PETpla.net Insider 11 / 2015

MOULD MAKING 44 PET planet insider Vol. 16 No. 11/15 www.petpla.net tour of the factory premises and shows me the various test and assembly areas including the Refurbishment Centre and the warehouse. My question about a local supplier for the raw material is met with a chuckle of disbelief from Mr Zeng. “We want the very highest quality, so we don’t get our material from here, it comes from Sweden!” A presentation wall made up of somewhat complicated PET bottle designs gives only the merest hint of what once emerged on the basis of GDXL’s blow moulds. “We only have a small selection here,” continues Mr Zeng, indicat- ing the bottles. “Small” is, admittedly, something of an understatement as there are currently more than 50,000 variations on PET blow moulds made by GDXL in active service. Looking at the trend in cavities, the company estimates the quantity worldwide at around 30,000 units in service, some of which are well-known types such as PCO1881, PCO1810, 29/25 neckfin- ish, large formats, tapered bases etc. Preform moulds are available in sizes 32 to 144 and promise the highest level of compatibility with popular injection moulding systems. The warehouse, too, is well- stocked: around 6,000 parts are stored here. “Our latest development is moulds featuring an RC coating,” says Mr Zeng. “With this technol- ogy we are able to guarantee three million cycles.” The closure mould sector, which is still relatively speak- ing in its infancy, extends from 12 to 72 cavities for necks in sizes 26mm, 29/25, 30/25, PCO1810, PCO1881 and 38mm for injection moulding and compression moulding. “In addition, our test department has been certified by Coca-Cola Atlanta since 2011 and GDXL was the first PET mould manu- facturer to be awarded the laboratory certificate ISO/IEC 17025:2005.” In order to obtain a perspective on the future of the mould manufacturer, I need to climb into Mr Zeng‘s vehicle. Our destination is the Sanshan indus- trial area which is around 20 minutes’ drive away and is still under develop- ment. Surrounded by good motorway and high-speed rail connections, this Drying Revolution Model of the new GDXL facility