Web cleaning explored

The issues associated with dirty webs are plenty. Converters seeking the utmost quality for their labels should take a deep dive into web cleaning.

There are a host of considerations for label converters investigating this vital converting segment. All web cleaners must have a number of requirements for successful cleaning: Effective static elimination of the web and contamination; Breaking the boundary layer of air on the web surface; Disturbing and removing the surface contamination; and successfully isolating and trapping all of the disturbed contamination.

As Matt Fyffe, VP and general manager, Meech USA, states, contact and non-contact cleaners work on different principles. “For contact cleaner, tacky roll systems are probably the most common size of web cleaning in the market,” explains Fyffe. “These are contact cleaners and are good for narrow, slow moving webs of film. They do not perform well on paper or coated stocks as the amount of debris collected will require frequent replacement of the adhesive which is a consumable.”

Meanwhile, vacuum-based systems are designed specifically for paper and board. The