Category: Technology

One-Stop Shop

Photos: ATD
ATD’s unique pedigree allows gives it a leg up in tackling the mechanical challenges of cigar manufacturing.
By Stefanie Rossel
The development of cigar making equipment comes with its unique challenges, tempting machinery manufacturers to focus on specific parts of the cigar manufacturing process, such as over-rolling. Dutch original equipment manufacturer ATD Machinery stands out in the marketplace as it is a one-stop shop, providing an extensive portfolio of secondary machinery from bobbinizing machinery to pack-finishing. Among other things, it offers a complete line for manufacturing shoulder boxes and a flavor injector.
The company, which originated as the technical department of Royal Agio Cigars, one of Europe’s largest privately owned cigar companies, became independent in 2013. ATD started out developing machines for Agio’s overseas business in the 1970s. Today it has 50 employees. In addition to cigar-manufacturing equipment, the company offers production and packaging machinery for other sectors. Tobacco Reporter spoke with ATD Machinery’s new CEO, Koen te Lintelo, about what’s new.

Koen te Lintelo
Tobacco Reporter: How has your business developed since it was spun off from Royal Agio Cigars?
Koen te Lintelo: Indeed, ATD moved to a brand new, state-of-the-art building, and its independence was formalized. But I think our unique history of developing technological know-how and machinery with direct feedback from the factory made us into what we are and has allowed us to become the market leader. But in reality, ATD was already independent in how it operated. Helping our customers solve cigar manufacturing challenges, producing more efficiently, with class leading reliability and quality, have always been ATD’s mission.
In how far has your customer base changed and become more independent of your parent company, Agio Cigars? Are you still growing mostly organically?
Our growth is entirely organic and comes from both existing customers and new ones. The fact that Agio is no longer part of the Wintermans family does not really change that. I believe the fact that we have a complete portfolio of machinery from boxing and packaging machines all the way to newly developed bobinizers, bunch makers, finishing machines and the world’s fastest cigar over-roller, makes us an attractive partner. We try to look at our clients’ challenges from all angles, whether it is from a desire to improve efficiency or the quality of output, data collection or technical solutions to new regulation. And that’s only possible with excellent engineering capabilities and actual manufacturing experience. As I said before, it is in our history, in our DNA. And honestly, we are proud of our heritage.
Back when you became autonomous, the percentage of your business generated by cigar machinery stood at 85 percent to 90 percent. What is its share between your business from the cigar industry and that from other sectors today?
ATD’s prime focus is on the cigar industry. We have made a strong commitment to keep on innovating and investing in the cigar business. And, as a result, the balance for cigar machinery is still 85 [percent] to 90 percent. Nevertheless, as the total business grew, the volume in turnover increased for both pillars. But we are no longer a machine manufacturer only. Today we also provide technical know-how on-site as a service. It is all about how we can help in the best possible way.

How has the global cigar market developed since ATD’s independence?
Cost of ownership, return of investment and environmental footprint are stronger key decision criteria. A driver for ATD to innovate on cost efficiencies and environmental impact.
New products and packaging concepts have been launched. Improvement and speed-up kits have been developed to upgrade existing production capacity, and we extended our capability to refurbish several types of bunch makers.
Is cigar making equipment still a viable business, given the increasing restrictions on tobacco products worldwide?
Most definitely. If anything, new regulation makes it even more important for cigar manufacturers to be agile and produce efficiently and qualitatively at the same time. We have to be one step ahead to tackle any issues that might arise as a consequence of new regulation.
What are the most promising markets for your company at the moment?
ATD is a global player, and every market has its own challenges and opportunities. In Europe, the focus is on cost, quality control and changes in production due to regulation. In the Americas, the single-leaf cigar is very promising, and in Asia the total quantities of machine-made cigars increases. With ATD’s setup, we are able to support all these markets.
You took over as CEO last September. What are your plans for ATD Machinery?
I believe helping our customers solve cigar manufacturing challenges, producing more efficiently, with class-leading reliability and quality, are at the core of ATD. Both the team and ATD’s portfolio are great, and we will keep on raising the bar in the years to come.

What have been the most remarkable developments at your company in recent months?
Last month, we launched our new website, including a new client portal. For clients, this portal makes it really easy to have 24/7 access to all necessary manuals and to select wear [parts] and spare parts.
As part of our focus on quality and production control, we developed several improvement kits for the installed base, like filter boxes and vacuum controllers, to reduce the heat and dust development and to reduce electricity consumption. Especially for the cigarillo market, several drivers of the existing wrapping machines can be replaced by new drive technologies to create higher production speeds.
Last half year alone, we introduced three new machines: the SW60 to produce single-leaf cigars at a speed of 60 per minute, the ABM60, a highly flexible tax-stamp applying machine with minimum footprint, and the pouch folding unit.
What are the most significant trends in the cigar market today?
What is really interesting about the cigar making industry is that every client is different and has a different approach toward the craft of creating a cigar. For the top-10 clients, production quality in higher quantities becomes more important compared to flexibility. Depending on the cigar format, we are able to speed up the process, like cigar over-rolling, and increase the process data control by replacing several drives by the latest servo techniques.
The Covid-19 pandemic has reportedly led to increased cigar smoking around the globe. Have you noticed an impact on your business?
ATD noticed an increase for especially single-leaf cigars and cigarillos. This resulted in an increasing demand for machinery. Logically, track-and-trace is prioritized for the coming years.
Stefanie Rossel is Tobacco Reporter’s editorial contributor. An experienced trade journalist, she combines sharp reporting skills with in-depth knowledge of the tobacco and vapor industries. Prior to joining Tobacco Reporter, Stefanie was editor-in-chief at Tobacco Journal International, where she worked for a decade. Fluent in English, German and French, Stefanie covers tobacco news around the world. She is based in Germany.

July 1, 2021
KT&G Recognized for Innovation

Chi-Bum Oh, senior managing director at KT&G Corp (left) accepts the Prime Minister’s Commendation on May 31. (Photo: KT&G)
KT&G was awarded the Prime Minister’s Commendation on May 31 in recognition of its contribution to the development of national industry at the 56th Invention Day commemoration ceremony.
Hosted by the Korean Intellectual Property Office and organized by the Korea Invention Promotion Association, the event rewards individuals and organizations that have contributed to the promotion of inventions in South Korea.
This year, KT&G was recognized for its contribution to protecting national industrial technology and for the development of the intellectual property system through its unique technology development and job invention promotion policy.
KT&G CEO Baek Bok In, who took office in 2015, has emphasized the importance of technology in the tobacco industry and focused on securing intellectual property. In 2016, KT&G established a special division for intellectual property. It has also expanded its employee proprietary information and inventions agreement for researchers to encourage patent applications.
In 2018, KT&G built its own computer system to effectively manage the company’s intellectual property rights. As a result of these and other actions, KT&G’s patent applications rose from 43 in 2016 to 1,203 in 2020.
“Last year, our researcher received the Prime Minister’s Commendation at the 55th Invention Day ceremony, but not stopping there, KT&G’s technological capabilities were recognized once again this year,” said Chi-Bum Oh, senior managing director at KT&G, in a statement. “In the future, we will focus on technological innovation and the management of intellectual property rights to enhance corporate value.”

June 2, 2021
Smart Moves

Photos: Godioli & Bellanti, CPM Wolverine Proctor and Koehl Maschinenbau
Machinery makers are investing to future-proof leaf processing factories.
By Stefanie Rossel
Ed Wozniak
While global cigarette consumption has continued to decline for years and next-generation products (NGPs) take an ever-greater share of the nicotine market, there has been some motion in the market for primary equipment recently. British American Tobacco, Montenegro-based Novi Duvanski Kombinat Podgorisca and Alliance One Tobacco Argentina are about to build new processing plants or are relocating their leaf-processing sites.
“Without a doubt, the trend and investment are still toward heated-tobacco products [HTPs] and NGPs,” observes Ed Wozniak, regional sales manager at CPM Wolverine Proctor, a specialist in tobacco thermal processing operating from the U.S. and the U.K. “The consolidation, and in some cases diversification, of some plants is still ongoing.
“I say ongoing, as the relocation of plants has been there for some time. It is only logical to move or consolidate production to areas that provide a more economical production and/or are also located close to the remaining major markets for traditional tobacco products.
“This manifests itself in site and engineering service requests, along with the opportunity to upgrade and future-proof equipment as far as possible. This not only means replacement of spare parts and components but the addition of multiple sensors and up-to-date programmable logic controllers [plc].
“These key elements combined offer a wide range of opportunities to processors and benefits ranging from almost full auto adjustment ‘on the fly,’ which inevitably leads to optimized production costs, to real-time traceability of materials.”

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According to Wozniak, HTP sticks have to some degree eliminated the need for burley toasters, with most of the chemical process taking place in the stick. “Diversification and consolidation of the drying process into one flexible unit will possibly make the individual leaf, strip, toaster, stem and oriental dryer generally less attractive, presenting a new opportunity.”
Lorenzo Curina, sales director at Godioli & Bellanti, an Italian supplier of leaf-processing equipment, has also witnessed an increase of investments in the primary sector. “The primary, having a higher level of technology than a normal green-leaf threshing line, is the first link in the chain, which, in order to remain at a good level of quality and efficiency, needs to be modernized. We are not a big company, but we know how to offer adaptability, flexibility, leanness and of course state-of-the-art technology. And we have been called and invited to collaborate in the relocation and/or modernization of parts of the department of leading cigarette manufacturers.”
Stefan Hahn, managing director of Koehl Maschinenbau, a Luxemburg-based supplier of tobacco processing and logistics equipment, would like to see the investment pace accelerate. “The market situation slowly improves again, but not as fast as we would like to see as a supplier of processing machinery. Last year’s developments showed us the importance of interconnected solutions inside production. Ever since the beginning, we have been supporting our customers in the improvement of their plants, on the mechanical and automation side. Additionally, new processes lead us to the development of new solutions to react to the new market trends.”
If HTPs grow exponentially in the next years as is expected by leading cigarette manufacturers, Hahn expects upgrades and extensions of leaf-processing equipment to become more important as well. “Considering this, we see the opportunity to increase our delivery of such processing equipment. Koehl is already deeply involved in the manufacturing of HTPs with several different processes and machines.”

Kohl’s hemp line uses Twister technology to moisten the product before cutting
Coping with Covid
While in 2019 investments in the primary sector declined as cigarette manufacturers focused on next-generation products and integrating the track-and-trace technologies required by the European Union’s Tobacco Product Directive, the Covid-19 pandemic presented its own challenges.
“To save their production, all manufacturers at the beginning of Covid-19 just kept their ‘business-critical’ projects alive. Our development of a Covid-19 strategy to fulfill highest hygiene requirements and the benefit that Koehl has [with its] different affiliate locations made it possible that new projects were and still are feasible to realize. Therefore, of course the insurance of the project realization despite Covid-19 has become a major requirement for all customers.”
The execution of projects, he says, became more difficult because of travel restrictions. “To support our customers and avoid delays, we improved remote service activities, also with the help of our affiliates in different countries. Furthermore, we have extended our software of standardized machines with intelligent data-logging to guarantee improved online support.”
Curina says that the pandemic affected investment in the leaf-processing and primary machinery segments. “But mostly in the first period of the invasion of this cursed pandemic. Those investors who continue to see a source of income in tobacco know that the pandemic will not last forever. So we have noticed an almost unexpected revival of the market.”
Wozniak points out that with two or even three lockdowns in some countries, it will take time for these effects to be felt by the industry. “While the marketing information indicates that the global decline for cigarettes has been halted during lockdown—in the U.K. [smoking] is reported to be 7 percent up during lockdown—it does not mean that decline will not continue again when restrictions are relaxed. We can only follow our customers’ demands, and at this stage, we do not see any major changes filtering down to our level. I think that the level of cautiousness at this stage is understandable. We need to understand the real trajectory of the market as we emerge from Covid-19 restrictions and then we and the tobacco companies will have a clearer picture.”

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Eliminating human error
Manufacturers agree that customer requirements for primary equipment are changing. “What is constantly required from us is the supply of machines with a low environmental impact, with minimal energy consumption,” says Curina.
“Without a doubt, the ‘smart factory’ or even Industry 4.0 ‘dark factories’—i.e., fully automated, unmanned factories—are being considered,” says Wozniak. “Integration of our equipment via our local plc system to a central control SCADA or similar [system] is now commonplace. The reduction of human error and having absolute control of as many process variables as possible is now paramount. It reduces overall operating costs and increases efficiency in many areas, as well [as] introducing real-time traceability of the product, in any part of the process. The need for this automation is the reason that CPM has within its divisions Beta Raven, which specializes in such integrations, and locally programmers and qualified electrical staff.”
Hahn confirms that customer focus has shifted toward a higher level of automation. “Therefore, we are proud to participate in several ‘smart factory’-related projects in which we are, together with our customers, developing tailor-made solutions to be prepared for these future trends. Here we see that specifically manufacturing execution systems—the intelligent link between the business and manufacturing levels—are extremely valuable overall systems for a smart digital transformation to increase efficiency, improve product quality and reduce costs. Our systems provide the correspondingly important layer for the direct execution of production orders as well as dynamic reaction to changes in orders, machine states, quality checks and similar situations for the self-organized factory.”

Stefan Hahn
As the tobacco sector slowly transitions away from combustible cigarettes, equipment manufacturers have begun to eye other business opportunities as well. Valued at $24.6 billion in 2020, the global legal cannabis market holds considerable promise. Grand View Research expects it to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14.3 percent from 2021 to 2028.
“We are following with interest the developments in the world of hemp for pharmaceutical and therapeutic uses and purposes,” says Curina, whose company also includes a processing business for herbs and plants, food and biomass but who insists its main focus will always be tobacco. “The openings are slow, but there are some,” he notes. “Openings depend on the political and social choices in the various countries. However, we pride ourselves in having created the first industrial processing line for hemp for about 1,000 kg per hour. And we were very happy when we learned that the processed product is appreciated by European pharmaceutical companies.”
Two years ago, Koehl launched an entire cutting line for cannabis. “This booming market is still interesting for us,” Hahn explains. “We were able to further expand and develop the cutting line over the last year. The hemp line is using Twister technology for hemp-moistening before cutting. We can now announce that Koehl has further projects in this sector.”
As part of the CPM Group, which is based in a U.S. state where marijuana remains illegal, CPM Wolverine Proctor is not allowed to offer dryers for cannabis containing more than 0.3 percent of THC, the psychoactive substance in cannabis. But the use of marijuana for medicinal use is now legal in 36 states and growing, Wozniak points out. “This may change things for us in the future. However, we can still offer dryers for hemp, which traditionally is used for sisal twine and rope and now also for high-end wearable fabrics similar to bamboo fiber. Traditionally, we have always been diverse, with dryers for fruits, vegetables, herbs, chemicals, cellulose fiber and ovens for breakfast cereals, ready meals and many more products. Many unique features in our tobacco dryers have actually come from some of these industries.”
Stefanie Rossel is Tobacco Reporter’s editorial contributor. An experienced trade journalist, she combines sharp reporting skills with in-depth knowledge of the tobacco and vapor industries. Prior to joining Tobacco Reporter, Stefanie was editor-in-chief at Tobacco Journal International, where she worked for a decade. Fluent in English, German and French, Stefanie covers tobacco news around the world. She is based in Germany.

May 1, 2021
Incubating Innovation

Photos: ITM
ITM continues to explore new ways to develop flexible next-generation products manufacturing equipment.
By Stefanie Rossel
On a global scale, next-generation products (NGPs) are expected to grow significantly over the next five years. During its February Consumer Analyst Group of New York conference, British American Tobacco forecast that the category revenue would increase from £16 billion ($22.12 billion) today to £29 billion by 2025, with vaping products accounting for a little more than half of revenues and heated-tobacco products (HTPs) and modern oral/traditional tobacco each representing roughly a quarter of revenues. Future consumption, Philip Morris International predicted during its recent investor day, will be characterized by “poly-use.”
With the variety of NGPs rising to cater to different consumer needs, the manufacture of products brings about new challenges. To support its customers in their development of next-generation products, Dutch original equipment manufacturer ITM has created innovation centers at its sites in Kampen, Netherlands, and Radom, Poland, which aim at stimulating cross-over innovation.
“We are actively looking at technologies in other industries to create groundbreaking innovations in the tobacco industry,” says Michiel van der Sluis, ITM’s sales director. “We have indeed been very successful from the very beginning of the next-generation products, both in heated-tobacco products and in vaping. The majority of the heat sticks [the consumables for HTPs] on the market are being produced on our combining platforms.”
The new solutions usually are developed in close cooperation with ITM’s customers, sometimes at the initiative of the equipment manufacturer and sometimes at the initiative of the client. “Usually the technology and machinery concepts come from us, and the customer focuses on the product itself,” says van der Sluis. “But it greatly reduces the time to market if both product and machine development can go in parallel.”
In addition to the innovation centers, ITM has set up an innovation hub called Perron038, which is based in Zwolle, Netherlands, and the ITM Lab. They have a different function than the company’s in-house development centers, according to van der Sluis. “Here we focus on specific technology developments that all technology partners in the region have an interest in. Our partners in Perron038 are universities, research institutes—but most importantly also other machine-developing companies in the region. Some examples are robotics, 3D metal printing and vision. To be leading in these fields, it is good to cooperate with other companies and universities and at the same time give talented students a high-tech environment to work with the latest technologies.”
Less harm, more sustainability
Solaris, ITM’s combiner for HTP consumables, and Genesis, the company’s high-volume platform for e-liquid cartridges, are results of ITM’s unique approach to product manufacture innovation. The most recent solutions incubated by the innovation centers include machines that are able to replace all acetate filters with a biodegradable alternative.
ITM’s mission, says van der Sluis, is to create manufacturing solutions for better and sustainable alternatives. “For the tobacco industry, this means focus on next-generation products that have a lower health risk for consumers, and getting rid of single-use plastics in the tobacco industry, with a big focus on cigarette and heat stick filters. We see a very good reception in both these areas, so we look to the future with confidence.”
To stay ahead in the fast-growing market for HTPs, ITM continues to develop its Solaris combiner. “Apart from combining, we also do a lot of work in the logistics of the HTP factories and are now delivering the first reclaimers specifically designed to reclaim the tobacco from heat sticks,” he says. “Next to these existing products, we expect a big push to not only make the HTP products better for your health but also better for the planet.”
Many heat stick segments can be replaced by biodegradable alternatives, according to van der Sluis. For example, a cardboard tube can be used instead of hollow acetate; a paper filter with a capsule or flavor can replace the current acetate filter. The company was taking advantage of Covid-19 restrictions on business travel to develop a range of solutions for making filters biodegradable without degrading customer satisfaction.
Cigarette butts are among the 10 most found single-use items on Europe’s beaches. Starting on July 3, 2021, the European Union will ban several single-use plastics products, but not cigarette butts, which were a bone of contention in the shaping of the legislation. For the time being, they remain subject to a vague provisional agreement, which states that “the huge environmental impact caused by post-consumption waste of tobacco products with filters, discarded directly into the environment, needs to be reduced. Innovation and product development are expected to provide viable alternatives to filters containing plastic, and this development needs to be accelerated.”

Michiel van der Sluis
Covering all NGP segments
Meanwhile, ITM is also developing solutions for the third category of NGPs, new oral nicotine, which is a small but growing niche. “Snus pouch-making has been around for decades, so we are not focusing on a me-too solution,” says van der Sluis. “To make a mark in this sector, we wanted to bring something extra to the table. The machine that we are working on will be able to make pouches in different shapes and without the flaps you see on current pouches on the market. We have gotten a good reception from the marketing departments of our customers of the samples we have provided, so we will go full steam ahead to also break into this segment.”
With its Genesis platform, ITM in 2014 was the first company to launch a solution for quickly and efficiently filling, capping and testing e-cigarettes. The platform can assemble and fill up to 350 cartridges per minute. Although fully automated manufacturing of vape products is technically feasible, most e-cigarettes are still assembled manually in China.
Despite an overall growing vape market, van der Sluis has noticed a big reluctance to invest in this category. He cites two key reasons: “Customers are waiting to see what the fallout is of all the negative press around vaping in the U.S. in the last two years. The second part [that is] blocking investment is the fact that the products are still constantly changing. We have had a few projects over the years where the product was completely changed before the machine was ready. Even though our machines are always modular and flexible, the products are not stable enough to invest in now. With hand-assembled products, it is much easier to change. We do expect some winners on the market to automate assembly once the markets and products have stabilized.”
Stefanie Rossel is Tobacco Reporter’s editorial contributor. An experienced trade journalist, she combines sharp reporting skills with in-depth knowledge of the tobacco and vapor industries. Prior to joining Tobacco Reporter, Stefanie was editor-in-chief at Tobacco Journal International, where she worked for a decade. Fluent in English, German and French, Stefanie covers tobacco news around the world. She is based in Germany.

May 1, 2021
Smart Farming

CropIn has developed a robust farm and agronomy management system that can monitor field agents and track labor practices. (Photos: CropIn)
Using sophisticated data technology, CropIn is helping leaf tobacco producers streamline their operations.
By Stefanie Rossel
Digital technologies are increasingly used in agriculture. “Smart farming” can enhance operational efficiencies, reduce environmental damage and improve livestock husbandry conditions.
In the tobacco sector, data-driven farming is a relatively new development. Based in Bangalore and Amsterdam, the startup CropIn deployed information technology to help a leading Indian tobacco company significantly improve its tobacco-growing operations.
With an estimated annual production of around 800 million kg, India is the world’s second-largest tobacco producer behind China. The tobacco industry in India is one of the major revenue generators of the agriculture sector. “With tobacco being one of the biggest cash crops in the world, production is highly regulated by the government in order to ensure maximum output and best quality,” explains Kunal Prasad, co-founder and chief operating officer of CropIn.
“This means that every aspect of production is being monitored, including plot size, yield, package of practices and more. Hence, farmers cannot sell directly to companies and have to be organized into farmer producer organizations or become part of an agribusiness supply chain. In addition to this, farmers have to deposit the produce in specially designated buying stations. All in all, there are some unique operational needs that are specific to the tobacco industry.”
For its tobacco client, he continues, the main objective of the project was to streamline the hitherto unorganized operations into a smoothly functioning unit. This would help cut down on discrepancies in terms of predicted yield, traceable harvest and other quality issues. Achieving this required the adoption of a robust farm and agronomy management system that could monitor field agents and track whether fair labor practices were being followed. The system would also need to provide accurate fields and yield data.
Before CropIn’s solution was installed, the client used conventional—almost primitive—techniques to cultivate and manage tobacco farms, according to Prasad. “Understanding total area coverage was another challenge for the management,” he says. “The client dealt with mostly smallholder farmers. These farmers used to round off acres of land that were under harvest. Adding all estimations would lead to a high discrepancy, which in turn adversely affected the output/yield prediction. Reporting was done using the pen and paper method, which was prone to human error.
“Traceability at the end-to-end operations was missing, and many discrepancies were observed hence. Tracking operational tasks and harvest was proving to be difficult for the client since farmers take crops from multiple nurseries, and using paper to document all such important details would not work well as a scalable solution. There was no visibility regarding the risk of pest or disease infestations. It was also difficult to ensure that there was a consistency in the quality of tobacco produced every season. The stakeholders were facing issues recording and documenting corporate social responsibility activities.”

Kunal Prasad
Customized solution
With its SmartFarm farm-management solution, CropIn introduced cutting-edge technology in the Indian tobacco fields. The technology includes data storage, machine learning, satellite monitoring and weather analysis. The company provides mobile data capture and assimilation and customized and near real-time data reporting. SmartFarm can configure data from agricultural labor practices (ALP) and good agricultural practices (GAP) in forms and takes appropriate signatures when needed. Data can be approved by senior management; real-time SMS are used for alerts.
“The tobacco farmers know that to sell produce in the market, the produce needs to pass various kinds of tests,” Prasad says. “They have become aware only the best quality tobacco needs to be grown for fetching good prices and a good name in the market. Through the training and events module, they are trained on best practices for growing tobacco and maintaining them. Also, the GAP and ALP practices are followed by the farmers strictly so that when an audit happens, they pass in the same. The innovation [that] CropIn has designed has reduced a lot of paperwork and increased the efficiency of the farmers.”
The project helped CropIn gain a better understanding of tobacco crops and what it takes to implement smart solutions in that segment. Until then, the company had been supplying its solutions to other agricultural sectors, including nursery growing, organic cotton and food.
Tobacco is a complex plant to cultivate, not least because cultivation involves the growing of seedlings in nurseries for sixty days. “As we understood the nursery and main field breakup of the crop, we divided the whole operation into two parts,” explains Prasad. “First, nursery and secondly, the main field. The nursery planning and seed sowing starts almost 90 days before the main field. The nurseries are geotagged and activities captured till the seedlings are ready for transplanting. Once they are ready, the seedlings are transplanted into the main field.
“The application takes care of the detail of the nursery and links it with the main field plots where they have been planted. This way, the traceability from nursery to main field and back is maintained. The labor that is involved is counted for every operation. The feedback can be captured in the forms and their signature [can be] taken for the fact that they are working willingly so that there is no forced labor. Even the cost incurred in the labor can be calculated to find out the cost per kg of tobacco. For weather advisories, we have weather-based notifications that can be sent to the farmers.”

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Future-ready farming
The implementation of smart tobacco farming was not without challenges. For starters, the farmers and extension staff needed training. “CropIn’s team assisted the farmers, and the field agents were given training in ensuring efficient utilization of the solution provided,” says Prasad. “Access to connectivity also was a challenge, given the geographical location and development of the area. Since a lot of documentation was happening in the traditional way, the transition to using digital methods of entry was a challenge for the stakeholders.”
Now that it is installed, the solution offers a plethora of additional benefits for the customers. Importantly, SmartFarm creates a database that keeps track of farmers’ historical performance, yearly income and basic personal details. The forms are completely customizable based on requirements. Our solution provides the flexibility of setting up any type and number of crops and their varieties. It sets up configuration based on days to harvest, expected harvest per acre, allowed fertilizers and pesticides and addresses other general issues.”
SmartFarm can help farmers forecast harvest quantity and dates and provides an optimized input plan, i.e., chemical application plan. “SmartFarm makes the farmer future-ready with actionable insights, real-time alerts and acts as a knowledge repository containing collected data and data-driven analysis,” says Prasad. “It helps farmers to improve their farming skills, get an optimum price for their yield, empower them with new or improved farming practices.”
Having zero tolerance toward child labor and forced labor, CropIn has implemented a corresponding system in its solution. GAP-based and ALP-based survey forms help field technicians capture details on violations uncovered during farm inspections. The SmartFarm app enables them to find the sources of water pollution, child labor and any other audit-related information.
Prasad is proud to share his customers’ feedback. “CropIn is helping us practice sustainable tobacco production by capturing the data exactly at the location of the farmer and what the farmer is practicing in terms of signature modules, geotagging and taking pictures,” a client representative told CropIn. “This is helping us to understand better the progress at the farm. After we started working with CropIn, our apprehensions about field technicians not collecting data accurately have been diminished.’”
According to Prasad, CropIn’s solutions are designed to be dynamic. “As the tobacco industry keeps on changing with more rules and regulations, the challenges will also come in the audit and reporting,” he says. “We are making sure that we are engineering an innovation that is as close to addressing all the challenges in the work being done in tobacco farming as possible.”
Stefanie Rossel is Tobacco Reporter’s editorial contributor. An experienced trade journalist, she combines sharp reporting skills with in-depth knowledge of the tobacco and vapor industries. Prior to joining Tobacco Reporter, Stefanie was editor-in-chief at Tobacco Journal International, where she worked for a decade. Fluent in English, German and French, Stefanie covers tobacco news around the world. She is based in Germany.

May 1, 2021
Marposs Announces On-Line Diameter Control
Photo: Aeroel
Aeroel by Marposs, a provider of measurement, inspection and test technologies, has launched the Xploreline.XY gauging system for reliable, accurate and contactless diameter gauge control of cigarette or filter-making machines. The Xploreline.XY systems can be installed on-line with either single or double-rod machines and perform continuous diameter monitoring during rod manufacturing to achieve 100 percent inspection of potential dimensional nonconformity.
Each system includes a dual axis Xactum gauge intelligent laser sensor, which provides consistent, accurate measurement of the average rod diameter or rod circumference of fast-moving products. A special patented air-bracket device, specifically suited for on-line applications, is also included, ensuring the gauge self-cleans to protect against tobacco or paper dust.
Diameter measurement data are transmitted to the machine’s numerical control through the serial line, Ethernet or Profibus interface. Using the diameter information, the controller can automatically adjust the machine and keep the rod size within the preset tolerance limits, which improves machine efficiency. Alarm outputs are triggered for any out-of-tolerance part. Off-line applications are also available to check the product size after production.
These compact systems are available in different models and measuring sizes. The Xploreline.XY13 has a measuring field of 13 mm x 13 mm, measurable diameters from 0.1 mm to 10 mm, and a repeatability of ± 0.2 µm and linearity of +/- 0.5 micron. The Xploreline.XY35 has a measuring field of 35 mm x 35 mm, measurable diameters from 0.2 mm to 32 mm, repeatability of ± 0.15 µm and linearity of +/- 1 micron.
Each XLS gauge is programmed with dedicated software along with a display unit and remote control. Overall benefits include:
Continuous diameter control
No scrap: real-time inspection allows the system to detect out-of-tolerance trends and return the product back within specification, avoiding any risk of rejects or complaints
Material savings: keeping the product close to the lowest tolerance limit, considerable savings in materials can be achieved, allowing the cost of the system to be paid back in just a few months
Process automation: use machines with automatic change of collection reels or systems to coil spools up to a preset weight
Quality Certification: 100 percent inspection makes random sample checks redundant and allows printing of detailed reports to prove product quality
April 21, 2021
Russia Pushes for Self-Extinguishing Cigarettes

Photo: JTI
Tobacco companies selling in member states of the Eurasian Economic Union should be required to manufacture cigarettes that self-extinguish when not smoked, according to a proposal by the Russian Ministry of Healthcare.
“A draft resolution of the board of the Eurasian Economic Commission, setting forth requirements to consumer packaging and information placed on tobacco product packs and the requirement to inflaming capability of cigarettes released for circulation on the market of Union member-states, was sent by the Russian Ministry of Healthcare to interested federal executive authorities,” Tass reported.
Negligence during smoking is the cause of many fires, including with fatalities and material damage, the Ministry of Emergencies noted.
“Bringing cigarettes with lowered inflaming capability in circulation may significantly influence prevention of a portion of fire outbreaks, lowering fatalities and injuries of people during fires due to negligent smoking, and saving property of citizens,” it said.
April 12, 2021
PAX Labs Launches Era Life Cannabis Vaporizer

Photo: PAX Labs
PAX Labs has launched the Era Life cannabis vaporizer, created for the on-the-go consumer. According to the company, Era Life delivers an effortless experience without compromising on full flavor, vapor or consistency. The device brings together a high performing battery with PAX’s most compact device yet. Era Life works with any PAX Era pod, featuring curated, high-purity cannabis produced by one of PAX’s carefully selected partners across the country. Era Life is available in the colors Onyx, Grass, Blaze and Indigo.
“We designed the Era Life to provide a simple, fun way to enjoy cannabis while still carrying the PAX promise of iconic design and enduring quality that our customers have come to know and trust,” said Colt Stander, head of product at PAX Labs, in a statement.

We designed the Era Life to provide a simple, fun way to enjoy cannabis while still carrying the PAX promise of iconic design and enduring quality.
Colt Stander, head of product, PAX Labs
“Cannabis is one of today’s fastest-growing industries, and we’re seeing new consumers enter the space rapidly. We’ve taken the best PAX has to offer, perfected the core functionality and packaged it up in our most portable design yet—perfect for those who want the easiest possible experience but still care about durability, aesthetics and safety in the products they use.”
PAX’s temperature control checks the temperature 125 times per second, ensuring a consistent temperature that delivers a full, never-burnt flavor throughout the life of the pod. Whether using lower temperature for more flavor or higher temperature for more vapor, Era Life creates smooth airflow through laser cut sidings and achieves better hits every time.
Era Life provides more than 150 puffs per charge and an easy-to-read LED low battery indicator ensures it’s never without juice. The product is UL-certified, meeting the leading safety standards.
Priced at $35, Era Life is available for purchase by those 21 and over on pax.com and at licensed retailers in legal U.S. states where PAX products are sold.
March 31, 2021
Innokin Launches ‘AC’ Vaporizer

Photo: Innokin
Innokin has teamed up with Fourier Technology to develop the Sensis, the first vaporizer with fourth-generation vape technology.
Whereas earlier generations of vaporizers used direct current to power coils in a single direction, fourth-generation vape technology uses alternating current mode (ACM) to send electricity through the coil in both directions.
“Our goal in developing alternating current mode is to provide vapers with an even better experience and the vaping industry new ways to grow and improve,” said Meredith Zhao, chief technology officer at Fourier Technology, in an Innokin press note. “We are looking forward to working with experienced users to discover the full potential of this exciting new vape technology in the hope of working together to create a smoke-free future.”
According to Fourier, ACM introduces waveform frequency control to vaping. Vapers can now adjust the hertz frequency waveforms as well as the wattage output. This upgraded output provides many advantages over the previous generation’s single direction current.
By selecting different types of waveforms and adjusting the frequency, the full spectrum of flavors can be produced from liquids and specific flavors can be enhanced.
Our goal in developing alternating current mode is to provide vapers with an even better experience.
Meredith Zhao, CTO, Fourier Technology
ACM increases the efficiency of heat transfer between the coil and liquid, which improves flavors, extends coil life and much more.
ACM has been shown to help extend coil life by increasing coil saturation and reducing carbon buildup on coils.
According to Innokin, the Sensis demonstrates the great progress that has been made in vapor technology.
The industry distinguishes four generations of technology. First-generation vape technology was basic, where direct power output to the coils could not be adjusted. With the push of a button, or by simply inhaling, the battery heated coils, changing the liquid into vapor to deliver nicotine and flavors.
Second-generation vape technology introduced variable voltage and variable wattage, where adjusting the power output to the coils increases or decreases heat to personal taste. With adjustable voltage/wattage technology, vaporizers became smarter and more user-friendly. The device chipsets read the coil resistance then automatically calculated power output to provide a safer, personalized experience across devices and tanks. The simplicity of variable wattage has made it the most widely used vape technology today, especially in intermediate and advanced e-cigarettes.
Third-generation technology with temperature control utilized more advanced chipsets and new types of coil materials. Designed to eliminate dry-hits and reduce potential harm from damaged cotton wicking, third-generation vape technology used resistance-temperature correlation to calculate coil temperature based on detected coil resistance. Due to limited choices of coil materials and coil performance issues, temperature control is not used as widely as wattage mode.
The fourth generation features ACM technology as deployed in the Sensis.
March 24, 2021
Borgwaldt KC Presents New Vaping Machine

Photo: Borgwaldt KC
Borgwaldt KC has launched the NGX10, a 10-port linear vaping machine for next-generation products.
Exceeding ISO 20768 and CRM 81 specifications with gas analyzer options to match the specifics of these products, the NGX10 is a new, professional, flexible, efficient and reliable member of Borgwaldt KC’s well-known analytical vaping machines.
The NGX10 incorporates all the design and feature improvements specific to the emission testing of next-generation products.
The machine can handle all device sizes and shapes. For more information, visit www.borgwaldt.com.
March 18, 2021