SUCCESS STORIES

Our ability to problem solve and create practical manufacturing solutions is what allows us to work with the top food manufacturers globally.

GMS Quick Change Slitter Assembly

Customer called looking for us to design and build a toolless slitter knife assembly.  This call was prompted by a serious injury to a machine operator while changing the blades.

The old unit required the operator to remove hex head bolts to allow the entire assembly with 4 slitters to be rotated up exposing the 4 blades. To replace the blades, the operator needed to reach across the exposed blades and loosen a bolt on each with a wrench. When the wrench slipped off the bolt their arm slid across the blade causing a serious injury and significant lost-time.

Our solution: design and build a quick change toolless slitter assembly.

Each slitter can be individually rotated up to access the blade one at a time, thus eliminating the risk of all blades exposed. We removed the need for tools by making each individual knife holder open with the use of a built-in top lever and keeping the operator from reaching across even 1 blade.

Each blade can be changed individually before the next holder is rotated up into the maintenance position. This procedure is repeated until all blades are changed and the machine is back in operation.

An added benefit: The quick change, toolless assembly has also greatly reduced the downtime required to change blades. The time has been cut
from 20 mins to less than 5 mins for all knife holders. That is 75%-time savings each time the blades need to be replaced.

GMS Precision Rotor Fillers

A major food processing company utilizing vertical form fills challenged us to design and develop a rotor filler assembly that would fulfill the following requirements:

  1. Last longer than the traditional 4-6 months between rebuilds
  2. Provide greater accuracy of fill weights to avoid over fills and lost product
  3. Eliminate leaking pouches caused by leakage from the rotor filler


GMS developed the new GMS Precision Rotors and the result was tremendous wear life that exceeded even our expectations!


We originally predicted that our rotors would perform for 18 months (300% longer than the OEM metal to metal rotors).  In reality, we have a number of these in the field still operating after 36 months or 600% the normal OEM life span!


Benefit #1 Saved considerable rebuild and maintenance costs, eliminated related machine down-time, and reduced maintenance labor.


Benefit #2  Complete elimination of rotor filler associated leaking issues.


Benefit #3  Considerable improvement in pouch to pouch fill accuracy and fill weights.