The problem: cleaning a core roll without a machine built for it.
A roll that carries product through a process picks up residue. It has to come off every cycle, without scoring the roll surface and without taking the line down for long. Catalogue cleaning equipment is sized for generic parts. It was never going to fit this roll's diameter or its cleaning standard. The customer needed a machine built around the roll they actually have, in washdown stainless, and they needed it to arrive ready to run.
Our approach: one team from first sketch to running machine.
The build followed the same process PLM uses on every machine. Everything happened in the same building, so questions about fit and service access got answered once, by the people who were going to build it, instead of bouncing between a design firm and a fabricator.
It started with the roll. Its size and the cleaning process set the machine envelope, and the whole assembly was modelled in SolidWorks before anyone cut material. The frame, guards, and process components were then laser cut, formed, and TIG welded here, on the same equipment we use for contract fabrication. The panel, wiring, and control logic came from PLM's own controls team. Finally the machine was powered up and run as a complete system on our floor before it went to the customer for installation and commissioning.
What the customer received.
One machine from one supplier, already running before it left the shop. That matters more than it sounds. When the designer, the fabricator, and the integrator are three different companies, commissioning turns into a week of phone calls about whose fault something is. Here there was one drawing package and one person to call.
- Designed, built, tested, installed, and commissioned by PLM
- Washdown stainless throughout
- Controls panel laid out so a technician can actually get at it
- Documentation and support after start-up
Why this matters if you need a custom cleaning machine.
The Core Roll Cleaner is a specific answer to a specific roll, and yours will be different. What carries over is the method: start from the process, engineer the machine around it, build it in one place, and prove it before it ships. That is how PLM handles every custom machine, whether it is a cleaner, a conveyor, or a full line.
Frequently asked questions.
Can PLM build a similar cleaning machine for a different roll or product size?
Yes. The Core Roll Cleaner was designed around one customer's roll, but the same approach applies to other sizes and materials. Bring the part or process and PLM engineers the machine around it.
Do I need finished drawings before contacting PLM about a custom machine?
No. Drawings help, but the team can start from a problem, a sample part, a process description, or a rough sketch and develop the design in SolidWorks from there.
Is the machine tested before it ships?
Every PLM machine is powered up, run, and checked as a complete system on the shop floor in St. Catharines before delivery, then installed and commissioned at the customer site.