TDC, a member of the ITM Group, has introduced a fully integrated, modular e-cigarette automation platform. The technology generated such a level of interest that company had to extend its launch event in Kampen, Netherlands, by three weeks.
Currently, most e-cigarettes are assembled manually by Chinese subcontractors employing thousands of workers. Greater regulation and higher product standards are expected to drive manufacturing to end-markets such as the Europe and the United States, where labor is more expensive. Because of this and other factors, demand for automated solutions is likely to grow.
To proof its concept of fully automated production, TDC developed its own second-generation e-cigarette.
TDC aims to pursue an open source, platform-based strategy for e-cigarettes. “We want to be able to support our customers from the research and development phase of the product, to the production and delivery of total turn-key projects,” says TDC Managing Director Jeroen Slobbe.