AFH products: trends, challenges, and the Perini Proxima S6 rewinder solution
Away-from-home (AFH) products have become one of the most widely used commodities in the world. It’s estimated that nearly one-third of the tissue market — about 21 million tons of tissue paper every year1 — is currently designated specifically to AFH. Global demand — led by North America and Europe, and fastest-growing in Asia-Pacific countries2 — is rapidly pushing the numbers higher, especially in facial tissue and toilet tissue. The increase in these AFH products, in particular, is partially attributed to changes in consumer behaviors since an uptick in disposable income is providing more opportunities for travel, hotel stays, and dining out.3
The challenges of AFH
The sustained and burgeoning popularity of the AFH products segment is both a boon and a concern for tissue manufacturers and converters. At-home products can be produced in large volumes using standard roll and core diameters, sheet length, and perforation formats.
On the other hand, formats for common and premium AFH products primarily used in hotel/restaurant/café (HORECA), institutions, and companies (including hospitals, healthcare, large workplaces, industries, airports, restaurants, and hotels) can vary greatly. The wide range of variables in characteristics and performance inevitably leads to frequent changes and production inefficiency. Products closer to the consumer characteristics allow for higher production in terms of rolls per minute. Industrial and heavy products require specific machine features and reduced log-per-minute production speeds.
Key features AFH rewinders need
To maximize production efficiency and accommodate fluctuating AFH product needs, tissue manufacturers and converters often seriously consider purchasing AFH-specific rewinders. As with other equipment, the decision is multi-faceted. To find the best rewinder solution, an objective evaluation of these key features is necessary:
- High flexibility in product range and performance
- Efficiency in product mix changes
- Advanced mechanics to reduce maintenance/downtime
- Product change by HMI without access to the machine enhances operator safety
Introducing Perini Proxima S6
To meet the needs of tissue converters for AFH products, Valmet has developed the Proxima S6, a rewinder that guarantees excellent performance and quality for any AFH product:
Flexibility in product range and performance
• Final products with wide range of core diameter, roll diameter, and perforation;• Automatic change in less than 10 minutes by the recipe on HMI of core diameter and log diameter, as well as perforation length and pitch;
• Perforation blades fast change: double perforation roll and motorized adjustment of blade interference.
Consistent quality control
• Big diameter rollers for rewinding and perforation;• Cone effect elimination during rewinding thanks to the edge control plates;
• Effective ply bonding thanks to the big diameter of edge embossers and anvil roll.
Efficiency and safety
• Product change by HMI without operator access inside the machine;
• Easy access to the perforation and ply-bonding section thanks to a pivoted platform on the back of the rewinder;
• Simplified edge embosser adjustment with dedicated control panel.
Contact now the Valmet team to learn more about the Perini Proxima S6 and all of our latest equipment and technologies!
SOURCES
1Mordor Intelligence, Away From Home Tissue and Hygiene Market- Growth, Trends, and Forecast (2019-2024), Undated
2TAPPI, Top Global Away From Home Tissue Manufacturers Report fro 2019, Undated
3Euromonitor International, Away-From-Home Tissue and Hygiene in the US, Undated