Sidel’s 1,000th EvoBlow goes to Nigeria
Sidel is celebrating the sale of its 1,000th EvoBlow. The blow-moulder will be installed as part of a high-speed PET water line at StrongPack in Nigeria in early 2023.
StrongPack has been a customer of global packaging solutions leader Sidel, since starting operations in 2018. It is now one of Nigeria’s biggest co-packers of non-alcoholic beverages. The new 86,000bph high speed line will be the fastest in Africa. It also marks StrongPack’s entry into the still water co-packing market.
StrongPack is currently one of the biggest producers by volume of Royal Crown (RC) Cola worldwide and is also the biggest and the most diversified co-packer in Nigeria. The company is co-packing products such as malt drinks, teas, regular carbonated soft drinks, fruit juices, juice nectars and fruit flavoured drinks, including some nitrogen pressurised packaging for major global brands. Packaged water is the most consumed soft drink category in Nigeria and has a higher-than-average share of the overall soft drink sector compared to the rest of the region (source: Global Data, Nigeria Soft Drinks Market Insights 2021).
StrongPack’s new water line will combine an EvoBlow Regular blow-moulding machine with filling and capping equipment, integrating these production phases into one compact Combi SF100 solution. The integrated solution includes a state-of-the-art water treatment room and automated cleaning-in-place (CIP), ensuring a high levels of hygiene and food safety.
StrongPack’s choice of Combi set-up offers material savings, with bottle lightweighting opportunities through bottle neck handling and the elimination of intermediary conveying. Energy consumption is kept to a minimum through the Ecoven’s infrared ceramic lamps. The Sidel StarLite mould base, combined with the SuperVent optimised mould venting system, will minimise the blowing pressure and subsequent energy consumption, enabling further lightweighting while ensuring quality and strength on this new complex bottle design, says Sidel.
A new resistant and distinctive bottle design
Sidel has designed an iconic new bottle shape inspired by the Nigerian multi-cultural lifestyle. It combines a distinctive shape with a sharp structural design to optimise user experience and bottle resistance, in addition to enhancing bottle functionality and strength. Nitrogen dosing into the bottle headspace at the filling phase prevents vacuum or swelling and offers a lightweighted and high performing bottle – ideally suited to a local distribution chain that demands extremely resilient bottles. The new line will produce 600ml bottles weighing 11.5g in packs of 12. Sidel has carried out its full feasibility and performance tests on the stretch blow-moulding process.
