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Last year’s holder of record for the fastest machine at the Fakuma trade show in Friedrichshafen is set to repeat that feat again this year. At the booth of injection molding machine manufacturer Sumitomo Demag (Nurnberg, Germany), a high-speed El-Exis SP 200 will be molding four 125ml polypropylene gourmet containers, complete with their removal by a special handling robot, in just under two seconds (Hall B1, Stand 1105).

Karen Laird

September 22, 2015

2 Min Read
Sumitomo-Demag to showcase fastest molding exhibit at Fakuma—again

el_exis_sp.jpgThe 4-cavity hot-runner mold and the automation equipment for fast container removal was supplied by Brink B.V., of Harskamp in the Netherlands. Four polypropylene containers (PP supplied by Borealis), each with a weight of only 3.4 g, a diameter of 83 mm, a wall-thickness of 0.32 mm and a flow path/wall-thickness ratio of 213, are removed from the side by a robot that moves into the mold parting line. The containers are placed behind the machine, stacked and conveyed along the machine’s lateral axis. The automation plus all required modules are integrated into the compact protective housing with a footprint of no more than one square meter without a conveyor-belt.

The whistles and bells on the exhibited El-Exis SP 200-675 easily set it apart from the competition. The machine features a 25D 40 mm screw plus shear and mixing section, and is equipped with a production efficiency module for cycle time optimization. The activeAdjust feature allows machine operators to select the best controller profile via an easy slide control system without the need for external help. Individual machine movements, as well as acceleration and deceleration ramps can be optimized to fit the requirements of the current product. This includes metering, the dynamics of the switchover from injection to holding pressure, mold opening and ejector movements. This function reduces cycle times and increases the production capacity by between 3 – 5 %, according to the machine manufacturer.
 
The El-Exis SP is also equipped with “activeQ/Q+” mold protection for sensitive monitoring of the clamping unit’s travel forces both during mold opening and closing. If required, the module will actively stop the movements in order to protect the mold from potential damage. The machine is also equipped with the “activeCool&Clean” cooling and filtering system as standard, which ensures the best oil quality and a high oil service life of up to 40,000 h for the El-Exis SP and all other hydraulic injection molding machines from Sumitomo (SHI) Demag: in the laminar and pulsation-free oil flow of a separate low-pressure circuit, this extra-large ultrafine filter separates any contaminants and optimizes the heat transfer in the cooling system. This approach extends the filter’s service life and the machine’s oil change intervals.

In addition, Sumitomo Demag will also debut a production unit for complex decorated lightweight parts with a Systec Servo 210 at its center at its booth during show, and will be showing s an all-electric IntElect 100 equipped with “activeFlowBalance” for balancing the filling of its four cavities, stabilizing the process and boosting the quality of the molded parts.

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