Energy efficient machines speak volume at K 2022

The company also exhibited for the first time intelligent machine functions that enable plastics processors to achieve additional energy savings and more efficient processes. For instance, an intelligent energy management function.

Furthermore, the company introduced other features such as intelligent process optimization, plasticizing efficiency or clamping force optimization and thereby give an outlook to the next machine generation.

An eye catcher at the Coperion booth was the high performance ZSK twin screw extruder that is the heart of the recycling process. The extruder features high throughput rates with new energy-saving technology and high-end product quality.

Peter von Hoffmann, General Manager, Large Business Unit Engineering Plastics, Coperion, stated that the motor of the extruder was developed by the company’s latest technologies and it reduces electrical losses by 40%.

Tederic's NEO•E208c/e620h machine produces pipette tips made of medical PP with 48 cavity mold. It features intelligent low voltage mold protection self-teach function with 0.3mm sensitivity, precision screw monitoring system and power-off self-protection system.

The advanced energy recovery system reduces energy consumption by 10%. In addition, high resolution control system is adopted for high-precision multi-cavity molds, with a product weight accuracy of 0.1%.

Brückner Group and its member companies presented energy efficient film production and line conversion. For example, Brückner Maschinenbau showed faster and wider BO lines as the more efficient and higher output a film stretching line is, the lower its specific energy consumption.

Brückner Servtec, at the same time, introduced its Line Transformation Packages, its latest customized conversion packages designed for the conversion of existing film stretching lines to the sustainable production of recyclable mono-material film types.

The upgraded solutions for energy reduction and higher quality in the production processes further increase sustainability in film production.

Scott Smith, Global Product Managing Director for Nordson’s EDI die business, gave a comprehensive introduction of the new automated lip adjustment system for their EDI extrusion and fluid coating dies that Nordson debuted at the trade fair.

This new system achieves saving tolerances four times faster than conventional thermal bolt systems, supporting operations' need for increased sustainability.

Automated lip adjustment has been achieved using thermally actuated bolts. Thermal bolts are highly influenced by external factors, so thickness uniformity and consistency are sometimes hard to realize. They also typically require manual pre-tuning, so the process is not fully automated and hard to repeat consistently.

Instead of using thermal bolts to control the lip adjustment, the Prodigi die relies on a series of motorized actuators connected to the die’s flexible lip.

The installed actuators smoothly translate motor rotation into precise linear movement to locally open and close the lip. Accomplishing this away from the hot die, at a user interface, creates a process that is much faster, safer, and more energy efficient.