Summit Brewing Company reduces downtime with Graco applicator.
Summit Brewing Company in St. Paul, MN used to use a traditional hot-melt adhesive tank system to seal its beer cartons, which was prone to charring, plugs and material degradation. These problems led to production downtime, required constant equipment maintenance and increased costs. A Summit manager often used a blowtorch on his hot melt guns to clear tip plugs and limit line delays.
The brewery’s old style hot-melt tank unit required an entire tank of adhesive to be melted before the line could start up. Because of its 45-minute startup time, the glue tank would have to remain heated even when adhesive was not needed. The longer the adhesive was heated, the more likely it charred and clogged the nozzles.