THIN WALL MOULDING | TECHNOLOGY
“With this, packaging moulders can increase output while reducing the wall thickness of containers and lids from 0.45mm to 0.35mm. This saves around 25% in raw polypropylene materials compared to the standard injection moulding process, while maintaining comparable mechanical properties.” The company says the latest generation of
EL-Exis SP machines are specifically designed to withstand the higher stresses and injection pres- sures that are critical in achieving repeatability, particularly in thin-walled products. El-Exis SP machines are capable of delivering a cycle time of less than 2s, which Sumitomo (SHI) Demag claims is the fastest injection moulding machine series for packaging manufacturers on the market. The series also offers good process consistency through acceleration, mould movement and deceleration. Having this additional control during the manufac- turing process saves moulders and converters money by lowering operational costs and deliver- ing energy savings of around 15%, according to the company. The importance of thin-wall products in packag-
ing will remain high, both in food and non-food applications, says Wittmann Battenfeld. “The material properties, as well as the possibilities with regard to shape, are still superior – so we expect that the market will continue to grow,” says Andreas Schramm, Managing Director of the company’s German subsidiary. “One driver in this market segment will be the environmental and sustainabil- ity aspect. Better material utilisation, multiple use of resins through post-consumer recycling (PCR) and new materials are key elements that will drive growth. Thin-walled products need to be recycla- ble. For example, this means that in-mould label- ling (IML) will gain in importance.” Schramm highlights a number of areas of current development that will provide new solu-
tions in thin-walled moulding applications. These include further material utilisation, injection compression moulding (ICM) and new plasticising technologies for PCR. Assistance tools, such as the Wittmann Battenfeld HiQ packages, in particular HiQ Melt for monitoring the melt quality during metering, will also be of great importance. Wittmann Battenfeld is continuing to develop
products to meet these needs. “Firstly, we are further developing existing ICM technology and in this context, partnerships with toolmakers are being further strengthened,” says Schramm. “Our product for thin-wall moulding is the EcoPower Xpress machine. This is an all-electric machine with a highly dynamic drive system, which is of particu- lar interest for thin-walled applications in the packaging industry. The machine is available in a clamping force range of 1,600-5,000 kN. In addition, we are co-operating with partners in the field of auxiliaries and cleanroom technology for medical applications, offering mould space dehumidification for example, to offer a complete package for the industry.“ The Wittmann 4.0 approach of interconnectivity has been applied with the EcoPower Xpress for packaging applications in order to further strength- en quality assurance. This system allows the monitoring of quality parameters, both of the machine and all integrated equipment, simultane- ously and helps reduce set-up times. Schramm says: “With our overview mould data sheet integrated into the control, the setter has a unique tool that can inform at a glance during a mould change whether all necessary auxiliaries are available and correctly connected to the machine. If this check from the control unit is positive, all machine and auxiliary-relevant production data are loaded into the production process with one data record. The setter cannot forget any settings and production can be started much faster. An optional
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Above: The EcoPower Xpress 300 from Wittmann Battenfeld
Left: Wittmann Battenfeld recently undertook a project with a Belgian
customer to produce a 150 ml food
container with a wall-thickness of 0.3 mm in a cycle time of less than 3s
March 2021 | INJECTION WORLD 31
IMAGE: WITTMANN BATTENFELD
IMAGE: WITTMANN BATTENFELD
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