PETpla.net Insider 11 / 2015

BOTTLING / FILLING 18 PET planet insider Vol. 16 No. 11/15 www.petpla.net Total PET expertise – 40 years of KHS Corpoplast In the historic setting of the warehouse district at Hamburg habour, they have been celebrat- ing the 40th anniversary of KHS Corpoplast. To mark the occasion, 180 guests representing 22 nations travelled to the far north of Germany to the birthplace of KHS Corpoplast. In their welcoming speeches, Thomas Karell, Managing Direc- tor of KHS Corpoplast and Matthias Niemeyer, CEO of KHS GmbH looked back on forty successful years of KHS Corpoplast with pride and gratitude. Matthias Niemeyer referred to 2014 as the most successfully financial year in KHS history and, in keeping with the celebratory nature of the occasion, welcomed one of the two inventors of the stretch blow moulding machine, Mr Karl-Heinrich Seifert. In his address, Mr Seifert detailed the begin- nings of the stretch blow machines in Hamburg in 1967 using PVC as a material. The first attempts at blow moulding PET were made in 1971. Mr Seifert is still able to recognise the fundamental components of the first stretch blow moulding machines, patented in 1968, in today’s high- performance machines: the infra-red heating, the rotary design blow mould- ing station and product throughput in a single line. Following the success of the stretch blow moulding machine using PET as a material, Matthias Niemeyer informed the audience that KHS Cor- poplast, together with KHS Plasmax GmbH, was expanding at its Hamburg location and extending the produc- tion area by 2,500m 2 , thus doubling existing area. The construction of the factory floor area has already com- menced; the internal extension works to the floor space are scheduled to start in the spring of 2016. The expansion at the Hamburg location relates to the new develop- ments on the part of KHS Corpoplast together with KHS Plasmax GmbH. In his presentation on the block-format PET line InnoPET, Frank Haesendon- ckx, Director of Sales and Technol- ogy at KHS Corpoplast, introduced the new development of the TriBlock. It is KHS’s specific intention to use the TriBlock to address the produc- tion of block format solutions, blow moulding, filling, capping, label- ling and coating PET bottles as well as promoting them and establish- ing them on the market. The main machine is a modular unit of a stretch blow moulding machine. This is set up in a block format incorporating various functions. The TriBlock offers a completely integrated labelling device for pre-glued labels. During the operation the filled bottle is held by the neck. The TriBlock will operate at a maximum capacity of 81,000bph. Flexible handling is available to take account of bottle volumes. The Tri- Block is suitable for CSD and NCSD applications. Foil tension control has been optimised and it is possible to change the rollers for the labels whilst maintaining full speed. The use of pre-glued foils ensures benefits in terms of hygiene. The foil thickness can be varied. KHS teamed up with PE Labellers in the develop- ment of the labelling. The Adhesleeve has only a cutting cylinder and label application, it does not use hot glue inside the TriBlock and therefore, prevents any risk of contamination between the glue and the product in the bottle. Bernd Kempa, Director of KHS Plasmax GmbH, then presented the new Premium PET concept that is undergoing transformation into the InnoPET FreshSafe Block. In the FreshSafe PET concept the advan- tages of glass are combined with the benefits of PET. The presence of a wafer-thin (< 0.0001mm) non-detach- able glass coating on the inside of the bottle means that the product enjoys better protection than has hitherto been the case using a PET bottle. The thin layer of glass prevents any migra- tion and permeation of CO 2 , O 2 , H2O, chemical substances, aromas and colorants. For example, the shelf life of a 100% juice in a 330ml bottle is extended from three to eight months. The increase of O 2 in the product is, F.l.t.r.: Matthias Niemeyer, CEO KHS GmbH with Karl-Heinrich Seifert, inventor of the first stretch blow moulding machine. by Heike Fischer