Below is a brief rundown of some of the more common slitting methods. Before you enter into purchasing a converting machine, it is best to determine which slitting method is best for your material. Some methods will cause your material to react differently and can cause frayed edges, stretched material, or other issues that are unwanted for the next step of the production process.

Razor Slitting: One of the most popular methods of slitting, this method utilizes a razor blade to cut material. The material is unwound from the roll, passes over the razor(s) and is cut, and gets re-wound onto the child cores. Razor slitting is frequently used to slit materials ranging from wovens to non-wovens like plastics or films.

Shear Slitting: Male and female circular knives are utilized to provide a cut that is similar to the same effect as scissors. This system is used widely on paper, films, foils and other no-woven materials.

Pneumatic Slitting: Also known as “crush cut slitting.” A knife is pressed and runs against a hardened anvil shaft essentially crushing the material. The system works well with hundreds of materials materials including non-wovens.

Ultrasonic Slitting: Utilizing a high frequency horn, ultrasonic slitting provides a clean edge that prevents unraveling of the material. Unlike Hot Knife Slitting, this method also provides a tapered slit that will not cause beading along the edge that could create a bulking along the edge as it is wound back onto it’s core.