PETpla.net Insider 07+08 / 2013

BOTTLE MAKING 23 PET planet insider Vol. 14 No. 07+08/13 www.petpla.net is collected and the pre-blown bottle fed with compressed air at a pressure higher than the pre-blowing pressure (intermediate pressure stage). In the Airback Plus system the rotary dis- tributor is thus omitted, which reduces system complexity and results in lower maintenance and spare part requirements. Furthermore, the fact that Airback Plus directly transfers compressed air into the bottle reduces consumption by up to 30%. This means that, where Airback I is used in conjunction with Airback Plus, the consumption of compressed air is reduced by up to 40%. It is also pos- sible to prepare air intended for reuse with sterile filters and the procedure becomes essential when a supply of clean ambient air cannot be guaran- teed on site. A certain amount of pres- sure is lost during filtration, meaning that the amount of compressed air saved in such a case would be 35% maximum. Savings potential The following example illustrates the potential cost savings achiev- able with the use of Airback I and Airback Plus. A beverage bottling plant produces 35,200 1.5l PET bph (2,200bph/cavity) on a 16-station InnoPET Blomax Series IV 16 S stretch blow moulder. The blow- ing pressure for bottle production is 28bar. The amount of air usually needed in the above circumstances BHSJOUM DPN t 5FM t & NBJM TBMFT!BHSJOUM DPN Want the real secret to bottle light weighting? Measurement and process control systems for the packaging industry Process Pilot ® automated blowmolder control system can make the difference between a modest attempt at light weighting and a truly successful program. Process Pilot works with your blowmolder to continually monitor and maintain material distribution on every bottle to an unmatched degree of accuracy. Featuring automatic adjustment and 24/7 control , Process Pilot can facilitate even the most aggressive light weighting program while ensuring the highest quality and performance! Not convinced? See us at the drinktec and K shows to set-up a trial. BOOTH: B3/332 BOOTH: 11B40 is 1,680m 3 . A saving of just 36% of compressed air results in around 600m3/h less air is used. This means that 600m 3 of air per hour less has to be compressed to high pressure. Assuming that 0.2KWh of energy is required for one 1m³ of air, this would save 121KWh/h. E.g. for 5,000 production hours, this would lead to a total reduction in energy requirement of 605,000KWh. These figures become even more interesting when smaller bottles are manufactured. As a general rule, the smaller the bottle, the greater the probability of achieving the afore- mentioned 40% saving. A much lower compressor output is needed for the stretch blow moulding process, and thus, the compressor can be of much smaller size. In the above men- tioned example, a compressor with a maximum power of 1,320m 3 /h can be selected, in place of one with an output of up to 2,100 m 3 /h – saving up to €7,000. Significant reductions in annual running costs – in the region of €4,000 – are also claimed, thanks to the reduction in spare part require- ments and the amount of maintenance necessary. Retrofitting possible Airback Plus is available both for new equipment and for retrofitting of existing InnoPET Blomax Series IV and Series III stretch blow moulders. Return on investment is achieved in 1½ years maximum. As no addi- tional rotary distributor is required for Airback Plus, this retrofit is quick to implement; it takes about a day. A new ring line will be fitted and the valves and valve switching will be adapted to the new production environment. After conversion, the machine implements three different stages of pressurisation during bottle manufacture: applying pre-blowing pressure; intermediate pressure, and high pressure. Whether as part of a new invest- ment or a retrofit, KHS claims that with Airback Plus the quality of the produced bottle is identical to that of bottles manufactured using traditional compressed air preparation. The output of the stretch blow moulder, up to 2,250bph/cav for the InnoPET Blomax Series IV, is also maintained. KHS Corpoplast is expecting that Airback Plus will become very impor- tant in countries where the amount of energy provided each day is subject to a specific quota. Energy quotas are already in force in some Asian and Arabic countries, for example. www.khscorpoplast.de