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The Kadant Blog

Plastic Cover Extruder Reduces Manual Cleaning Time

VeriLiteX EDITChallenge

After many years of scrapped material, high sheet defect rates, and many hours of machine downtime being lost weekly, a continuous cleaning solution was required to become more efficient and reduce operator hours wasted.

Cleaning throughout the extrusion lines was carried out manually by several operators at one time, often taking up a full eight-hour shift for four operators weekly. The cost of these hours began putting a strain on production and safety became a concern. Operators were cleaning the rollers manually, often working very close to potentially dangerous nip points.

Residue created during production accumulated, and eventually this caused build-up defects on the sheet. Once the sheet started to be affected, the machine required shutting down for extensive cleaning.

Solution

By installing an initial VeriLite™ 3.5” X roll cleaning system complete with custom mild steel brackets, catch pan with drain holes, and an UltraKleen blade onto a chrome roller, the cleaning results after a trial period were significantly improved for the customer.

Following such success, four additional VeriLite 3.5” assemblies were installed, as previously supplied complete with mild steel brackets, catch pan, and UltraKleen blade.

Recent feedback from the customer confirmed they have increased their production, saving over 50% of time previously used to clean the rollers and more VeriLite 3.5” scraper systems are being considered. Once again demonstrating the great cleaning capability of the VeriLite scraper system in the industrial market.

  • Written by:

    Phil Eastwood

    Industrial Sales Engineer, Kadant UK

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