PETpla.net Insider 10 / 2020

PREFORM PRODUCTION PETplanet Insider Vol. 21 No. 10/20 www.petpla.net 22 A sideway gamechanger - New Netstal PET-Line with sideway removals system From up and over to side Krauss Maffei High Performance introduced its Netstal PET-Line with the sideway removal system in September which allowed us to take a close look at the new 4,000kN line along with Stefan Kleinfeld, Product Manager for the complete range of Netstal and Krauss Maffei PET Systems and Renzo Davatz, CEO of Krauss Maffei High Performance AG. Sideways removal has become the norm for all suppliers, with pre- form moulds and production facilities designed to accommodate this. Krauss Maffei High Performance, formerly known as Netstal, is the only company that prefers removing preforms up and over the machine. Their so-called PET- Line, which is still sold under the Netstal product brand, is generally regarded by the industry as the most robust and energy efficient system on the market. In order to be active on the sideways removal market, three years ago the company decided to develop a com- pletely new PET-Line as a sideways removal system. Moulds provided by suppliers since 2004 have been used with the machines. Not content with cre- ating yet another standard system, the company was determined to improve on the energy efficiency capability and per- formance of previous PET systems. PETplanet: Are we seeing a com- pletely new system here? Stefan Kleinfeld: During the development of each component, we always ask ourselves how we can increase productivity for the cus- tomer. Our key requirements have always been speed, energy efficiency, durability, ease of use and mainte- nance. The result is a system that has a lock-to-lock time of 1.9 seconds, with an energy consumption rate of 0.179 kWh/kg PET for the produced 18.6 g preform. In so doing, I believe we are setting new standards for the industry. PETplanet: Let us start with the lock-to-lock time. How have you been able to achieve this? Stefan Kleinfeld: A good exam- ple. From the clamping unit, you can see that we have put every compo- nent, or in this case, every assembly under the microscope. In order to achieve fast speeds we use the clas- sic 5-point twin toggle lever, which accelerates and decelerates the moving panel that runs on large guide rails. This has been assembled with great precision and is wear-resistant. The toggle lever is driven by an elec- tric motor which has transmission and steering rack. The electric motor generates the necessary speed. The steering rack is extremely durable and shows far less signs of wear and tear compared to spindles used elsewhere. For the user, this means that the pre- cision and speed of the clamp will be just the same in 5-10 years’ time as it was on day one. By definition, the electric drive is more energy efficient than its hydraulic counterpart. This has enabled us to make additional savings as we are able to recuperate kinetic energy when braking. PETplanet: Is the plasticising unit just as well developed? Stefan Kleinfeld: The screw is certainly a very prominent feature of the system. The concept of the screw and shot pot is a proven success in our company and is the approach we decided to adopt. The screw was further developed, based on our experience with the PETForm and the PET-Line top-entry in order to obtain a significantly larger process window in the production environ- ment. This is irrespective of the quality of the material; it can be 100% new or 100% rPET, something in between, or with additives. The screw has been extensively tested and is better than Stefan Kleinfeld, Product Manager PET Systems L-R: Stefan Kleinfeld (Product Manager PET Systems), Renzo Davatz (CEO KraussMaffei HighPerformance AG) and Eric Overbeek (VP Sales) present the new Netstal PET-LINE