Quality matters - that's right for soft drinks packaging.
Based in Budapest, our innovative company specialises in the development of industrial control systems and complete process automation solutions.
We have been working with the largest FMCG companies for decades. In an increasingly competitive market for end consumers, it is of paramount importance to ensure consistent and high quality.
Among many others, product packaging has become a key factor. This is also the case for PET bottles. In addition to good appearance, the ability to preserve product quality over time is even more important. We have developed our own solution to test this.
Bottle quality is vital for beverage technology companies, but traditional visual inspection is limited in its ability to detect bottle defects, which can lead to customer complaints. It is therefore essential to use advanced inspection solutions that ensure the quality of the bottles.
Our PET tester equipment is an innovation that enables thorough and reliable quality control of bottles. This equipment tests the correctness of the bottle blowing adjustment to produce optimal, defect-free bottles. At each bottle changeover, an "artificial ageing" test is carried out during the setting of the blowing equipment and during production. This test ensures that the bottle blowing set-up produces high quality bottles that reliably meet the requirements.
During the test, the cylinders are subjected to a mild "ageing" with an alkaline film at a specified pressure (4-5 bar). If the cylinders do not crack or break during the test, it means that the machine setting is correct and the cylinders are of perfect quality. With our PET tester equipment, you can not only reduce the number of defective bottles, but also reduce the number of complaints due to customer dissatisfaction. By producing bottles of impeccable quality, you increase customer satisfaction and confidence, which in the long run will increase competitiveness in the market.
The unit contains 4 to 8 independently controllable measuring stations, depending on the version. The control and test chamber are located inside the stainless steel self-supporting plate enclosure. The connection heads for fixing the cylinders are integrated in a mounting plate with a plastic sliding bearing neck and a rotating disc with a brass plated sleeve, which facilitates the connection of the cylinders. The two compartments are closed by plate doors that open downwards. The door of the control compartment is lockable with a cabinet lock and when opened, it is bounded at 90 degrees by steel cables. The test chamber door also opens downwards and can be locked with tongue and groove locking pins to facilitate handling without mechanical limitation. A transparent Plexiglas window at the top of the door ensures that the process can be visually followed during the measurement.
The control room contains the pneumatic and electrical controls, components, connectors, and the door for the display and controls. Compressed air is supplied to the cylinder head via a rotary quick coupling from the filling valve. The operation of the filling and emptying valves is controlled by an integrated Siemens Simatic PLC. The required pressure of the compressed air (test pressure) can be set on the pressure regulator of the pressure preparation unit.
On request, a fitting can be supplied with the equipment to allow a certified pressure gauge to be connected to the measuring head. It allows the pressure transmitter of all measuring circuits to be verified and calibrated. The equipment requires no maintenance other than the necessary cleaning and replacement of the rubber gasket in the cylinder grip as required.
PLC controls the measurement process, measuring pressures and times.
A front panel mounted touch screen control unit is used:
- to start and, if necessary, stop the measurement process;
- to display the most important current data of the bottling sites;
- to display measurement results and error messages;
- to set optional parameters for the measurement process.
If the test time has elapsed correctly, the equipment will depressurise the cylinder, sound an audible alarm and display the test data series on the screen, one cylinder at a time. In the event of a fault, the equipment shall depressurise the cylinder, give a fault signal and display the nature or cause of the fault on the screen. Start/stop functions can also be performed by push buttons for ease of operation.
Size(w x h x d): 750…1400x950x250 mm (depending on the model)
Net weight: ca. 70…120 kg (depending on the model)
Electricity power supply: 230VAC
Compressed air demand: max. 6 bar
Drain connection: DN15
Protection: IP 41
