What Are Shrink Tunnels and Why Are They So Great?
There are many tools and devices that companies can use to wrap products professionally in shrink film. There are even a number of different machines that operate on legs or a tabletop for sealing products in large quantities. However, you might find certain products that catch your eye due to their unique box shape, known as heat shrink tunnels.
What Is A Shrink Tunnel?
A shrink tunnel is a heating device where products are guided through the tunnel one by one in order to get shrink film heated tightly onto each product. A conveyor belt moves products through the tunnel and exits them out the other side.
Shrink tunnels are meant to work alongside a sealer or cutting device, as well as the film you buy from your shrink film manufacturer. First, a person places the product inside of shrink film, then uses the sealer to cut the film so that the rest only covers the product. The product with the film covering it is then placed on the conveyor belt where it is then taken inside the shrink tunnel for heating.
These shrink tunnels work as a hybrid between an oven and a car wash. There are lights and heat generators inside the tunnel that bond the shrink wrap to the product in seconds. You won’t have to worry about the product or the shrink film itself melting, as the heating process is very brief. The conveyor belt continues to move as the product is guided out of the tunnel.
The conveyor belt moves with the help of a motor, so not only is the electricity needed to heat the products but also allows the conveyor belt to work and move as planned.
Why Should I Buy A Shrink Tunnel?
Shrink tunnels are great for a number of reasons in sealing products. Firstly, they heat products automatically without any manual control or operation from a user. Simply place the product onto the belt and the machine does the rest.
Secondly, shrink tunnels are very ideal for when you need to shrink film on many products at once. You can feed products into the tunnel one after the other and it can manage to shrink film for each in seconds. You can also create a set-up with your tunnel so that products wrapped in their film can instantly be fed into the tunnel, like how it is done in a real factory.
Case in point, a shrink tunnel requires very little work with satisfactory performance and results. Many shrink films come with control panels so that you can customize your heating experience depending on your products and the shrink film being used. The two most basic settings are the conveyor belt speed and temperature, which impact how the tunnel will be able to heat your film onto your products.
Shrink tunnels also come with optional legs so that they can stand on their own, as opposed to being placed on a table or desk. Shrink tunnels can cost as much as tens of thousands of dollars, but you can find reasonable ones that cost just over two thousand dollars. If you plan to mass-produce a product that you are looking to sell long-term, a shrink tunnel would be considered a worthwhile investment.
Summary
A shrink tunnel is a motorized heating device where products that you wrap in shrink film ride on a conveyor belt and will be heated quickly and automatically without any manual labor. Shrink tunnels are praised for their ease of use and ability to heat film for a number of products in a designated period of time.
