PETpla.net Insider 11+12 / 2017

BOTTLING / FILLING PET planet Insider Vol. 18 No. 11+12/17 www.petpla.net 23 sioning the output has significantly increased, he continues. “With our short production and delivery times we can now offer fast solutions to requests for offers we couldn’t satisfy in the past.” This is thanks to the high performance of the line. Instead of processing 4,000bph on each of the previous machines, the KHS fill- ing system can fill up to 26,400bph. Following a format changeover the InnoPET Blomax Series IV stretch blow moulder, KHS Innofill DRV filler and KHS Innopack Kisters SP shrink packer automatically realign them- selves with one another according to the given values in the software. The labelling machine upstream of the packaging process has been adapted by KHS, too. The KHS Inno- pro Paramix C sends the finished product to the filler depending on the beverage type. The elementary ingre- dients are prepared in accordance with the relevant beverage in the KHS Innopro syrup room which consists of a sugar dissolver, mixing tanks, a Batchmix unit for batch production of finished syrup and a filtration unit for the beverage blends, among other things. The machine operators reset the recipes on the touchscreen. In order to adapt its processes to meet the demands of modern pro- duction the Butsifal Group simultane- ously converted and expanded its site. According to specifications and taking the prevalent local conditions into account KHS then planned the line design. The particular challenge here was to enable both round and square PET bottles to be filled on one line. The conveyors and labelling machine were specifically adjusted to sat- isfy this customer requirement. KHS integrated special servodrives into the labeller which permit wrap-around labelling of rectangular bottles. Fast format changeovers from round to square bottles The special line design plays a significant role when it comes to regular format changeovers: from still mineral water in square bottles through carbonated waters to CSDs and iced tea a total of nine products are filled on the line in 0.5-, 1.0- and 1.5-l formats. If the bottle shape and format stay the same, the KHS line allows products to be switched over in five minutes. A categorical reduc- tion in the number of change parts on the line enables the Butsifal Group to change over from round bottle formats to rectangular ones in 15 minutes. “Thanks to the automa- tion of our filling processes it’s a lot easier for our engineers to operate the line,” says Khalilov. “This helps us to avoid human error which in turn boosts process quality.” In the past up to 15 employ- ees managed the outmoded systems. Just a few opera- tors now control the automated processes – at a capacity which is six times higher than before. Other positive out- comes are that a vast amount of time is saved during filling, resources are used sustain- ably and less energy is consumed. The cost of fill- ing each bottle has also dropped by about 40% through savings in the use of materials, energy and air, among other factors. Products are fully blended and fed to the filling process by KHS Innopro Paramic C.