Netstal is planning to show off its ability to do more with less, with a work cell at the K show that will pump out ultra-lightweight 1-liter containers for yogurt products.
Weighing in at only 23 grams, the PP containers are about 15 grams lighter than anything that would have been made 20 years ago, according to Netstal. Boasting about 618 tons of clamping force, an Elios 5500 PAC that’s optimized for packaging manufacturing will make the containers in 3.8 seconds. To fill the mold and produce the thin walls, it offers particularly high injection performance and dynamics.
In “High Power” mode, the hybrid, two-valve injection unit in the work cell offers an injection speed of about 43 inches per second and a maximum injection pressure of 2400 bar. The company said its RFC injection control system ensures consistent part weight within tight tolerances.
Brink, a Harskamp, Netherlands, supplier of molds and automation, produced the four-cavity mold, in-mold labeling system and side-entry automation for the cell. The containers will have a wall thickness of only 0.35mm.
Designed for its light weight, the container also will be manufactured with an eye toward recycling. MCC Global, based in Greece, is supplying PP labels for it that can be completely detached in the mechanical recycling process, without affecting the PP value stream.
Other suppliers for the cell include Santa Maria di Sala, Italy-based Piovan, which supplied the feeder, and Buchs, Switzerland-based EF Cooling, which contributed the chiller.
As it looked forward to the K show, which starts Oct. 8 in Germany, Netstal touted its machines’ energy-efficiency and sustainability advantages, and the intuitive operation of its Axos 9 control system.
