PETpla.net Insider 06 / 2021

PREFORM PRODUCTION PETplanet Insider Vol. 22 No. 06/21 www.petpla.net 25 Kleinfeld: Changing material is just one way of responding to the depleted PET market and the rising prices. For example, the improved screw on our new machine shows that colour changes can be made quicker, with less PET material required for rinsing. This has a positive effect on material consumption each time there is a change of colour and material. Optimising the OEE also means that at least some of the additional costs required for purchasing material can be saved elsewhere. Our new PET line therefore offers preform manufacturers high availability and reliability. During the development process, special emphasis was given to short change- over periods, troubleshooting support and minimal downtimes. The fact that customers can carry out their produc- tion operations with confidence will help in minimising stress and costs. Härter: The new Netstal PET line also helps us to make savings in costs associated with the energy consumption of our electric toggle lever machine. Its smart main drive constantly checks the required oil levels and adapts and optimises itself automatically. The recovery of braking energy from the electrical axles also helps in saving energy costs. 60% of the energy used by the dynamic axles is recovered. Some countries provide incentives to replace old with newer, more energy-efficient machines. How- ever, these naturally involve large, one-off, investments at a time when savings are required. With the electric, form-fitting drive, we are able to save 10% of energy compared with its hydraulic counterpart with a cycle time of 7.5 seconds. This also has a sav- ings potential for every single cavity. Kleinfeld: Fast cycle times are, of course, ideally suited to Netstal machines. There is the potential for huge savings if cycle times can be reduced with the necessary syn- chronisations and a smart process system. Both are possible with the latest generation aXos controller. We are currently showing our custom- ers an application that has an 18.58 g lightweight preform with an 1881 thread and a steady cycle time of 7.5 seconds – which is still very fast. PETplanet: Coming back to plasti- cising – you have already mentioned the improved screw in achiev- ing more robust process- ing of recyclate as well as faster colour changes. Are there any other improve- ments in terms of process technology? Härter: The new PETX screw has so far proved to have very low AA values which, in our experience, reduces the proportion of an AA blocker that has to be added to the production process by at least 10%. In fact, we have already been able to achieve 20% reductions for our cus- tomers. It was also interesting to note that the amount of added colour could also be reduced by up to 45% due to the improved mixing action. With the PETX screw, the drying temperature can be reduced to 165 °C without compromising the process. This saves both energy and cooling time, thereby shortening the cycle period. Kleinfeld: Alternatively, let us also think in a broader context. As a system provider, Netstal has taken advantage of the opportunities offered by OPC-UA as well as by integrating individual system components. In this way, the machine can communicate with the dryer or camera system and exchange data. This helps to mini- mise waste and reduce operational complexities. The use of poorer mate- rial quality can also be detected very quickly. PETplanet: Could you again briefly summarise what all this means regarding our initial question on the shortage of PET material? Härter: Perhaps it can best be summed up as follows: A change- over in material is easily achievable today. The money needed for material can be saved, among other things, through control of the machine pro- cess and system configuration. PETplanet: Thank you both very much! Christina Härter, Head of Application Engineering Stefan Kleinfeld, PET Product Manager