GlassInsight_5-2013_.. - Pyrotek

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4ask the expert...determining the best guidematerial in container productiongerresheimer group predictscontinued revenue growth in 2013Gerresheimer AG, a Düsseldorf,Germany-based developer andmanuf-acturer of glass and plasticpackaging, projects its revenues willgrow 5–6 percent in 2013. Its revenuesincreased 11.4 percent to EUR€1.2billion (USD$1.6 billion) in 2012.Larry Rizzuto,Glass Sales Engineer,Pyrotek Inc.In glass container manufacturing,bottle guides are an important componentwith various functions thatare used on individual section (IS)machines and the production line.If the forming process were an exactscience, there wouldn’t be any needfor bottle guides on the line’s deadplates, conveyor, ware-transfer unitor cross conveyor. Several factors thatinfluence ware handling, however,include container weight, variationsin air pressure, valve response time,timing parameters, machine cooling,deadplate cooling and man-coolingsystems.Many materials have been used overthe years as bottle guides, includingcovered wires, DuPont Kevlar ®tape, plastic tape, DuPont Teflon ®tubing, carbon, graphite and stainlesssteel. They are used for the sole purposeof guiding containers from thedeadplate to the machine conveyorto keep the containers from tippingover. Once on the conveyor, theyhave to be orientated in a straightline or a jam can occur.A container material’s resistance tohigh temperature and porosity determinewhich substance to use asbottle guides in any operation. If theguide material is damaged to a pointthat bare metal under the coating isexposed, a contact check can occuron the glass. If the material becomessaturated with oil, a contact checkmay also occur. Either of these conditionscan cause a container defectresulting in lost production or a customercomplaint.The following paragraphs detail thestep-by-step process of a container’strip from the IS machine to the annealinglehr.1. As a container leaves the deadplate,it can be directed by acurved guide, which is usuallymade of carbon or graphite. It maybe also assisted by air jets that turnon and off to hold the containerin the pusher pocket. Some operationshave used covered wiresor a coated tape to do the samething. The curved guide is the bestapproach because it will not dentthe container as a wire or tapemight do. The curved guide canbe made out of DuPont Vespel® SCP-5050 polyimide part orPyrotek’s P-25W carbon / carbonmaterial.2. Once the container is moving onthe conveyor, an inside or outsideguide on the conveyor moves anymis-orientated containers back inline. The purpose of the guidesis to keep containers in a straightline through the narrow openingof the hot-end coating hood withoutjam-ming and to sequencethem into the ware-transfer unitwithout letting them fall over. Pyrotekhas found that DuPont’sVespel ® SCP-5050 polyimidepart works best because it will resistoil, and won’t bend or easilybreak. Vespel ® components haveapproximately 50 to 100 timeslower heat transfer coefficientversus traditional carbon graphitecomponents, which can eliminatechecks and micro-cracks in theglass containers.3. Next, as a container contactstransfer fingers, the transfer unitwill turn the bottles 90 degreesto move them onto the cross conveyor.A guide under the transferkeeps the containers in a straightline as they enter the cross conveyor.Sometimes an upper guidemay also be used for added bottlestability. These materials are usuallymade out of graphite, carbon,polymer-matrix composite (PMC)or Vespel ® . The first three materialsmight break or wear out prematurely,causing downtime. Manyplants have been using Vespel ®components with good success.4. Once on the cross conveyor, thestacker will push the containersinto the annealing lehr. Temperaturesare very high in this area.Carbon material such as P-25Wis an excellent choice for stackerpocket inserts as temperatures aretoo high for Teflon ® , PMC and Vespel® materials. Graphite has alsohad its problems in this area as itwill cause contact checks on theside of the containers.To ensure glass container quality duringthe manufacturing process andavoid cost-inducing checks and defects,several ware-handling factorssuch as container weight or variationsin air pressure must be considered.Pyrotek’s global network of engineerscan work with a customer to determinewhich guides and materials willimprove production performance.www.pyrotek.info/glassDuPont, Kevlar ® , Teflon ® and Vespel ® areregistered trademarks or trademarks of E.I.du Pont de Nemours and Company or itsaffiliates. All rights reserved.The company saw strong growth inthe pharmaceutical segment, as wellas positive results in cosmetic glassand life science research.“We achieved all our targets in 2012.We recorded another year of stronggrowth in our business activities with Photo courtesy of Gerresheimer AG.the pharmaceutical sector, which onceagain proved to be relatively immuneto cyclical effects. We are investing heavily in expanding our production capacityfor medical devices such as prefilled glass syringes, insulin pens and inhalers.We are also focusing on the fast-growing emerging markets, especially in China,Brasil and India,” Uwe Röhrhoff, Gerresheimer’s CEO, said in a press release.The company is expanding its production capacity for medical products inGermany, the Czech Republic and elsewhere. Last year, Gerresheimer acquiredNeutral Glass, one of India’s leading manufacturers of pharmaceutical vials, andTriveni, an Indian plastic pharmaceutical packaging and closure manufacturer.The company is considering additional acquisitions, it says.Gerresheimer’s products include glass tubing, vials and syringes. Its RTF ® -brand ready-to-fill glass syringes can have multicolor printing, a laser-appliedidentity code and a tamper-evident closure system. They are also delivered tothe pharmaceutical industry sterile, pre-assembled and, if desired, with bakedonsiliconisation, the company says. Gerresheimer’s pre-fillable syringes can bemanufactured to a customer’s specifications and are technically compatible tostandards within the pharmaceutical industry.The company’s moulded glass packaging caters to the pharmaceutical, cosmeticsand specialty beverage industries. Its products include type I borosilicate glassand sodium-silicate glass of types II and III amber and flint glass, as well ascoloured and opal glass.Gerresheimer employs about 11,000 people at 47 locations in Europe, Northand South America and Asia.o-i, ecullet form joint ventureOwens-Illinois Inc. (O-I), of Perrysburg, Ohio, USA, and eCullet Inc., of PaloAlto, California, USA, have formed a joint venture called Glass to Glass LLC.The new company will invest in sophisticated glass sorting equipment that willmake more high-quality recycled glass available for use in O-I plants, Owens-Illinois says. Using recycled glass in the manufacturing process allows thecompany to reduce its use of virgin raw materials, lessening its environmentalimpact.“Much of the recycled glass collected in North America comes from singlestreamrecycling, which mixes paper, metal, plastic and glass,” Owens-Illinoissaid in a press release. “This collection process often results in glass that is toocontaminated to be successfully re-introduced into the manufacturing process.Improved sorting techniques will increase the amount of usable glass availableto O-I.”eCullet is a glass processing company that utilises proprietary technology toproduce high quality cullet (i.e. broken or refuse glass) that is colour sorted,contaminant free and furnace ready for the glass container manufacturingindustry.Separately, Glass International reports that O-I has completed a EUR€21 million(USD$27 million) investment at its Leerdam plant in the Netherlands to enhanceits capabilities. The investment included a furnace rebuild, machine upgradesand new equipment.“The investment at our Leerdam facility is part of O-I’s strategy to significantlystrengthen our competitiveness and capabilities in Europe. In 2013, we will beinvesting EUR€140 million (USD$180 million) in our European operations,” O-IEurope President Erik Bouts told Glass International. “Over the next several years,we will accelerate our efforts to enhance O-I’s capabilities to better supportthe growing needs of our European customers for sustainable and healthy glasspackaging.”Owens-Illinois is the world’s largest glass container manufacturer with about22,500 employees at 79 plants worldwide. It had revenues of USD$7 billion in2012.
google demonstrates its wearableinterface, google glassGoogle, the Mountain View,California, USA-based informationtechnology company, demonstratedits interactive product, Google Glass,at the recent South by Southwestconference in Texas, USA.Still in the developmental phase,Glass basically is a pair of eyeglassesthat features a head-up display (HUD)a user can use to take photos andaccess and share information via theInternet.Google Glass photo courtesy of Google.“Project Glass is about our relationship to technology. It’s about technologythat’s there when you want it and out of the way when you don’t,” TimothyJordan, a Senior Developer Advocate at Google, told the audience. “Technologygets in the way more than it needs to. Glass is so you can still have access to thetechnology you love, but it won’t take you out of the moment.”The glasses’ HUD is positioned just out of a user’s direct line of sight and isactivated and deactivated by head gestures. It also includes a touch pad on theside. Glass features an audio component that allows a user to voice commandsand emails and hear responses.Glass’ HUD utilises application programming interfaces, or APIs, to communicatebetween its servers and applications and send and retrieve data, which isdisplayed on “timeline cards.” Jordan demonstrated Google’s new Mirror API,which is the main interface between Google Glass, Google’s servers and anyapps developers create for the product. He challenged potential developers todesign new applications for short and quick interactions, to be discrete, timelyand avoid unexpected notifications or actions that would frustrate a user. “Keepaway from anything that’s going to jar them or shock them out of their lives,”Jordan said.In one example, Jordan demonstrated how a user might receive a headlinenotice from the “New York Times,” tap on a story he or she is interested inthen quickly share it through social media. Or, a user could opt to have thestory read aloud in his or her ear while walking between meetings. “Glass isin early days yet. We’re really just getting started,” Jordan said. “The reasonwe want to start having this conversation is that every time we say somethingand you (developers) respond with your dreams and visions for using this newtechnology, it’s a huge inspiration to us.”Earlier this year Google invited individuals to its Glass Foundry, where teamsbrainstormed and built new potential ways to use Glass.Google Glass is one of several similar products using HUDs that are on themarket or being developed. Epson’s Moverio BT-100, for example, is an individualentertainment system embedded in a pair of glasses, letting a user watch videoand explore the Internet. The Vuzix M100 Smart Glasses offer a hands-free visualdisplay of data on a smartphone, while Innovega iOptik contacts are designed todisplay information on contact lenses.berlin packaging expands presence inflorida, USA, with new warehouseBerlin Packaging, of Chicago, Illinois,USA, has opened a 3700-squaremetre(40,000-square-foot) warehousein Miramar, Florida, USA,to accommodate its growth in thatregion. Berlin Packaging suppliesglass, plastic and metal containersand closures through its more than 90locations throughout North America,the company says.The new facility, which is expected tobe fully operational within the nextseveral months, will house customers’packaging components for just-intimedelivery and enable the companyto offer same-day shipping to virtuallyall of Florida. Customers have theoption to have finished containersand closures drop-shipped directlyfrom the factory to their preferreddestinations, or housed at warehouseslike the new Miramar facility forrelease on an as-needed basis underthe company’s inventory managementprogram, the company says.In addition, the company plans toopen a new office in Miami, Florida.“Our sales in Florida have surgedtremendously in the last year, inpart because of an aggressive salesand marketing campaign focusingon services such as package design,global sourcing, capital lending atbelow-market rates and consultingthat we offer free of charge inexchange for new packaging business.That growth prompted us to look formore warehouse space that we canstaff with our own personnel,” DarrinDingman, Berling Packaging’s FloridaDistrict Manager, Berlin Packaging,said in a press release.With nearly USD$800 million inannual revenues, Berlin Packagingsupplies more than 3.5 billioncontainers and closures each year, aswell as labelling and filling services tocompanies in industries such as foodand beverage, health care, automotiveand industrial chemical.cugher glassmoves, installsline at new PGWplant in PolandCugher Glass, of Milan, Italy, hasmoved its production operations to alarger facility in the Novate Milaneseindustrial area in Milan. The companyoccupies a 1000-square-metre(10,800-square-foot) building whereit is equipped to assemble and test itsmachines, the company says.In Komorniki, Poland, Cugher hascompleted the installation of screenprinting lines at a new PittsburghGlass Works (PGW) factory.“The line is equipped with advancedautomation features in order toguarantee an outstanding performancein terms of speed, precision andquality of the final product,” Cughersaid in a press release.China proposes bottle recyclingfee, eyes legislation in hong kongThe Chinese government has proposedlevying recycling fees on all glassbeverage suppliers and distributors,domestic and foreign, in the city ofHong Kong.While the fee hasn’t been determined,the government has announced apossible figure of HKD$1 (USD$0.078)per litre, says a staff report from theU.S. Department of Agriculture’s(USDA) Foreign Agricultural Service.In the past 10 years, glass bottlesaccounted for about 3 percent ofHong Kong’s solid-waste disposal. In2011, glass bottles used for beveragesconstituted two-thirds of overall glassbottlewaste, the report says. Onlyabout 1500 tonnes of glass beveragebottles were recovered that year in avoluntary recycling program.In the proposal, suppliers will berequired to periodically report theamount of glass beverage bottlesthey have provided to the HongKong market for consumption, whichwill determine the recycling fee acompany must pay, the USDA reportsays. Based on 2012 trade figures,USA-based wine and beer beverageswould have generated USD$958,0005industry eventsjune 201317–20 JuneMir Stekla 2013Moscow, Russiawww.mirstekla-expo.ruseptember 20133–5 SeptemberGulf Glass 2013Dubai, United Arab Emirateswww.glassinthegulf.com4–6 SeptemberGlass SolutionsOrlando, Florida USA11–12 SeptemberGlassman AmericaLas Vegas, Nevada, USAwww.glassmanevents.comoctober 201314–17 OctoberGlass ProblemsColumbus, Ohio, USAwww.gmic.orgin recycling fees in a year, withan average cost of 1.6 percent perbottle. The proposal also includes anexemption for suppliers who employ asystem to collect their own containers.The government will select one ormore contractors to collect and treatused containers, while retailers will berequired to educate the public.The wine industry has opposed theproposal, citing that the fee will affectinexpensive beverages the most, andsellers will be forced to raise pricesto account for the levy. Assuming thesuggested levy of HKD$1 (USD$0.078)for a one-litre bottle, the recycling feewould be as high as 8 percent for a500-millilitre (16-ounce) soft drink.For an HKD$100 (USD$13) bottle ofwine, however, the rate would only beabout 0.8 percent.Meanwhile, Hong Kong media reportsthat the government is consideringlegislation to make glass recyclingmandatory. New measures areexpected to be introduced by theend of the year, the South ChinaMorning Post says. It has not yet beendetermined who would be responsiblefor recycling, but possibly importers,wholesalers or retailers.
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