AWT reduces giveaway In brief

Weighing technology and software from Avery Weigh-Tronix has reduced product giveaway and improved the yield from a batch of chemicals for Schlötter Ireland by five percent.

Schlotter blends chemicals for a wide variety of industries including automative, microelectronics, metal finishing and medical devices.

The cost of blended chemicals varies but can be up to 50 euros per kilogram, so process efficiency was a key driver in the company’s lean manufacturing programme. Schlötter would normally fill 25kg to 1,000kg containers but also offer product in 1kg to 10kg bottles of the blended chemical, depending upon customer requirements.

Previously the operator would place the drum or other container on to a floor scale and then fill it manually to the required level. In order never to short ship, the operator would overfill these containers so, for example, a 25kg drum could receive 1 kg extra and sometimes as much as 2 kg.

Giveaway was even more extreme on the smaller 4 litre bottles - often up to 10 percent extra. Typically these chemicals are higher value products.

Another problem was that if there was any spillage or product left in the filling tank, then the company has to pay for its proper disposal as a hazardous waste, in line with its IPC licence. Avery Weigh-Tronix installed and programmed its Evolution E1110 indicator to control the pump and filling head from the filling tanks in response to the weight readings from the existing floor scales.

This new semi automated system has reduced product giveaway and improved the company’s margins. It has also freed up operator time to concentrate on more value added activities.

Says Don Chaplin, engineering manager for Schlötter Ireland: “Moving from a manual to a semi-automated system has seen a huge improvement in our packaging performance. It has improved our yield and enables us to use our workforce more constructively. All the operator has to do is press a button, there is no need to monitor the filling process of large containers anymore.” “Avery Weigh-Tronix installed and commissioned the system in conjunction with our engineers. In time we may upgrade the system even further and incorporate data loggers so that the system also records the filling operation and feeds back the data. This will help us further improve our processes. We now have seven such systems operational at our facility in Newbridge, County Kildare.”

Investing in future growth

Middlesbrough based logistics company, AV Dawson has welcomed a two million euro crane complete with a 19m3

grab

onto its site at Riverside Park, making it the largest on the River Tees. Ideal for moving products with high volume and low weight, such as grain, the new crane will increase efficiency of discharging certain products by 200%. The state of the art Gottwald Harbour Crane is another clear example of AV Dawson’s confidence in the future of the North East. "While we have a long history of creating efficiencies for our traditional clients, we must also look to the future. As far as port operations are concerned grain could be the new steel for AV Dawson and through our investment in the Gottwald Harbour Crane we can now offer clients in the bio- fuels and bio-mass supply chains the same efficiencies that our established client base enjoys," said Gary Dawson, managing director of AV Dawson.

25 year bulk contract

Building materials provider Cemex UK has signed two leases and two handling agreements - each for 25 years - with The Potter Group, extending the existing long-term relationship between the companies.

A total area of 8.4 acres at The Potter

Group’s North East (selby) and East Anglia (Ely) centres is being used to store road stone and sugar stone.

Product is shipped in by rail from the Peak Forest in Derbyshire and discharged by Potter Group staff then handled by Cemex UK employees. Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60