GRANULATORS | TECHNOLOGY
Granulator manufacturers are developing their technologies in new ways that help
processors deal with the challenges of using regrind material. Chris Saunders reports on new products
Making the cut: advances in granulators
In addition to the usual considerations for granula- tor development, like space-saving and noise reduction, in response to the growing emphasis on sustainability, manufacturers are now focusing their efforts on developing more energy-efficient machines. Intelligent power management is being incorporated to minimise energy consumption, which not only lowers operational costs but also reduces environmental impact, while another notable trend is the integration of smart automa- tion and Industry 4.0 technologies, which enable remote monitoring and control, predictive mainte- nance, and data-driven optimisation, reducing downtime and enhancing overall efficiency. At the Fakuma exhibition held last October in
Friedrichshafen, Germany, Hellweg Maschinenbau, recently awarded the Compamedia TOP 100 2023 seal of approval as a “particularly innovative medium-sized company”, presented a selection of its digitally controlled machines, including the MDSi 340/150 Smart Control machine-side granulator, the most powerful model of the series with drive powers of 1.5kW to 4kW for grinding capacities of 10 kg/h to 80 kg/h. Its primary application is to enable the recirculation of even the bulkiest sprue stars, spiders, or ladders, directly beside one or more injection moulding machines. Material can be fed in by chute, feed hopper, or conveyor belt, and discharged by suction.
www.plasticsrecyclingworld.com The company says its 300 series of central
granulators combine a compact design with high performance and allow grinding of thick-walled mouldings, sheets, sprue cakes, pipes and profiles and, when using the special BR rotor, even single- stage shredding of solid lumps from production start-ups. A MDSi 600/300 Smart Control Plus version on display at Fakuma featured power consumption analysis and automated lubrication with Bluetooth monitoring. Hellweg also presented the new MDSGi 1500/600 wet grinder featuring a forced feed system for film recycling. These systems feature Hellweg’s digital Smart
Control System, developed in-house, which captures parameters such as power consumption, motor speed, and bearing temperatures, as well as blade, screen, and V belt status, and continuously optimises the relationship between motor load and through- put ensuring the most economical operation. Smart Control is generally available for all models and sizes of Hellweg’s systems from the Series 150 beside-the-press granulator for small parts and sprue grinding to the Series 600 large granulator. A power-saving frequency converter is also
fitted, and programmed in such a way that the granulator only requires the power that is needed to grind the current batch of material. In addition, the scissor cut principle used at Hellweg ensures efficient self-dosing and always works around
September 2024 | PLASTICS RECYCLING WORLD 37
Main image: Granulator companies are aiming to improve the quality of regranulated scrap
IMAGE: SHUTTERSTOCK
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