PETpla.net Insider 06 / 2019

BOTTLE MAKING 53 PET planet Insider Vol. 20 No. 06/19 www.petpla.net Here in this plant the newer machinery is installed. We have been replacing some of the older machines. In total we have 19 machines, 7 1Blow machines here; additional 1Blow machines are in plants in Dallas and Orlando.” Steven adds, “A couple of hundred different types were produced on these machines for CKS. For moulding we have mould changes four to five times per day. In a typical week we change 25-30 times, exclud- ing the injection part. It is a very high capacity and we do difficult shapes here, too. We do premium bottles here, but we do not do long runs, and some lines run continuously for three or four days. We are also producing heat resistant bottles.” One 1Blow machine we saw on the floor is a 4LO, 4 cavity for bottles with 18-38mm narrow neck applica- tion, with a nominal output for stand- ard bottles of 0.5 l with an output of 7,500-8,000 bph with a 13 g preform or 6,400-6,800 bph for 1.5 l with a 24 g preform. “On oval and wide bottles, we start with a round preform. Using the preferential heating, preforms will be heated from both sides longitudinally. So we create two areas of hot and two of cold that goes into the mould. With special lamps we heat just before the preform goes into the mould, and that makes the process more reliable. These longitudinal areas may also be moved off-axis from the preform cen- treline, so that offset neck bottles can be produced,” explained David. The key advantages of the 1Blow machines are the neck orientation: this mechanical system puts all the neck finishes on each bottle in the same orientation. This is invaluable for containers that use a flip-top cap so that it aligns in the proper position for opening and pouring. This align- ment can be done without the need of a specific tab or V-notch on the preform. The system relies on the thread start and thus can use stand- ard preforms, opening the spectrum of preforms that can be used. The heat set combines heated blow-moulds with recirculating high-pressure air cooling to induce higher crystallinity into the bottles. This higher crystallin- ity allows the resultant bottles to have heat resistance for the hot fill process. Fully covered floor space at the 75,000 square foot rPET plant, CKS Atlanta Newly installed 1Blow equipment at CKS production hall in Atlanta “CKS and 1Blow got to know each other 4 years ago, shortly before the NPE show. CKS bought the machine presented on the booth. From that moment on a very close and reliable business relationship began. CKS is the best costumer for 1Blow in the US,” Dave explained. For the North American market the 1Blow equipment fits perfectly. It is designed and suited for custom container manufacturing. The smaller machine with 2 and 4 cavities is ideal for short runs, is flexible for making diffi- cult containers and it has a high output. “One more attractive thing is the com- pact form of the machine. Three people can be working inside the machine for the same time; it is a simple machine compared to other blow moulders. In this plant with 19 machines we have created a lot of space by replacing one old machine with one 1Blow machine. That’s what CKS also discovered. In the space of one 6 cavity rotary machine we can put three 4 cavity 1Blow machines. And they have a lot of the rotary machines here, so they sort 1 out and put 3 new in. That is very important for companies like CKS when they want to increase output, as they would not have sufficient space. They would have to look for a new plant which is hugely expensive.” PETplanet very much appreciated this whole day with CKS Packaging and 1Blow - and we say a big thank you for the invitation and the chance to learn about this perfect match! www.ckspackaging.com www.1blow.com