Spill and dust control at glass factory Vidrala Santos Barosa
To avoid wasting raw materials in glass production, TBK Group carried out a technical inventory and steps were taken to avoid spillage and dust at the conveyor belts.
The Portuguese glass factory Vidrala Santos Barosa enlisted the help of TBK Group to avoid wasting raw materials in glass production. During a visit to the factory last April, a technical inventory was carried out and the first steps were taken to avoid spillage and dust at the conveyor belts.
The over 130 year old glass factory was taken over in 2017 by the Spanish concern Vidrala. This group owns several glass factories in Spain, Portugal and Italy, among other countries. In the factory, where tradition and modernisation merge, around 425 million glass bottles for beer and wine are produced each year.
Prevention of waste
Glass is a product that consists of various, precisely combined raw materials, which are processed at very high temperatures. ”The conveyor belts are the heart of the raw material supply for glass production in the factory,” explains Micha Bermentloo, export manager at TBK Group. After the raw materials are deposited on the conveyors, a loss of ten per cent is measured due to dusting. To find a solution to this wastage, Bermentloo together with technical project manager at TBK Group Rob Bakker and Eduard Sánchez of IC Iberconveyor, TBK’s dealer for Spain and Portugal, visited the glass factory to carry out a full technical inventory. ”We wanted to get a good picture of the current situation of the conveyors in order to recommend possible improvements with regard to dust control, dust extraction and air filtration and the installation of belt scraper systems.”
Added value
Based on the information gathered and obtained, technical drawings were provided, including a complete plan of action with improvements. ”For us as supplier, this is a very nice project to do. We are actively involved and can give direction to the technical drawings and solutions,” says Bermentloo. ”The cooperation with Santos Barosa Vidros is going very well. We have been welcomed, guided well and given the right information. The people at the glass factory have responded enthusiastically to the proposed improvement plans and absolutely see the added value of them.”
