Seminar Report - 493K’s Inaugural Technical Seminar

At 493K, our mission is to help rotomoulders squeeze the absolute maximum out of their equipment and process. We also recognise that in the current climate of financial downturn, the need for cost and process control has become even more pertinent to our industry.

To this end, we decided to host our first Technical Seminar on the theme of ‘How to Save Costs in Rotomoulding by Improving Process and Quality Control.’  The seminar took place at Matrix Polymers, Northampton on 28 April 2009, with an attendance of almost fifty delegates. We were very pleased by this turnout and by the strong support we received from suppliers who attended the event as exhibitors.

The day was structured around a series of presentations and demonstrations, all of which featured brand new material and were led by members of the 493K team. Dr Nick Henwood presented a two-part presentation on cost saving in rotomoulding. Nick’s expertise covers many aspects of rotational moulding, including materials and process control and he currently has commercial responsibility for the 493K Group.

Dr Gareth McDowell led the morning’s demonstration on measurement methods and process control, where he demonstrated the capabilities of 493K’s unique measurement and control technologies, all of which he has developed through a sustained R&D programme.

Finally, 493K’s newest member of staff, Peter Luxford, used his wide expertise in plastics processing to demonstrate to our attendees a number of simple and effective quality control tests which can be used alongside our technologies to drive down costs and wastage. The day was interspersed with networking opportunities for machinery, mould and materials suppliers (who participated through table top exhibitions) and concluded with a presentation by James Seward of Matrix Polymers in which he introduced a new ‘SuperLinear’ high stiffness material.

Nick Henwood opened the seminar by introducing 493K’s newest commercial venture, 493K International Limited, and by outlining what products and services we aim to provide to the rotomoulding industry. He went on to present a two-part presentation on cost saving in rotomoulding, in which he outlined the importance of cost savings, before identifying where these costs occur.

He paid particular attention to gas usage and how gas consumption can be driven down. One chart he presented created particular comment among delegates; it showed that less than 15% of the gas energy consumed in rotomoulding is used to heat up moulds and to melt polymer. The remainder – approximately 85% - is wasted!

To further develop his theme, Nick presented the results of recent studies carried out by 493K on the Matrix Polymers RS2-190 production machine, before finally outlining a clear and accessible strategy for cutting the cost of gas usage.

Gareth McDowell’s demonstration centred on a useful product selection guide that we have introduced to help customers select the appropriate 493K system to meet their needs. He was able to physically demonstrate the special features of all our main product lines, including K-KONTROL high temperature slip rings, K-PAQ and K-KARRY portable monitoring devices, K-ROCK systems for rock and roll machines and even K-LABEL temperature sensitive labels. He also demonstrated some new thermocouple systems that he is developing.

After lunch, Peter Luxford followed on from Nick and Gareth’s presentations with a demonstration focusing on a number of simple, inexpensive and effective quality control methods. These included Part Density measurement, colour evaluation and powder quality testing. Peter explained how adopting such methods can be used to drive down the costs of poor quality and wastage through scrap.

We were delighted that Matrix Polymers were able to participate in the seminar with a presentation, given by James Seward, which introduced the new additions to their ‘SuperLinear’ grade range. James outlined a number of crucial developments that the new M-760 grade brings in terms of physical properties (particularly stiffness) and the monetary savings the material can offer. 

At the end of the event we asked all attendees to complete a seminar feedback form, which showed that the day’s programme had been very well received. In addition, we have been invited to conduct a number of follow-up demonstrations at various moulders’ premises. As well as its range of high tech equipment, 493K offers in-house consultancy and training in process, quality control and cost saving.

We also are hoping to carry out an industry-wide survey of gas consumption by rotomoulders, which will help us to further refine future products. We have already identified a number of moulder partners, who are enthusiastic about helping us in this survey; if you would like to be part of this project, which will be conducted on a fully confidential basis, or would like to know more about 493K products and consultancy service, please contact us.

All of us at 493K would like to take the opportunity to once again thank Matrix Polymers, Northampton for providing us with first-class conference facilities and a number of their staff for their support and participation. We would also like to extend our deep thanks to all the delegates who attended and participated in this event.

Details and PDF’s of 493K’s presentations are available to download from www.493k.com.

CASE HISTORY

K-PAQ System at Eko-Systemy, Poland

One of our customers, a Polish rotomoulder called Eko-Systemy, has taken the trouble to let us know how they are getting on with the K-PAQ that we recently installed on their machine.
Agata Wsogrocka-Korcynska, Vice President of the company, comments:

“We started our production in the conventional way using ‘rule of thumb’ methods such as, air bubbles in the wall cross section and trial and error oven temperature/time relationships. The products looked aesthetically very good but, when we started using the K-PAQ, we realised that our moulding cycles were definitely non-optimum. We found that, despite looking good, our products were severely under-cooked and that we were not achieving the maximum properties of the material we were using. Generally, we are supplying a customer base which has extremely high quality and performance demands. Using the K-PAQ, we increased oven time to achieve the Peak Internal Air Temperature (PIAT) that our raw material supplier had recommended.

K-PAQ helped us to achieve the right quality for our products and it gave our operators a much better insight into what was going on inside the mould and what was happening to the polymer at different stages of the heating/cooling cycle. From now on we intend to use K-PAQ regularly, as a means of checking our machine settings every time we change the mould for a new run. Our next step is to see whether we can reduce the shot weight of our products using our K-PAQ and whether we can reduce our cycle times as well.”

Many thanks to Agata for this very positive testimonial. Eko-Systemy’s experience is actually fairly typical of moulders who start to use temperature monitoring for the first time. If you would like to join our growing band of forward-thinking moulder customers, please contact us for a free of charge, no obligation demonstration.

Our photograph shows members of the Eko-Systemy production team proudly displaying their new K-PAQ.

PRODUCT PROFILE

K-LABEL Temperature Sensitive Labels
One comment that we often hear, especially in these economically challenged times, is “we can’t afford to invest in temperature measurement right now.”

Systems like K-PAQ actually offer a remarkably short pay-back period, often as short as three months. However, if money really is that tight, you can start taking control of your process for only a few Euros, Dollars or Pounds.

K-LABEL is our lowest cost and most basic entry point for taking control of your rotomoulding process. You can use them to establish the Peak Internal Air Temperature that has been reached during the cooking stage of the cycle.

A K-LABEL (see photograph) is printed with three separate squares of thermographic ink, which will permanently change colour when they reach a specific temperature. For normal roto grades of PE, correct cure will be indicated when the bottom two squares of the label have turned from white to black. This indicates that a PIAT of approx. 204˚C (400˚F) has been reached.

If no squares, or only one square of ink has changed colour, your part will almost certainly be under-cured. If all three squares have changed colour, the part will probably be over-cured.
We find that moulders who start using our K-LABEL products usually progress to a more sophisticated form of measurement in time.

If you would like to try K-LABEL, please contact us for a free sample and a quotation.  

NOW AVAILABLE – Enhanced K-KONTROL Slip-Ring System

K-KONTROL is a high temperature slip-ring that attaches permanently to the arm of a machine and continuously measures mould temperature. Unlike our portable systems (K-PAQ family of products), the electronic components are located outside the oven so insulation and cooling is not required.

Although we have carried out a number of K-KONTROL retrofits to existing machines this is a system ideally suited to installation during a new machine build. Most of the major machine builders (e.g: Caccia, Ferry, Polivinil, Roto-Line, SAT, STB and STP) have all fitted our equipment on machines.

NOW AVAILABLE – K-FACE Human Machine Interface

This development was made as a result of customer feedback during on-site trials.

To date, the normal way of using products like K-PAQ, K-KARRY and K-ROCK has been to link our radio receiver to a standard PC. Using K-KORD, a full range of data and analysis can be observed on the computer screen.

However, many moulders told us that, for continuous operation, they would prefer a more simple and robust system. Laptops and industrial environments often don’t mix! K-FACE is designed to provide a single channel temperature read-out, plus visual and audible alarms. It works completely independent of any PC connection.

NOW AVAILABLE - Upgraded K-Kord Software

K-KORD, our operating software for K-PAQ and related products, has been significantly enhanced and is now available as a free 35-day trial copy from:  http://www.493k.com/files/beta/KKordBetaSetup.exe.

We do a lot of equipment trials on-site with customers and we always take note of any feedback we are given. Customers often asked for a view of the software that was more geared to operators so we have designed a ‘dash-board’ screen where all the relevant data and alarms can be shown in a clear simple-to-view format. 

For the more technically minded, K-KORD now also provides voltage outputs that can be linked direct to the machine PLC. This is intended to provide an easier interface for moulders who wish to use our equipment to automatically control their process.

Click Here: http://www.493k.com/files/beta/KKordBetaSetup.exe