ACM 5 NEX: Innovative protection concept for batch powder coating
The new ACM 5 NEX offers numerous advantages of a simplified design – and is ATEX-compliant and tested for explosion protection.
The classifier mills of the ACM series are reliable partners for ultra-fine grinding with integrated classifying of powder coatings. The new ACM 5 NEX offers numerous advantages of a simplified design – and is ATEX-compliant and tested for explosion protection.
ACM 5 NEX classifier mill
Hosokawa Alpine, a leading supplier in the field of powder and particle processing and film extrusion, introduces the ACM 5 NEX classifier mill: pressureless design, cost-effective and explosion-proof solution for the powder coating industry. Powder coatings are used in many different ways in the industry; the starting point for their production are raw materials such as pigments, fillers, resins, etc. By specifying a recipe, the raw materials are mixed, extruded and then rolled out on a cooling belt and broken into chips. To grind the chips, the grinding system must be pressure-shock resistant as powder coatings of explosion classes ST1 & ST2 are explosive. The maintenance of technical explosion protection measures through inspection, servicing and maintenance must be regularly planned and implemented with additional costs as appropriate.
Cost-effective, low-maintenance, explosion proof
The design of the new ACM 5 NEX classifier mill was based on the following principle: The solution had to be cost-effective, low-maintenance, but above all safe in terms of explosion protection. The special innovation of the ACM 5 NEX concept, however, is that the system can be built in a pressureless design by avoiding effective ignition sources – this eliminates maintenance and inspections for pressure-shock-resistant system components and makes accessibility for cleaning even easier.
Operational safety first
The top priority in the design of the ACM 5 NEX was the operational safety of the finished solution. The classifier mill is therefore not only ATEX-compliant, but has also been tested by the European certification company Bureau Veritas. The test confirms: no ignition with standard powder coatings. Cost efficiency was also a goal during development, so the customer’s savings are doubled with the ACM 5 NEX classifier mill. Due to the simplified design, the purchase price is lower than for pressure shock resistant systems. In addition, cleaning and maintenance can be carried out much faster – downtimes are thus reduced to a minimum. Numerous installations of the latest generation of ACM 5 NEX have already gone into operation worldwide.
