A well-known healthcare and insurance company has been a pioneer in utilizing technology to streamline and expedite production at its print-to-mail facility. This facility processes over 500,000 statements and checks daily and has been considered a model “output distribution center.” However, the high output volume also leads to a significant amount of scrap paper waste, including edge trim from inserters, startup waste, and other paper waste. Even with the most advanced waste handling system in the industry, the excess scrap paper was causing production issues due to the accumulation of dust.
This dust was causing disruptions to the printers and inserters, resulting in higher maintenance costs and costly line stoppages. The company couldn’t tolerate such problems in its state-of-the-art facility. Additionally, the waste handling system required full-time personnel to manually transport overflowing disposal carts throughout the facility, leaving behind a trail of scattered paper and dust, and creating safety concerns.
To address these issues, the company collaborated with Precision AirConvey (PAC) to develop an automated system for handling paper waste. This new PAC system completely replaced the old, dusty, and noisy one. The automated system now captures continuous edge trim from 16 different inserters located in two rooms. The trim is then pulled under the flooring, cut into confetti, and efficiently piped into a separate room in complete silence. In this room, the densified waste is directly fed into a baler. The paper bales are recycled, and the air is safely exhausted outside, while the dust is collected in a single designated place.
Moreover, the installation of the PAC system freed up valuable floor space by replacing the old, bulky system. Most importantly, the new system has completely eliminated the dust problem and its associated line downtime, reduced noise levels, and restored the facility to its clean and pristine environment.
