Extrusion Equipment

A new control system retrofit kit allows management of an entire extrusion line via modern HMI-Software and a 19-inch touch screen. The TEC 4s from High Tech Extrusion group, developed in cooperation with Siemens, can be installed new or retrofitted onto Theysohn Extruders.

Pipes and profiles can be extruded by a new range of single-screw extruders offered in four sizes, covering the medium-output range from 50 to 500 kg/hr, with the supplier boasting the lines offer consistently high specific throughput at every screw speed. The new uniEX single-screw extruders from battenfeld-cincinnati can run a broad range of thermoplastic materials from PVC and polyolefins to thermoplastic elastomers and engineering plastics.

A new patent-pending seal for piston-type screen changers and divert valves is designed for leak-free processing of low-viscosity materials, such as hot melt adhesives (HMA) and cleaning solvents such as, but not limited to, acetone, toluene, hexane, and heptane. The new PSI-Polymer Systems Inc.'s (Conover, NC) seal is capable of operating at temperatures up to 520°F.  

The manufacturer of single-screw extrusion equipment and screen changers, among other equipment, claims it is the first extruder manufacturer to receive an unrestricted Non Objection Letter from the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) for its complete PET recycling system. The company already in 2010 received a Non Objection Letter from the FDA for a complete PET recycling system including a solid state polymerization (SSP) system.

Look to PlasticsToday's Product Watch for updates on recent developments in the world of plastics processing machinery. New for rotational molders is the Carrossel independent-arm rotational molding machine from Rotoline Industrial Equipment Ltda. (Chapeco, Brazil), an affiliate of Reduction Engineering Inc. (Kent, OH). The company will introduce the machine at the Brasilplast exhibition this month (May 9-13) in São Paulo, Brazil.

If money were no object, then most of us would opt to buy new. But money matters, plenty, so sometimes we need to reuse and refurbish. That was the case for flexible plastic films processor/converter Amgraph, which had a 75-feet (23m) long Black-Clawson two-station extrusion laminator it wanted to upgrade to meet new customer requirements.

At the giant interpack packaging show this month, packaging machinery manufacturer Windmoeller & Hoelscher will display a milestone machine, the 750^th form/fill/seal unit from the company. The show line, which has been sold to Dutch logistics company Katoen Natie (KTN), will be the newest version of the established Topas F/F/S units in that it can move under "silos" so that goods to be packed are discharged (filled) directly into containers before sealing.

A newly introduced extrusion line for thin-walled polyethylene tubes, such as the squeeze tubes used to package cosmetics, gives processors the flexibility to extrude a wide range of tube sizes, configurations (1-5 layers) and compounds, and even to quickly change from one tube specification to another.

The open house held by blown and cast film line manufacturer Windmöller & Hölscher during last fall's K show gave the manufacturer the chance to show off its new Aquarex blown film line, processing polypropylene for infusion bags. Interest was great, according to W&H officials during a meeting at their facility in mid-February, but especially so from a number of plastics film processors from Asia who attended the event.

The German manufacturer of equipment for the production of mono- and biaxially oriented films says it is seeing very strong interest from processors in lines for thick plastics films for optical grade applications. For its entire range, the company reports demand is strong now globally, but particularly in India and in the Far East.