The decision to fit a Vetaphone corona treater marked the beginning of a new relationship between Dae Kwang and the Danish pioneers of surface treatment technology.
The Korean company was established in 1973 as a manufacturer of tarpaulin machines for banners. It began exporting its lamination technology in 1986 and now has more than 200 machines installed in 24 countries worldwide. Today the manufacturer has a variety of products, including machines for film extrusion laminating, as well as pipes, sheets and tubes.
Tae Sik Bae, the president of Dae Kwang, commented, ‘Although we were previously aware of corona technology, we had no experience of Vetaphone quality until our customer specified the brand. Now, it is our preferred supplier of surface treatment technology.’
Describing flexible packaging as the most demanding market because of its strong barrier requirements, Mr Bae said that these applications are served typically by co-extrusion machines. For example, paper substrates require heavy duty extrusion owing to the high paper grammage, in a market where durability is key. Woven substrates, on machines up to 4400mm wide, require high tension, while non-wovens, which have a variety of shapes and properties, require more versatile equipment. Hot melt laminators perform the same function as the screws and T-Die on an extruder, but allow higher running speeds offline.
‘We see Vetaphone as the market leader and are presently investigating ways to fully integrate its technology within our machine lines. This will save costly space on the production floor, and improve functionality for the operator. We would do this only with a supplier whose technology matches our own in terms of quality and reliability,’ Mr Bae concluded. With a winning combination of solid background experience and a dynamic young team to take the company forward, indications are that the company’s quest for quality will bring major rewards.
