About Our Slitting Machines
Alpha Converting designs and builds industrial slitting machines for converters worldwide. Our slitter rewinders handle plastic films, aluminium foils, papers, laminates, nonwovens and technical materials - from lightweight medical films through to heavy board and building products.
Every slitting machine is engineered around your application. We offer centre, centre-surface and surface rewind configurations, along with duplex and individual arm slitter rewinders for higher-volume production. Web widths, line speeds, slitting methods (razor, shear or crush cut) and rewind options are all specified to match your material and finished roll requirements.
Because each machine is designed and manufactured in-house at our Bedford, UK facility, we can accommodate non-standard requirements that off-the-shelf slitting machines cannot - unusual web widths, difficult materials, tight tolerance slitting or integration with your existing line. Our engineers work with you from initial specification through to installation and commissioning.
Slitting Machine FAQs
A slitter rewinder is a machine that takes a wide master roll of material - film, foil, paper or nonwoven - and cuts it lengthways into narrower rolls, rewinding each slit width onto its own core. The result is finished rolls cut to the exact width required for printing, packaging or further converting.
The terms are used interchangeably - a slitter rewinder is a slitting machine that rewinds the slit widths into finished rolls, which is how virtually all modern machines work. All Alpha slitting machines are slitter rewinders.
Alpha slitting machines are built to process plastic films, aluminium and other metal foils, papers and boards, laminates, nonwovens and technical textiles. Because each machine is custom built, the web handling, tension control and slitting method are matched to your specific material - including thin, stretchy or delicate webs that standard machines struggle with.
The master roll is loaded onto an unwind stand and the web is drawn through the machine under controlled tension. Blades - razor, shear or crush cut depending on the material - slit the web into the required widths, and each slit width is rewound onto its own core at the rewind station. Tension, speed and blade choice determine the edge quality and roll finish.
In centre winding, the rewind core is driven directly and tension is controlled through the core shaft - suited to lighter, stretch-sensitive materials and smaller finished rolls.
In surface winding, the roll is driven by contact with a winding drum, giving consistent density on larger, heavier rolls.
Centre-surface machines combine both, using a lay-on drum with a driven core for the widest material range.
Alpha builds all three configurations and will recommend the right one for your material and roll sizes.
Three main slitting methods are used depending on the material. Razor slitting suits thin plastic films; shear slitting - two rotary blades working like scissors - gives the cleanest edge on papers, laminates and foils; and crush cutting handles nonwovens and materials where edge quality is less critical.
Alpha slitting machines are specified with the blade system best suited to your material, and some machines combine more than one method.
Two-Drum Paper Winders
The ALPHADRUM rewinder is a robust winder built for both narrow width mills and converters for the rapid rewinding of paper. The machine is specifically designed to meet the requirements for quick set-up, high speed winding and rapid roll change.
Narrow Web Slitter Rewinders
The ALPHALAB slitter rewinder with cantilevered winding shafts suited to narrow width slitting and rewinding or roll rework, typically used for narrow web or pressure sensitive tapes (PSA).
Duplex Slitter Rewinders – heavy duty
The ALPHATWIN HR duplex slitter rewinder for large diameter rewinding with both shafts set at low level for fast and safe unloading, typically used for labelstock or papers.
Individual Arm Slitter Rewinders
The ALPHAWIND individual arm centre and centre surface winders provide the ultimate in winding of sensitive and thin films.
Centre Surface Slitter Rewinders
ALPHASHAFT centre surface winders with one or two shafts have short web paths for high productivity and control of narrow webs, typically used for paper, nonwovens, foams and pressure sensitive tapes.
Duplex Slitter Rewinders
The ALPHATWIN duplex slitter rewinder is a robust shafted centre rewinder with precise tension and contact control, typically used for flexible packaging and general converting.