Is Two Better Than One?
When talking about rotary cut products, many customers (especially those approaching this type of production for the very first time) wonder whether going for a single-stage cutter or for a twin one.
In the first case, you have a single roller serving a double purpose: cutting the outer outline of the shape and, in parallel, printing the design inside the shape itself.
In the second case, there are two rollers with specific and separate functions, where one is used to cut the product and the 2nd is committed to the printing.
One may think that the choice is mainly based on cost-effective reasons – the single stage cutter is definitely cheaper whereas the investment for the twin-cutter is higher – but the answer is not that predictable.
The ruling principle says that simple products with little details (holes only, for example) can be produced with a single cutting roller as they are less demanding in terms of gap adjustments between the depths of the cutting and of the printing. The pictures here below show some of the shapes that can be successfully made through a single-stage cutting roller
On the other hand, the twin cutting rollers have been specifically created and developed for all of those products which are more detailed and with many elements of design – among them we can mention the world-wide famous “Marie” and “Petit Beurre”. When dealing with those biscuits, it is extremely important to have the possibility of independently adjusting the height of the outer cutting and of the printing, in order to obtain a clear and well-defined result.
In addition to that, it is very important to highlight the fact that with the twin cutter the thickness of the dough sheet is not that limiting and does not have to be necessarily known from the beginning of a project – taking into account that the cutting roller can be adjusted independently, the user can easily adapt it based on the thickness of the dough sheet that will be used.
If we have a look at the “Marie” biscuit, we can easily see how complex the design is: the depths of the Greek fret, of the writings and of the pins need to be accurately evaluated in order to guarantee a perfect impression but, on the other hand, the flawless cutting of the outer silhouette of the product doesn’t have to be overlooked. Combining all of those elements on the same roller would be risky, that is why we always suggest to go for a twin cutter
Once this choice is made, it’s time to look at the type of construction system and at the materials: both single-stage and twin cutting roller can be produced with interchangeable cups (first option in the picture below) or with interchangeable rings (second option) and when it comes to the material, we can offer our customers an even wider range.
The engraving of the shapes can be made on plastic or on bronze directly and, for the latter, Teflon coating to further help the releasing of the dough is also available.
For the twin cutting rollers there is an additional combined option, where the cutting roller can be made from bronze (also with Teflon coating) and the printing one can be made from plastic.
This type of mixed solution is preferred by those customers who are using a dough that is particularly hard and that would consequently lead to a too much fast wearing out of the cutting cups/ring if they were made of plastic.
This “hybrid” twin cutter offers the advantage of preserving the life of the cutting roller for a longer time, while saving in the purchasing cost as a double-material twin cutter is cheaper than one where both cutting and printing are completely made of bronze.
We at Padovani are always at our customers’ complete disposal for assisting them and guiding them to a successful production – get in touch with us to know more!
