Cat Lift Trucks introduced the ET3000-ET4000 series of 100 percent AC powered, three-wheel lift trucks. Featuring a MicroCommand alternating current (AC) control system, an operator presence detection system and an increased range of motion and maneuverability, the series offers three models with capacities ranging from 3,000 pounds to 4,000 pounds. The innovative MicroCommand AC control system offers the elimination of redundant components typically found on off-the-shelf boxed systems and increased productivity through MOSFET and thermal management technology. Equipped with an AC-drive motor, the ET3000-ET4000 series delivers improved energy efficiency and quiet operation along with top travel, lift and lowering speeds. Operators are able to control torque and speed separately, allowing for optimum driving performance and a reduced turning radius. The trucks are designed with individual thermal protection systems that guard against overheating of the pump motor, drive motor and control panel. — Cat Lift Trucks, 2121 W. Sam Houston Pkwy. N., Houston, Texas 77043; 713/365-1000; cat-lift.com.

Vacuum Barrier’s Nitrodose Easy Doser VS (variable speed) provides discreet dosing at line speeds up to 300 containers per minute. The system works for manufacturers that use lightweight packaging and have slower capacity line speeds, but still require the precision of the Nitrodose systems. The system delivers controlled amounts of low-pressure liquid nitrogen to pressurize or inert any package type. The Easy Doser is equipped with a simplified PLC controller with touchpad controls, vacuum insulation for the lowest liquid nitrogen consumption, and is designed with a low-profile dosing head to fit into confined spaces. — Vacuum Barrier Corp., Box 529, Woburn, Mass. 01801-0529; 781/933-3570; vacuumbarrier.com.

Yale Materials Handling Corp. offers a very narrow aisle lift truck for the warehouse. NTA-SB combines AC-powered engine technology, ergonomics and serviceability, making this man-up turret truck ideal for pallet handling and case picking applications. The NTA-SB, available in 3,000-pound and 3,500-pound capacities, offers Smart Guide continuous height sensing, auto deceleration braking system, Tri Form and Quad Form mast with lift heights up to 55 feet and a traverse frame with pantograph. The lift truck also provides an adjustable operator console; an open compartment; seat-side joystick controls, armrest and swivel seat; a no pedal floor (foot switches are integrated into compartment floor to minimize trip points) and soft-touch electronic steering. — Yale Materials Handling Corp., 1400 Sullivan Drive, Greenville, N.C. 27834; 800/233-9253; yale.com.

The Douglas Contour SPS-75 Shrink Packer handles unstable products with ease using the Smartrak Steady Stream Infeed System and pinless metering. Smartrak eliminates soft bottle product bridging and removes the gaps that compromise pack pattern accuracy and continuous product flow. Pinless metering uses new technology to gently meter products at speeds 50 percent faster than traditional metering. Pinless metering also eliminates product damage sometimes caused by pin metering, reducing operating costs. Contour SPS-75 features include a tunnel utilizing heat and airflow management to deliver tightly wrapped packages for maximum package integrity and appearance. A servo driven wrapping wand provides film control and accurate film placement. Speeds run as high as 75 cycles per minute. — Douglas Machine Inc., 3404 Iowa Street, Alexandria, Minn. 56308; 320/763-6587; douglas-machine.com.

Koch Membrane Systems Inc. (KMS) introduced the Winefilter WF-3 Crossflow Microfiltration System for small to medium-sized wineries. The system, designed to provide a single-filtration from fermentation to bottle, decreases the total cost of ownership with lower capital costs, reduces energy consumption, and offers more sustained filtration runs and longer membrane life. The Winefilter WF-3 system uses the microporous hollow fiber membrane from KMS, which does not require periodic backflushing. A nitrogen blowdown feature minimizes wine loss by recovering filtrate at the end of each run. The system includes a feed pump, recirculation pump and integral cleaning tank, all mounted on a mobile, caster-supported, stainless steel frame that will fit through a standard doorway. Equipped with three 6-inch membrane cartridges, the filtration system will process batches at 4 gallons to 12 gallons per minute, depending on the type of wine. — Koch Membrane Systems Inc., 850 Main St., Wilmington, Mass. 01887-3388; 888/677-5624; kochmembrane.com.

The new 800-page full-color WACO Laboratory Equipment Catalog has been published by Wilkens-Anderson Co. Product descriptions, pricing and other information for a range of laboratory apparatus, instruments, supplies, chemicals and glassware are included in the catalog. The products are designed to meet the needs of all types of research and development and quality control laboratories. — Wilkens-Anderson Co., 4525 West Division St., Chicago, Ill. 60651; 800/847-2222; wacolab.com.

Thompson Scale Co. released the TSC 350 16x Checkweigher capable of weighing, classifying and rejecting up to 16 items simultaneously for quality control in packaging. The TSC 350 16x Checkweigher is a drag chain style scale designed for large quantity weighing in high production packaging lines. It utilizes two strands of Nylatron flat-link chain to convey product across the weighing portion of each scale. The Model TSC 350 16x Checkweigher is designed for in-motion weighing of rigid, semi-rigid and stable products weighing between 5 grams and 10 kilograms. Its design, consisting of 16 lanes, increases output of packaged products over an average checkweigher by weighing 16 times the number of items at once. The TSC 350 16x offers conveyor speeds up to 300 feet per minute, and is capable of weighing up to 5,600 units per minute with accuracies of +/- 0.5 gram. — Thompson Scale Co., 2758 Bingle Road, Houston, Texas 77055; 713/932-9071; thompsonscale.com.

Micro Matic introduces SmartStrip, a tool that measures the volume and temperature inside the keg. SmartStrip, when applied to the keg wall, reads remaining beer contents and temperature using liquid crystal technology. Developed by users in the field with a need to easily determine the remaining contents in a keg, SmartStrip eliminates lifting, shaking or guessing the keg content level. Additionally, most draft trouble calls start with temperature. Determining accurate keg temperature and then dispense temperature in the glass will enable the draft service technician to identify the problem quickly. — Micro Matic USA Inc., 19791 Bahama Street, Northridge, Calif. 91324; 866/327-4159; micromatic.com.

Millipore Corp. released its 2006 Beverage Products Catalogue in English, French, Spanish, German and Italian on one CD. The new CD catalogue includes information on Millipore’s microbial management solutions for beverage applications, including a comprehensive line of filters to remove microorganisms and a wide range of tools to monitor the process. Look for details on clarification and prefiltration, sterilizing-grade filtration, gas filtration, integrity testing instruments and housings as well as microbial monitoring, environmental monitoring, rapid technologies and online process monitoring tools. — Millipore Corp., 290 Concord Road, Bedford, Mass., 01730; 800/645-547673; millipore.com/bevcatalogue.

Extech Data Systems released new portable receipt printers for route accounting, a practice used to reduce the time needed to complete a sale and improve sales force productivity. With three wireless options, Extech’s printers are available in 2-inch, 3-inch and 4-inch widths and are designed to withstand the rigors commonly associated with the beverage and bottling industries. Extech’s printers feature high-capacity rechargeable lithium ion battery, printing more receipts per charge with less downtime. The printers are available with built-in Flash and SRAM memory to manage all features, and built-in detectors monitor temperature, voltage and paper-out. Multiple communication interfaces and optional integrated Bluetooth radio are available. — Extech Data Systems, 285 Bear Hill Road Waltham, Mass. 02451-1064; 781/890-7440; extech.com.

MeadWestvaco Packaging Systems’ new multi-pack solution, the Diamond pack, is a marriage of form and function that offers beverage manufacturers an alternative to corrugate. The Diamond carton, which will be marketed under the company’s Duodozen carton line, is a paperboard solution for large multi-packs, particularly for 18-, 20- and 24-packs of glass and PET bottles. The Diamond pack is created with a multi-ply design using multiple substrates to give rigidity and strength to the package. The carton allows for multiple layers of board to be placed on the top portion of the carton and above the handle openings, which can be found on each end of the package. This adds strength to the carton and makes the pack suitable for large multiples. The majority of the dual substrate carton is converted from MeadWestvaco’s 27 point Coated Natural Kraft paperboard with wet-strength additive, allowing the board to maintain its rigidity even when wet. — MeadWestvaco Packaging Systems, One High RidgePark, Stamford, Conn. 06905; 203/461-7400; meadwestvaco.com.

A-B-C Packaging Machine’s Model 436 top case sealer is 10-inches long, and built with a stainless steel frame and welded and bolted construction. Sealing can be accomplished with tape and hot-melt adhesive interchangeably on this machine, which is designed for packaging flexibility. Built with independent sealing modules, this sealer changes from one sealing method to another in minutes: unlatch the sealing module using the quick-turn clamps, remove the existing module, and replace it with the alternate sealing module. If only one sealing method is desired, the case sealer may be furnished for tape or hot-melt sealing only. — A-B-C Packaging Machine Corp., 811 Live Oak Street, Tarpon Springs, Fla. 34689; 800/237-5975; abcpackaging.com.

Insight Inc. released a bundle of software and services that build a prototype strategic supply chain design model in a day. The bundle enables potential users to gain an understanding of the scope of SAILS 21 V4.0, a reference standard for strategic supply chain planning and design. The one-day prototyping service uses a small amount of available summary data from the firm and leverages the databases included with SAILS 21 V4.0 to build a working model. The one-day exercise illustrates all the major steps in the analysis and points the way to the more rigorous study to follow. The combination of user interface, support databases, data preparation tools, scenario generation, evaluation capabilities and optimization engine ensures that the study team will meet follow-on deadlines as well. — Insight Inc., 7960 Donegan Drive, Suite 233, Manassas, Va. 20109; 703/366-3061; insight-mss.com.

Premier Merchandising introduces the Kodak 1200i wide-format printing system. The Kodak 1200i printing system offers the latest advancements in wide-format aqueous inkjet technology. Available in 42-inch and 60-inch models, the 1200i is capable of producing both indoor and outdoor inkjet prints on a variety of media substrates. The system prints up to 220 square feet an hour. A dual-component drying system offers a heated nose and ambient air plenum to improve for instant take up and faster print-to-lamination time. Ink reservoirs enable users to use 100 percent of their ink, maintain a constant supply of ink to the print head and allow ink bottles to be changed on the fly for uninterrupted printing. — Premier Merchandising, 419 Century Plaza Drive, Suite 230, Houston, Texas 77073; 800/545-0392; premiermerchandising.com.

FKI Logistex released the Boss PC-based material handling system. The system adds high-tech flexibility to a proven control system for fast, accurate and efficient material handling and increased distribution center throughput. New features include a built-in networked graphical Human Machine Interface (HMI), multiple processor capabilities and support for a variety of I/O platforms. The Boss system is a PC-based control solution that lets distribution center managers direct and measure the productivity of their material handling systems. It combines productivity monitoring tools, machine control, data collection, system diagnostics and HMI into a single software package. The software’s new windowing HMI is more intuitive and provides easy access to status, diagnostic, preventative maintenance and control information. The new Boss HMI provides client-server capability that runs on Windows XP, Linux, Solaris, QNX, AIX, HP-UX and Mac OSX. Built-in HMI capabilities include control, status and diagnostic screens that automatically adapt to the native platform’s look and feel. — FKI Logistex, 9301 Olive Blvd., St. Louis, Mo. 63132; 877/935-4564; fkilogistex.com.

Krohne Inc. offers an NTEP-approved single-straight tube Coriolis mass flowmeter, Optimass Series 7000. This uniquely constructed flowmeter offers no-hassle installation and superior performance in density and mass flow. With its single-straight tube design and broad range of end connections, the meter meets the most stringent hygienic requirements for food and pharmaceutical applications. It also complies with industry standards, including ASME bioprocessing equipment, EHEDG, 3-A and FDA. The meters are approved for use in hazardous environments. Incorporating its Adaptive Sensor Technology, the Optimass 7000 Series tunes itself, independent of external forces and fluid density, to produce an inherently balanced meter. It delivers accurate metering for a wide range of flow rates, in seven full-bore tube diameters. — Krohne Inc., 7 Dearborn Road, Peabody, Mass. 01960; 978/535-6060; krohne.com.

Seal-It is a converter, manufacturer and printer of shrink labels and tamper-evident bands made from PVC, PETG , OPS and Earthfirst  PLA films. Seal-It prints up to 10 colors in rotogravure or modified flexographic. The company operates out of two technologically advanced facilities. Seal-It hold many years of experience working in the beverage industry. — Seal-It Inc., 70 Schmitt Blvd., Farmingdale, N.Y. 11735; 800/325-3965; sealitinc.com. East Pack Booth Number 4665.

The rugged MET30+ Pipeline metal detector from Lock Inspection Systems is ideal for the inspection of fluid products, including colas, juices and dairy beverages. The unit is designed to withstand cleaning conditions encountered in liquid applications, where the use of abrasive chemicals and high temperatures is common. The MET30+ Pipeline, a fully waterproof system, boasts unique electronics and detects and rejects all types of metallic contaminants. Improved technical performance and enhanced integration with management information and quality control systems are key to Lock’s WeighChek checkweigher series also seen at the show. And Lock’s WeighChek Combi is a fully integrated combination metal detector and checkweigher for bottled or packaged products. A single touchscreen interface controls both the metal detector and checkweigher, for simple operation. The metal detector’s automatic multiple frequency selection facility guarantees performance on all metals, including metallized film, making it suited for foil pouch-pack juice drinks. — Lock Inspection Systems, 207 Authority Drive, Fitchburg, Mass. 01420; 978/343-3716; lockinspection.com. East Pack Booth Number 4639.