MAJOR FILM MANUFACTURER SHRINKS ENERGY BILL

Air knives from Secomak are now in use at Curwood Packaging Ltd, one of the largest manufacturers of barrier shrink films to the food processing industry, at its facility in Swansea, South Wales.

Food producers demand a high performance product, with a consistent rate of shrink to meet the requirements of modern, high speed manufacturing environments; attained by pre-conditioning the film at the point of manufacture.

Traditionally, the process of pre-conditioning is performed using hot, compressed air. At Curwood’s Swansea facility, a process heater and airknife kit using low-pressure airknives from Secomak allows a more environmentally-friendly solution to be employed.

Curwood Projects Engineer Gary Smith said “The low-pressure airknives allowed us to condition our film very accurately, but most importantly, significant energy savings running into many thousands of pounds were achieved over the costs of traditional methods”.

He added, “The first Secomak kit was easy to install and made energy savings substantial enough to justify the purchase of a second system”.

Many extruders in the UK use traditional compressed air methods to condition or dry extrusions after water chillers. Significant savings can be achieved using energy efficient low-pressure airknives. This green alternative can help companies to reduce their energy consumption or greenhouse tax levy commitments.