NRC200 Automatic Spiral Tube Making Machine Factory China

The spiral winding method is the workhorse of the industry for producing long, strong, and consistent tubes and cores. Its defining feature is

the continuous helical (spiral) seam.

How a Spiral Paper Tube Machine Works: Step-by-Step

Imagine the machine as a linear production line. Here's the journey of the paper:

1. Unwinding & Slitting:

   • Large rolls of paper (kraft, recycled, specialty) are mounted on an unwind stand.

   • These wide rolls pass through a slitting unit, which scores and cuts them into multiple narrower strips. The number of strips determines the number of plies (layers) in the final tube wall.

2. Gluing:

   • Each individual paper strip passes over a gluing roller or through a glue chamber. This applies a precise, even coat of adhesive (typically water-based or synthetic) to one side.

3. Spiral Winding (The Core Process):

   • This is where the magic happens. The glued paper strips are fed at a fixed, oblique angle (typically between 70° and 85°) onto a rotating central mandrel.

   • The mandrel is a long, polished steel shaft that defines the tube's inner diameter (ID).

   • As the mandrel rotates, it pulls the paper strips and winds them into a continuous, overlapping spiral. Each strip forms one ply of the tube wall. The angled feed is what creates the characteristic spiral seam.

4. Forming & Pressure:

   • Forming Belts: A series of specialized belts wrap around the newly forming tube on the mandrel. These belts apply consistent pressure, ensuring the paper plies bond tightly together and squeeze out excess glue for a smooth, solid wall.

5. Drying / Curing:

   • The continuous tube moves off the mandrel and into a drying tunnel or heating chamber. Here, heated air circulates around the tube to rapidly cure and set the adhesive, giving the tube its structural integrity.

6. Cutting to Length:

   • A "flying" cut-off saw moves synchronously with the traveling tube. It precisely cuts the tube to pre-programmed lengths without stopping the production flow. The cut pieces are then conveyed away for packaging.

Key Advantages of Spiral Winding Technology

• Excellent Radial Strength (Crush Resistance): The continuous spiral structure distributes stress evenly around the circumference, making these tubes ideal for supporting heavy rolled materials (like steel or heavy film) without collapsing.

• Continuous Production: Capable of producing tubes in theoretically infinite lengths, which are then cut to order. This allows for high-volume efficiency and minimal downtime.

• Consistent Straightness: The process inherently produces very straight and dimensionally stable tubes.

• Wide Range of Sizes: By simply changing the mandrel, a single machine can produce a wide variety of inner diameters.

• Material Flexibility: Can handle a wide range of paper grades and grammages, and can even incorporate other materials like films, foils, or non-wovens into the tube wall.