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Packaging Machine Troubleshooting

Practical troubleshooting information for common horizontal packaging machine problems.

Support Section23 articles · 6 groups

All troubleshooting articles

Film Tracking Problems

Film drifts sideways through the film path, producing off-center seams and film breaks.

Film Wrinkles

Wrinkles at high speed trace to tension balance, film path condition or forming setup.

Film Breakage

Film breaks follow tracking drift, tension spikes, damaged rollers or film condition.

Film Tension Problems

Inconsistent or pulsing film tension affects tracking, registration and seal quality.

Feeding Interruption

The product stream stops or faults intermittently before the wrapping area.

Weak Seals

Seals that tear open easily usually trace back to temperature, pressure, dwell, contamination or film conditions.

Uneven Seals

Seal quality varies across the width — jaw pressure, jaw condition or film condition.

Seal Position Problems

The seal forms at the wrong point when jaw timing, recipe values or product pitch drift.

Product Caught in the Seal

Product timing or position lets product reach the sealing area at the wrong moment.

Burned Film

Burned or discolored film at the seal traces to temperature, dwell, jaw condition or stoppage behavior.

Cutting Failure

Packages come out joined or partly cut when the blade, clearance or drive stroke fails.

Incorrect Cutting Position

The cutter lands off-center on the seal or drifts through the run.

Knife Damage

Chipped or worn cutting tools change cut quality and can damage fixtures.

Sensor Alarms

Intermittent or constant sensor alarms usually trace to contamination, alignment or cabling.

Servo Alarms

A structured first response to servo drive and axis alarms before escalating.

HMI Errors

HMI error messages and communication faults sit between display and controller.

Registration Mark Problems

Print-to-cut alignment holds at low speed but drifts or faults at production speed.

Product Misalignment

Products arrive rotated, skewed or off-pitch at the forming area.

Unexpected Machine Stops

Recurring unplanned stops are a pattern: intermittent safety circuits, sensor misses or jams.

Machine Will Not Start

A safe, ordered check of power, safety circuits and start conditions.

Low Speed or Output

The machine cannot reach its expected output — feeding, film faults, wear or unqualified recipes.

Inconsistent Package Length

Pack length varies through the run: film slip, encoder issues, tension or registration interaction.

Product Spacing Problems

Uneven product pitch moves products inside the wrap and interferes with sealing and cutting.

Method

Troubleshooting Process

The same five steps apply to every problem on a packaging line.

STEP 1

Identify the symptom

Describe what changes on the machine and on the package — when it started and under what conditions.

STEP 2

Check basic conditions

Supplies, safety circuits, active recipe and film batch — before adjusting anything mechanical.

STEP 3

Inspect the relevant machine system

Work through the system connected to the symptom: film path, sealing, cutting, feeding or control.

STEP 4

Apply the corrective action

Make one change at a time and verify the result on sample packages before continuing.

STEP 5

Contact technical support

If the problem remains, stop and contact Path Pack with the recorded symptoms and alarm codes.

Technical Note

Record every step you take — conditions, changes and results. This record is what allows technical support to diagnose quickly instead of starting from zero.

Still experiencing the problem?

Path Pack technical support can help diagnose the problem and identify the next step.

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