Moisture analyzer reportedly helps speed up the molding process for VictorinoxMoisture analyzer reportedly helps speed up the molding process for Victorinox

The latest models of moisture analyzers from Mettler-Toledo feature USB, Ethernet and WLAN connectivity for easy data transfer, and now can send measurement reports in A4 or letter format direct to a networked page printer. With a five-click guided procedure, the performance of all the instruments together can be qualified due to the certified reference substance SmartCal.

In addition to ensuring accurate measurement performance, ease-of-use is paramount be it in the laboratory or on the production floor. For example, Victorinox, makers of the legendary Swiss Army knives, adopted a moisture analyzer in its production quality control process to check the plastic granulates used to mold components of the company's products. Victorinox works with six different plastics and each material has its own moisture analysis drying method. 

Mettler-Toledo says that due to the factory automation and the use of its Professional moisture analyzer equipped with the OneClick user interface, only one non-specialist worker is required to run the entire injection molding operation. Victorinox quality control experts have pre-programmed the equipment with six shortcut keys; one for each of the plastic granulates in use. This ensures that the operator simply has to load a sample and press its clearly labelled shortcut key; the assigned drying method then starts automatically.

Measurement results, displayed by an instrument on the factory floor, can be sent directly to a regular A4/letter printer anywhere on the company network, for example in the quality control office. The same data may also be transferred to a file server as a PDF for on-screen viewing and electronic archiving, as well as in standard CSV or XLS format for interchange with laboratory and office software.

Professional moisture analyzers are tested as with SmartCal to verify the performance of the instrument's overall functionality. After following simple instructions, normalization for ambient conditions is automatic thanks to a new plug-in humidity and temperature sensor. Reports are generated in A4 or strip printer format as well as PDF or CSV files.

"Whether the new Mettler-Toledo Professional moisture analyzer instrument is being used in a laboratory or on the factory floor, it achieves highly reproducible results while full network support and USB connectivity simplifies data transfer and ensures convenient and secure reporting," said Kathrin Annaheim, product manager of Mettler-Toledo laboratory weighing. "With OneClick graphical user interface also SmartCal tests can be started with one click. Once the test has started, the user is guided step by step through the test."

The goal at Victorinox is ensuring that materials are matching the quality requirements at goods receipt and during the production process. Since the Professional moisture analyzer went into service, the company has been able to eliminate product errors and to speed up the molding process by as much as five to 10 percent.