Customer Success Story Viva Media: Modernizing flat film lines

An extrusion line is a long-term investment. At some point during its service life, adjustments to the technology are inevitable - as is now the case with flat film extrusion at the Viva Group's Canadian site. The media packaging specialists have been producing polypropylene film on a flat film line from Reifenhäuser Cast Sheet Coating in Toronto since 2005. After almost twenty years, the electrical engineering was outdated and some discontinued components would no longer have been available in the foreseeable future.

"This was a big risk for our production because the system could be down for an incalculable amount of time if these parts failed," says Amy Lo, Production Manager at Viva Media. "Reifenhäuser recommended a proactive system conversion to ensure system availability and extend the service life."

Viva Group

Founded: 1973
Locations: Hong Kong (China, headquarters), Toronto (Canada), Warsaw (Poland)
Employees: 1500
Products: Media packaging, injection-molded tubes, unbreakable glassware
Markets: Home entertainment industry, healthcare, gastronomy and building materials industry

Renewal of the electrical engineering

The Reifenhäuser conversion team has upgraded the control unit (CPU) and 15 drive units for the winder and downstream unit on the flat film line to the latest state of the art. "The Viva Media system now has the same electrical engineering as new Reifenhäuser extrusion lines and is therefore well positioned for many years to come," says Nicolas Bröcher, who supports Reifenhäuser Cast Sheet Coating customers with the modernization of their systems.

"The Viva Media system now has the same electrical engineering as new Reifenhäuser extrusion lines and is therefore well positioned for many years to come."

Nicolas Bröcher

Cast Sheet Coating

Prepared for new requirements

At the same time, Reifenhäuser has rebuilt the extrusion line so that Viva Media is well equipped to meet new requirements. "Our markets have changed in recent years and so have the expectations of our line," says Amy Lo. "We need more flexibility in the products, new recipes and thinner films because we want to open up new markets."

To achieve this, the line's dosing system was not only brought up to date electrically, but also supplemented with additional small components for special additives. This allows Viva Media to adapt recipes and improve the product properties of the film.

In the winder, the Reifenhäuser team has also modified the contact carriage, including a further developed, laser-engraved contact roller. On the one hand, winding in contact mode with the new contact roller enables better winding quality. Secondly, following the conversion, Viva Media can now also run thin films with 15 µm in addition to CPP film with 40-90 µm.

Convenient turnkey solution with minimal downtimes

"We offer our customers a convenient turnkey solution where everything comes from a single professional source, from the initial on-site system assessment and project planning, including Reifenhäuser's in-house design, to installation and final acceptance of the finished film winder," explains Bröcher. As a result, Reifenhäuser achieves the shortest possible conversion times and ensures that the planned system downtime is met.

Viva Media and other customers benefit from Reifenhäuser's extensive experience with flat film lines. "We know our existing systems very well and also have the complete circuit diagrams and documentation for old systems," says Bröcher. "This allows us to plan the conversions without errors and carry out the installation on site smoothly with our qualified mechanical, electrical and software technicians - after all, every minute that the system is not running costs the film producer money."

Viva Media's flat film line in Toronto has been back in operation since the beginning of October 2023, producing PP thick film and thin film for media packaging. "The conversion was worthwhile for us because it not only ensures the availability of equipment and spare parts, but also allows us to run new recipes and products," says Amy Lo. "This puts us in a good position for the future."

How to ensure your system availability in the long term

The better a system is operated and maintained, the higher and longer the system availability will be.

Reifenhäuser offers spare parts and maintenance services for this purpose, such as

However, it may also be necessary to modernize the machine - from replacing an individual component to retrofitting the entire system.

Further success stories

Reifenhäuser has many years of experience in modernizing existing systems. Read here how three film manufacturers have made their lines fit for the future with modernization packages from Reifenhäuser.