Arburg develops injection molding machines tailored for packaging

German injection molding machine manufacturer Arburg is targeting the packaging industry with new electric and hybrid Allrounder Alldrive and Hidrive machines.

Bearing a "P" for packaging, Arburg says the two high-performance machine series offer high-productivity optimization for increased performance and reduced energy consumption. 

An Arburg spokesperson told PlasticsToday with the ability to now offer packaging solutions for machines up to 460 tons in both hybrid and electric machines, the company is able to serve the main packaging market.

"This enables us to increase our market presence and makes Arburg interesting for the main players in this industry," the spokesperson said. 

The packaging versions are available in the following sizes: the Allrounders 570 A and H feature a clamping force of 1800 kN, Allrounders 630 A and H 2300 kN, Allrounders 720 A and H 2900 kN, Allrounders 820 A and H 3700 kN and Allrounders 920 A and H 4600 kN.

The spokesperson said the new machines offer a new tie bar distance and tonnage combination in order to accommodate bigger and heavier molds on the machines.

Another feature of the machines is the higher injection speeds combined with fast screw acceleration and deceleration for short filling times and software extensions for faster cycle times. Arburg says up to four injection units are available for each machine type. Energy savings up to 30% can be achieved in comparison with hydraulic clamping systems.

Servo-electric dosage drives ensure fast operation across cycles, short dosage times and maximum productivity. The use of barrier screws ensures homogeneous melt preparation and a high material throughput.

With injection speeds of up to 500 mm/sec, this enables short injection times, the company said. If production sequences need further optimization, injection can be started simultaneously with the "mold closing" movement as standard.

"Once again, the aim here is to reduce the cycle times in order to achieve high productivity in manufacturing," Arburg said.

Target market within packaging
The spokesperson said the main focus within packaging is thin-wall containers, lids as well as closures.

For the production of thin-walled items and screw caps, special features are available, which enable the packaging Allrounders to be adapted to the particular application.

The equipment for producing thin-walled items includes preparations for connecting an external in-mold labelling system or other removal system. In addition, the extension of the robotic system interface enables the robotic system to advance as the mold opens.

"Once again, the main advantage here lies in the effective reduction of the entire cycle time," the company said. "Freely programmable ramps for the hydraulic ejector ensure the fast and gentle demolding of parts. Valve clusters with large diameters help with rapid actuation of pneumatic functions in the mould, such as air blow."

In screw cap production, Arburg said that fast, reliable ejection of mass-produced parts is what counts. For this purpose, a servo-electric ejector with hydraulic booster function, in other words an increased ejection force of 250 kN, is available. The company said that this ensures problem-free demolding even in the case of shrunk-on closures.

The "ejection" and "mold opening" steps can be synchronized. The dropping of the molded parts can be adjusted to keep the mold opening times short. Higher screw circumferential speeds enable correspondingly short dosage times, which permit fast cycle times.

The company spokesperson said Arburg is targeting packaging customers in Europe as well as the Americas, Middle East and Far East countries.

"The Arburg exhibition presence this year will highlight the importance of the packaging branch within our company," the spokesperson said. "You might be curious to see what Arburg is going to present at K 2013."