By setting up its own converting operation, Kahn Paper Co., a 65 year-old New England paper and paperboard broker, realized a reduction in delivery time of sheeted material from an average of three weeks to seven days and improved quality control.
Central to this move was the purchase of Maxson MSL sheeter that, in addition to improving turnaround time, helped Kahn gain better control over the quality of the finished product and reduced waste by up to two-thirds.
Kahn Converters, West Springfield, MA, stocks and sheets all calipers and standard sizes of SBS board, polylined SBS, and clay coated news grades for folding carton manufactures in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New England, and eastern Canada.
According to Richard White, VP and the third generation of the Kahn family to join the firm, the decision to diversify into converting was prompted by customer demands for faster turn-around of cut size paperboard. About 70% of Kahn’s sheeting was being done at the mills where they purchased the board; the other 30% came from outside converters.
With inadequate capacity for inventory storage, Kahn relied on the board mills located in the South to ship board on an as needed basis. Shipping sometimes took as long as six weeks, depending on availability and market conditions. The use of an independent converter often added another 10 days to the delivery time. Kahn Paper realized that if it could store its own inventory and bring the sheeting operation in house, dramatic improvements could be gained in delivery time.
Since the majority of Kahn’s customers are folding carton manufacturers, it was important to match their specific needs in choosing equipment for the sheeting process. These included cut size accuracy, cleanliness of the cut, flatness and even jogging of the cut size board. An accurate sheet count is equally important to the customer.
“Our customers expect the cut size board to be press ready so it can be wheeled on the skid right up to the press,” said Ralph Lathrop, GM.
Lathrop needed to satisfy customer demands for accuracy and quick delivery, but he also wanted a unit that would be easy to operate and maintain. He consulted with other board converters and asked what equipment they recommended. The overwhelming choice was the MSL sheeter from Maxson Automatic Co., Westerly, RI. “We chose the Maxson MSL because of its reputation as a fast, accurate reliable sheeter in the board industry,” recalled Lathrop. “Maxson’s prompt after sale service reputation was also a factor.”
He was impressed with Maxson’s capacity for speeds of up to 850 fpm and sheet length tolerance of +/- .023 in. Another selling point was that the equipment required only one man to operate it.
Lathrop is responsible for scheduling runs, overseeing quality control and maintaining inventory. Sales of converted material are handled by Kahn Paper’s sales team operating out of the Medford, MA, office. About one-half of the plant’s floor space is designated for inventory storage. By stocking paperboard that many of its customers regularly use, Kahn has eliminated the time normally needed for ordering and shipping materials from its customers delivery dates.
The company can also pass on volume discounts to its customers because it now has the capacity to buy and store large quantities of board. The firm builds its own skids, which also helps to improve delivery time.
They provide customers with only the finest quality mill tonnage. Because the board is purchased for multicolor use, customers expect it to arrive in perfect, press ready condition.
Kahn Paper has improved overall appearance of its converting operation. The company has also reduced its waste factor to less than 2%.
The sheeted board is continually inspected for cut quality, sheet length accuracy, appearance of the board’s surface and evenness of the jogged pile. Any board that doesn’t meet stringent quality control standards is removed from the skid.
Cut cleanliness is checked visually by holding the board up to the light and examining the edge for any stray hairs or fibers. Another visual check is made for checking on the surface of the board due to improper adjustment of the decurl device. Since the roll set of the board will change as the web gets closer to the core, the operate adjusts the decurl setting from time to time to prevent this problem.
Accuracy of the sheet length is checked on a digital sheet length monitor that measures tolerance to the nearest hundredth of an inch. Too much variance in the sheet length will cause uneven jogging at the stacker.
A lineal footage counter enables Kahn to measure and verify the actual number of lineal feet per roll shipped from the mill. Any discrepancy between the expected and the actual yield (measured at the cut counter) translates into a waste percentage figure. An automatic size change device on the Maxson equipment is used to preset a size change, minimizing the time and waste commonly associated with the need to run material through the cutting section to check and readjust length.
According to Lathrop, the industry standard for waste is often greater than 2%. Kahn was experiencing between 3% and 4% while using outside converters. It has effectively reduced that figure to 1.5% and realized cost savings that can be passed along to its customers.
As a result of improved delivery time and control over the quality of the converted board, customer satisfaction is at an all time high. ” Our customers tell us that our finished product is a good as or better than our competitors,” said White. “In 18 months of operation, we haven’t missed a delivery yet.”
The firm’s diversification into converting has resulted in a 20% increase in total business volume. To accommodate this growth, the company is expanding its floor space to 50,000 sq. ft. “Our expanded facility and additional equipment will enable us to carry a larger inventory and to service our rapidly growing customer base in the converting market,” White said.
Reprinted from Paper Film Foil Converter, June 1986
