Some manufacturers quickly embrace automated assembly. Others require many years before they’re able to take the plunge. ITW Imagedata, a leading specialty manufacturer of film ribbons and consumables for the card-printer industry, fits in the latter category.
In 2014, after more than 20 years in business, ITW fully automated its D2T2 (dye diffusion thermal transfer) ribbon pairing and assembly process with a custom machine from GB Innomech Ltd. The machine requires only one operator and replaces a manual process involving six people.