Turntable vs rotary arm vs in-line pallet wrapper: which one do you need?

01The short answer

All three wrap a pallet with stretch film. The difference is what moves during the cycle, and that single decision determines throughput, the loads you can handle, whether a forklift is needed, and how the machine fits your building.

02Turntable: the default for forklift-fed dispatch

The turntable is the simplest architecture and the one most operations should start with. The pallet is placed on a rotating deck, the film carriage travels up a fixed column, and the machine does not care what happens upstream or downstream.

The SW-5000D carries 2 000 kg on a φ1 650 mm turntable, runs a 200 % pre-stretch carriage, and installs on a single-phase 220 V supply — which matters in an existing warehouse where a three-phase feed is not available. Cycle times of 20–30 pallets per hour are set by the wrap count, not by the machine.

• Choose it when a forklift already delivers pallets to the dispatch area
• Choose it when the load is stable and can be spun safely
• Add a pneumatic top press for light, tall or bagged loads
• Add the SW-1000D top-sheet module when the load is stored outside

03Rotary arm: for loads that must not be rotated

Some loads simply cannot be spun. Tall stacks, half-full drums, unstable bagged product and anything with a high centre of gravity will shift or shed material the moment the deck turns. A rotary arm solves that by keeping the pallet stationary on the conveyor while the arm carries the film around it.

The SW-6000D runs the arm at 0–15 rpm with a 1.1 kW helical-gear motor and an electromagnetic brake for accurate stopping. Standard dry-contact I/O for load-in, load-out and ready lets it behave like another station on the line rather than a machine bolted next to it.

04In-line roller turntable: removing the forklift entirely

The largest labour saving in pallet wrapping is not the wrapping — it is the forklift trip to and from the machine. An in-line wrapper replaces the plain turntable deck with a powered roller conveyor, so the pallet rolls on from your line, is wrapped and sealed, and rolls off again.

The SW-7000D runs φ89 mm rollers on a 100 mm pitch, handles 100–1 500 kg, and reaches 250 % film yield — the highest in the range. Photoelectric sensors sequence the whole cycle and standard PLC communication ports let it interlock with your line controller.

05What actually drives the cost

The purchase price is rarely the deciding number in this category. Three running factors matter more over a five-year life:

• Film consumption — the gap between 200 % and 250 % pre-stretch is roughly a fifth of everything you spend on film
• Forklift time at the wrapper — an in-line machine removes this cost entirely, and it is usually the largest single saving on the project
• Changeover time between products — a touchscreen recipe makes it a button press; a mechanical setting makes it a five-minute stop