SIG develops low cost large plastic bottle production facility

SIG Blowtec uses high-tech to develop low-cost large plastic bottle production equipment.

Large drinking fountains have long been popular facilities in public places, offices, workshops and even homes. It is expected that by 2004, the market demand will increase several times. With this opportunity in sight, SIG Blowtec has developed a polycarbonate (PC) bottle blow molding machine that can produce a volume of 2 liters. The company's experts pointed out that according to research, its original organic Blowtec 2-20 is not the most economical production specification, especially in polycarbonate processing. Therefore, the company decided to design a special packaging equipment for large water bottles - SIG BlowPac 2-10 PC. In general, the cost of an ordinary blow molding machine is about 500,000 Euros, the price of new equipment is 15% lower, and the production capacity can be increased to 140 bottles/hour. The 2-10/20PC model was developed using the original organic unique screw and feed zone geometry, while constant torque and uniform feeds resulted in shortened production cycles and improved container quality. Another unique feature of this device is that it can calibrate the bottleneck of the container. Unlike the final blow molding machine, the entire production process of the bottleneck is done in the blow mold to ensure that the container is firmly in the dispenser housing.

Computers have made great contributions to optimizing the system. Designers use geometry software and new process designs to develop simulations of vessel geometry into standard programs. In addition to lowering the cost at the premise of a high quality level, engineers are constantly improving the performance of the equipment. For example, the ventilation and production cycle times have been reduced, and the temperature changes and the feeding procedure of the extruder have also been optimized. Newly developed screw geometries have been able to guarantee a constant parison tube length, and better machine stability also means higher production rates. At the same time, the proximity of various components has also been improved, such as the hydraulic system under the clamping device, which makes the operation of the machine smoother.