Turbo upgrades

The conditions governing economic success in an industrial environment are not becoming any easier. Global competition and changes in customer and consumer demand regarding cost-effective quality products are presenting companies with ever new challenges. The maxim in all cases is to opt for a flexible and durable system which is also economical and ecologically sustainable.

This also applies to upgrades, with which existing customers can bring their older, robust KHS filling lines into line with the state of the art so that they are better placed on the market. The most recent examples of such cooperative solutions in the decision to modernize ­rather than make a new investment are Karlsberg Brewery in Homburg in Germany’s Saarland and the big Japanese beverage concern Asahi, both long-standing customers of KHS.

At Karlsberg the walking beam system on the KHS pasteurizer from 1991 had gradually become susceptible to faults. After much consultation with the KHS service team the brewery decided neither to repair its existing system nor invest in an extensive replacement system. Instead, Karlsberg opted to convert its pasteurizer from the walking beam system to modern belt systems with a stainless steel belt and new PU (pasteurization unit) control. At the same time all of the electrical equipment was replaced as Siemens had discontinued the components installed in the old system (S5 control unit).

“The entire conversion process was extremely harmonious, running without any hitches or lengthy delays,” smiles Hans-Jürgen Peter. It may be no surprise that the head of maintenance at Karlsberg is so full of praise but it wasn't given as a matter of course; almost 50 metric tons of material (equivalent to the weight of 30 VW Golfs) and the machine itself had to be moved by crane during dismantling and installation – plus the line in question was on the top floor!

Everything came perfectly together on this project: the planning, on-time delivery of all conversion groups, the experience and expertise of the KHS team and the unusual amount of support provided by Karlsberg personnel. A total of 50 engineers overhauled the line at the same time. The result of three weeks of cooperation was duly impressive: just four days after line commissioning Karlsberg signed the acceptance report with no reservations whatsoever. Says Peter, “My great thanks goes to all those involved in helping this unusual project – both for us and KHS – to run so smoothly.”

Lucrative conversion to save energy at Asahi completed in just five days

he conversions at the Asahi sites of Akashi and Fuji in Japan were also reliably performed – despite the schedule being much shorter with just five days of machine downtime. KHS had presented the experts at Asahi with very detailed technical documents in advance so that they could perfectly study the planned conversion of the system to Airback^Plus  (a high-pressure recycling system which saves compressed air) and better assess any possible risks. A number of phone conferences and on-site meetings then took place, during which KHS was able to coordinate the exact procedure with the customer.

The company is now very pleased with its new blow air controller which uses up to 35% less compressed air and thus energy. Satisfied KHS key account Asahi lets actions speak louder than words – and at present has no less than seven KHS stretch blow molders in operation within the company.