When it comes to can production, filling and seaming are two crucial operations which will determine the quality of the end product, and ultimately the reliability of your filling line, as the filler is often the critical machine in the line – the one that most directly affects line efficiency if it stops. Gebo Cermex’s Starcans FM filler and seamer are among the most efficient systems on the market, responding to our clients’ need for a two-in-one system. The essential task of transferring cans from the filling unit to the seamer requires a drive system, and so we have turned our attention to perfecting this process.
The result will be available to clients worldwide on June 1st: a new electronic drive system which uses independent servomotors to offer an improvement on the traditional, mechanical drive systems. This system brings greater hygiene reducing overall maintenance.
The challenge: less maintenance, greater hygiene
This project is first and foremost a response to growing demand from our clients: in today’s fast-moving market, cutting down on maintenance while achieving a higher level of hygiene is an absolute necessity. Mechanical drive systems, however well-designed they may be, rely on a number of parts (gearboxes, belts, cardan shafts) which multiply maintenance activities and increase the chances of a breakdown occurring. Natural wear and tear on these parts also compromises the accuracy of the drive system, which can pose a serious problem during a production phase where precision is key.
Hygiene concerns also have a role to play. All those mechanical parts represent an ample surface area for fluids to accumulate and dirt to build up. All of which adds to the overall maintenance and cleaning.
The electronic drive solution for greater reliability
The engineers at Gebo Cermex have come up with a solution which is as elegant as it is efficient, using independent electronic servomotors to deliver cans from filler to seamer rapidly, accurately and hygienically. The new electronic drive system offers several advantages over a mechanical drive:
- Reduced maintenance requirements: by doing away with all of the mechanical components, maintenance and spare part costs are cut by around 20%;
- Greater reliability: removing the margin of uncertainty induced by wear and tear of mechanical components;
- More hygienic: with fewer mechanical components in the filling area, there are fewer opportunities for fluid build-up.
Angelo Devincenzi, Filling Product Director for Can and Glass Lines, sums up the attraction of this solution:
“This new electronic drive system makes the coupling between filling and seaming units more reliable than ever before. Our clients are always looking for ways to cut maintenance costs and eliminate sources of potential errors and contaminations, and this new system does exactly that. It’s clean, it’s clever and it’ll save money.”