Optimation’s 8,000 sq. ft. Media Conveyance Facility (MCF) features experimental and analytical web handling facilities, limited production capabilities, equipment and development engineering support, custom machine capability and teaching services. Optimation offers you the flexibility to solve all types of web-related production problems, test new product features, characterize and quantify capital project investments without the cost and burden of running a laboratory of your own or diverting costly production time to pursue in-house experiments. The invaluable expertise of our staff, including web dynamics experts, machine engineering and design and sophisticated controls engineering, paired with our full set of machinery and modeling capabilities, ensures swift, high-quality results. For 35 years, this media conveyance facility and team has proven success in the development of roll to roll processes for paper, film and digital media products.

Capital Projects: Product characterization, process system analysis and specifications, process machine configurations and options.

Process Improvements: Evaluate/troubleshoot existing process capability, recommend improvement options, model and test selected upgrades.

OEM Machine Development: Analyze and model equipment performance based on machine design, test performance of critical machine parameters, provide machine specifications based on models and experimental testing.

New or existing web/media product implementation or improvements:
Evaluate and characterize existing product, provide product conveyance and handling predictions based on measurements and modeling, recommend improvement options based on lab experiments.

University and Academia Applications: Develop state of the art web handling knowledge through linkages with academic communities. Our MCF is available for universities to utilize in undergraduate or graduate studies.

Training and Seminars: Expert led classroom sessions to teach principles and practices of web based manufacturing, web behavior and response to a wide variety of manufacturing processes.

In addition to our facility and equipment, our Media Conveyance Facility (MCF) is led by a group of engineers, technologists, designers and tradesmen with unparalled expertise. Our design team has over 40 years of combined experience, with backgrounds in web conveyance, the manufacturing industry, and research and development. Our staff is experienced in the designing and building of prototype manufacturing equipment and developing and implementing processes in manufacturing facilities.

Example Applications

Below are just a few of the experiments, studies and evaluations that have been performed in the MCF in the past. Contact one of our specialists, and we can work with you to determine exactly how we can best meet your project scope.

Wide Web Winding Experiments Interleaving winding study to enable noncontact film roll winding Cardboard core torque transmission study to enable low cost core Induction heated knurling study to enable one-sided film edge knurling Film separation/peeling study to enable new product development Layon roller study to enable high speed paper and film roll winding Roller Conveyance Experiments Roller surface study to enable high speed conveyance Bowed roller study for web spreading Wide web peeling studies for new product Modeling Capabilities Winding-high speed, thermoelastic, visco elastic, width effects Machine web tension profile-static and dynamic Web path design and control selection Air conveyance-air pressure, web deflections Roller traction-product and process interactions Drives and Controls Fractional to high power requirements Registration Tension control Flying splices, unwinders and winders Drive performance testing and analysis Machine direction and cross machine controls Vibration, stress and thermal profile feedback systems Narrow Wound Roll Quality Evaluations Roll telescoping press studies to evaluate roll integrity Sidewall gauge studies to evaluate roll straightness Narrow Web Winding and Conveyance Experiments Track off studies at elevated temperature on film Layon roller studies to enable high speed roll winding Winding product & process studies to verify predictive models Measurement Capabilities Friction-web/web and web/roller Surface roughness-webs and rollers Radial (winding) and tangential modules Single and multi-layer thickness Planarity, flatness Air Conveyance Development Experiments Airbar clearance study to reduce film edge contamination Reverser clearance study to eliminate web contact Weave studies to minimize film lateral oscillations Engineering and Design Support Over 200 years of combined mechanical and electrical experience in web handling Ability to customize equipment to client’s product and process development needs Can provide design/build of add-on equipment for new or special testing scenarios on MCF machines