reducing gas consumption by 28%, while scrap is reduced to less than 1% through edge-trim repelletizers that feed our in-house recycling loop.

Modular Expandability

The frame is built on a 200 mm pitch extruded-aluminum grid, allowing for easy future expansions like an inline embosser, antimicrobial spray bar, or digital inkjet printer without stopping the line. Optional AGV interfaces and roll-to-box robotics enable dark-factory operations for 24/7 manufacturing.

Performance Snapshot

• Mechanical Speed: 150 m/min (design) / 120 m/min (production)

• Coating Accuracy: ±1.5% add-on variation (2σ)

• Drying Uniformity: ±1 °C cross-web delta T

• Power Demand: 0.32 kWh per m² at 120 m/min

• Footprint: 42 m × 9 m × 4.5 m (L×W×H)

• Operators: 1 per shift, plus 1 floater for two lines

Service & Support

Each system ships with a 400-page O\&M manual, a 3D exploded parts library, and lifetime access to our cloud-based knowledge base. Start-up assistance, FAT/SAT protocols, and on-site operator training are included. A 24/7 hotline and regional spare-parts hubs ensure a response time of under 4 hours across North America, Europe, and Asia.

• 13-month warranty; lifetime remote diagnostics

• On-site installation & FAT/SAT within 5 working days

• Global spare-parts hub guarantees 48-hour delivery

With its high throughput, micron-level coating accuracy, and Industry 4.0 connectivity, this line enables manufacturers to meet surging demand for optical-grade PET wipers and protective films while minimizing waste and labor costs.