Given the constantly rising prices of raw materials, the investment in accurate weighing and precise filling is worthwhile more than ever. In this article, we give some examples of how to achieve optimum efficiency with proven technology.
Intake with ship unloader
When discharging vessels or transporting via conveyor belts, a throughput weigher can be used to weigh the continuous bulk flow in batches. A built-in bunker weigher allows the individual weights to be totalised and the product flow to be recorded accurately. It becomes even more efficient if this can be done via a mobile installation.
With a mobile bunker weigher, the input and output flow of a product stream to and from ships or between conveyor belts can be weighed precisely.
Incoming and outgoing control with weighbridge
To keep a good eye on the global product flow of your company, all goods that enter or leave your plant should be weighed. The weighbridge can be linked to access control systems such as number plate cameras, barriers, badge systems, etc., making it impossible to enter or leave the site without being weighed. Logging in can be done automatically via adapted hardware such as touchscreens with intuitive multilingual user interface.
All traffic across the weighbridge is registered and can be. In this way, the entire in- and outflow of the company is charted
Process control by weighing
If products need to be weighed in line, a belt weigher or weigh feeder is ideally suited. These devices can also be built into existing processes or conveyor belts. Using a check weigher, packages that do not meet the tolerances can be removed from the product flow.
Exact filling of bags and big bags
When filling containers such as IBCs, bags and big bags, it often happens that an operator manually fills too much product. This is done from a good intention to be sure not to deliver packages under the filling weight to the customer. But every excess is a loss.
When the bulk or liquid products are automatically filled in a correct manner, there will be less loss and the packaging won`t underfilled either. When the filled packaging is used in commercial traffic (legal-for-trade), the filling system must also be certified as an AWI (Automatic Weighing Instrument). The best way to achieve this is with a filling machine approved as OIML R61 Discontinuous Dosing Equipment.
Automated filling: all data on the filled big bags can be logged and consulted to inspect the actual production results
Maintaining and visualising weighing data
In order to get an overview of the production data, the weighing and filling data can be recorded so that the production management gets a good view of what has actually been produced. This can be done via IIoT (Industrial Internet of Things) or on-premises (the loggings are then kept on the filling machine).
The data can vary from the filling parameters (post-fall, dosage speed, ...) to the number of filled and stacked bags on the palletising robot). Via a dashboard environment, the current status can be visualised, the weighing logs can be inspected in Excel or included in an MES/ERP system. Also, ready orders from an MES/ERP can be seamlessly linked to the control of the filling line.
Palletizing robot. Via 4G IIoT access of the filling and palletizing line, you can keep track of exactly how many bags were filled and stacked.
Periodic calibration and maintenance
In order to meet certain quality standards, it is necessary to periodically re-calibrate all weighing instruments. Here, calibrated reference weights are used to check whether the weighing results are still within the norm. The periodic inspections and preventive maintenance ensure that the production department is always assured of correct weighings.
