Blowmoulding machines need the help of other equipment and systems in order to keep running. These are generally called support systems or auxiliary plant equipment. They include heavy duty transformers and switchgear which are needed to handle the electric demands.
Each twin sided shuttle machine contains heaters, large electric motors, and the machine control system – all consume large amounts of electric energy. Also required is water cooling system to provide cold water to the machine. The moulds must be cooled as most of other things on the machine, like oil units. This ‘processed water’ as it is called, is generally supplied by water chilling units like these which cool all the blowmoulding machines in the plant. They are similar in principle to a large air conditioning unit except they cool water instead of air.
The blowing process also needs large volumes of compressed air which is made on a continuous basis by these types of air compressors. The blowmoulding process requires a continuous supply of plastic at the extruder hopper.
Automatic vacuum systems generally referred to as resin or material handling systems take care of this chore. Virgin pellets are used along with a percentage of a material called ‘regrind’. Regrind is the name given to the flash which is ground using a granulator. The granulator reduces the size of the flash back down closer to the size of the pellets.
Granulator
Virgin and regrind along with colour additives are mixed in units called material blenders, then back in to weigh the extruder hopper.
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