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Testing Corrugated Board Safely and Efficiently - DS Smith Uses ZwickRoell for Materials Testing

DS Smith is a leading European manufacturer of customer-specific packaging and displays. With a product portfolio spanning transportation packaging, consumer goods packaging, display and promotion packaging, as well as customized protective and industrial packaging, DS Smith fulfills the requirements of all markets. For materials testing at its location in Margarethen (Austria), the company uses a testing machine from its trusted supplier, ZwickRoell, based in Ulm, Germany.

Packaging has a great impact on the quality of the contents and also influences consumer purchasing decisions. Both factors represent major challenges for product design, especially where food packaging is concerned. To satisfy its own quality requirements, as well as those of its customers, the packaging manufacturer DS Smith decided to install an AllroundLine testing machine from ZwickRoell in its testing laboratory.

In order to draw definitive conclusions about the strength and processability of corrugated board, various tests must be performed. These range from tests on raw paper (e.g. short-span compression tests), to tests on corrugated board (e.g. flat crush tests, edge crush tests) to tests on completely folded cardboard boxes (e.g. box crush test) 

  • The edge crush test (ECT), to EN ISO 3037 or TAPPI T 811, provides information on the strength of corrugated board with flutes positioned vertically. It is important that force application to the specimen is exactly perpendicular during these tests. 
  • Flat crush tests (FCT) are performed according to DIN EN ISO 3035 or TAPPI T 825. In the flat crush test, a single-flute corrugated board specimen is loaded perpendicular to its surface. The resistance this corrugated board presents to the force provides an indication of its behavior during processing and in use. 
  • In the short-span compression test (SCT) the compressive strength of paper is determined to ISO 9895, DIN 54518 or TAPPI T 826. Because only a very short length of paper (0.7 mm) is used in the test, greater account is taken of the load-bearing fiber portion of the material than with the traditional test methods (ring crush test, corrugated crush test or linear crush test). 

DS Smith performs all of these tests with a single, space-saving testing machine from ZwickRoell – the AllroundLine Z010 (Fmax 10 kN). The machine features two test areas. Flexible test arrangements mean that fixture changes are not necessary. The test results are reproducible and a second testing machine is not required. Testing two applications is possible from the start. Only one load cell is required for the entire testing system. Additional test arrangements can be installed in the machine at any time thanks to its simple plug-in system. 

When asked why they decided on a cooperation with ZwickRoell, Patrick Prummer, Laboratory Manager at DS Smith explains, "ZwickRoell's extensive experience in the packaging industry along with the high quality consultation it provides convinced us. Strong references within our supply chain including up to packaging institutes further strengthened our trust in ZwickRoell. The goal-oriented development of a solution according to our requirements ensures competitive advantages in design development, (optimizing material use / unlocking boundaries) and quality assurance allowing us to continue to be a valuable partner to our customers." 

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