Bespoke Engineering Delivers Forming Solution for Oversized Industrial Cartons

Zray has completed the design, manufacture, and delivery of a custom-modified double head high speed carton forming machine for an industrial packaging customer with unique carton size requirements that fell outside the specifications of standard off-the-shelf equipment. The project demonstrates Zray’s engineering capability to adapt its core forming technology for niche applications where standard machinery simply cannot accommodate the required dimensions.

The customer, a packaging supplier specializing in heavy-duty industrial and automotive parts cartons, required a forming solution capable of handling carton blanks up to 1,200 mm in length and 900 mm in width — approximately 40% larger than the maximum format supported by Zray’s standard double head machines. Additionally, the cartons were produced from 5 mm thick double-wall corrugated board with a high recycled-fiber content, presenting additional challenges in terms of folding resistance and spring-back behavior.

“Standard machines on the market top out at around 800 mm blank width for this type of application,” said Zray’s lead project engineer. “To reach 900 mm with double-wall material, we had to redesign the forming head geometry, upgrade the drive system, and develop a custom feeding mechanism that could handle the additional weight and stiffness of these oversize blanks without jamming or misfeeding.”

• Custom forming head: Redesigned with extended stroke actuators and reinforced folding arms to manage larger blank dimensions and higher material resistance.
• Upgraded drive system: Servo motors uprated from 2.0 kW to 3.5 kW per forming station, providing the additional torque required for thick double-wall board.
• Specialized feeding mechanism: Vacuum-assisted pick-and-place unit with larger-diameter suction cups and independent height compensation to handle uneven board surfaces and heavier blanks.

The modification project also incorporated an extended conveyor section with adjustable side guides and an integrated automatic squaring station to compensate for the increased tendency of large-format cartons to skew during the forming and gluing sequence. Zray’s engineers worked closely with the customer’s production team throughout the design phase, conducting multiple rounds of sample forming trials using the actual production board stock to validate each design iteration.

Testing and Validation

Before shipment, the machine underwent a comprehensive factory acceptance test at Zray’s manufacturing facility, running 5,000 continuous cycles with the customer’s production blanks. The test protocol measured forming consistency, glue bead placement accuracy, and output carton geometry across the full range of the expanded format envelope. Results confirmed that the custom-modified machine achieved the same ±0.5 mm dimensional tolerance and 98.5% first-pass yield rate as Zray’s standard machines operating within their designed format ranges.

The machine was delivered, installed, and commissioned at the customer’s facility within three weeks of factory acceptance. Operator training was conducted on-site over four days, covering both standard operation and the specific adjustment procedures relevant to the custom configuration.

Conclusion

This project illustrates Zray’s commitment to providing tailored solutions rather than forcing customers to adapt their products to standard machine specifications. By investing in custom engineering, the customer now operates a purpose-built forming line capable of producing oversize industrial cartons at speeds of up to 2,400 pieces per hour — a throughput unattainable with any standard machine in the market segment. The successful delivery has opened discussions for a second custom-modified unit to handle a related product line.