SOFT DRINKS SUPPLIER SAVED FROM STICKY SITUATION
SEC01-02

Bottles of soft drinks at the Barr’s bottling plant in Cumbernauld, Scotland, can now be labelled easily thanks to a drying system from air movement specialist Secomak.

Powerstrip was originally introduced to dry 2 litre PET bottles of Orangina but staff at Barr’s were so impressed with the performance of the system that they decided to extend the treatment to a second line producing 250ml and 500ml PET bottles.

When filling the bottles with soft drinks at the Cumbernauld site, the product sometimes fobs over on to the outside. Every bottle, after filling and capping, is cleaned externally with water. For the bottles to then be labelled successfully, the tops, necks and sides must be completely dry.

Secomak tailored its Powerstrip drying system to Barr’s requirements and installed the machine in August this year. The 2 litre bottles are now dried at a rate of 300 per minute.

Secomak’s drying system was chosen as its machines are sturdy, complete, and virtually maintenance free, unlike some competitors whose systems can need servicing every three to six months.

Secomak air knives use low pressure, high velocity air to remove moisture, dust and waste material from almost any surface. They are ideal for drying bottles and cans, tubes and extrusions, sheet material, components or any other products which need to be dried externally. Energy costs can also be cut by up to 90% compared to other drying methods.