Tag: pre-label blowoff

EXAIR Super Air Knives Improve Labeling Process on Bottling Line

Published on by Tyler DanielLeave a comment

I recently worked with our Argentinian Distributor on an application for a local beverage manufacturer. The customer has a wide range of different beverages that they produce in various sizes and bottles and was having issues with a labeling operation.

plastic water bottles

After the bottles are filled and sealed, they go through a washing operation to remove any contaminants from the outside of the bottle. Afterwards, they make their way along a conveyor where a label is applied around the outside of the bottle. The bottles aren’t always completely dry by the time they get to the labeling step. Any residual moisture on the outside of the bottle can present a problem where the label doesn’t fully adhere to the bottle.

After complaints from their customer about product being received with labels that were peeling off, they implemented a quality check to ensure that the bottles that weren’t properly labeled were fixed before they were shipped out. While this resolved the problem for their customer, it required an extra step.

After searching and discovering EXAIR’s Super Air Knife they reached out for assistance. Due to the variability of the bottle sizes, they needed a solution that was easily adjusted based on what product was being run that day. Fortunately, EXAIR offers a Universal Mounting System for our Super Air Knives that’ll allow them to easily position their blowoff as they need.

The video below shows just how versatile the system is, once locked into position it will stay put until you reposition it! This way, they can set up prior to each shift according to the bottle they’ll be running through.

The solution was to install (2) 110036 36” Super Air Knives with (2) Universal Mounting Systems for each. Any knife 24”-54” will necessitate (2) Universal Mounting Systems, 55”-71” will require (3), 72”-95”, and 96” and over will require (5) to sufficiently support the weight of the knife.

The knives provided a strong blast of air that was able to remove any residual moisture from the exterior of the bottles. This eliminated the need to have a post labeling inspection and the bottles were labeled properly on the first go! Adjustments in between different bottle sizes were made simple with the help of the Universal Mounting System.

SAK pre label blowoff
(2) 110036 Super Air Knives positioned with Universal Mounting System

At EXAIR, we’re all about providing safe, efficient, and reliable solutions to a host of industry related problems. With same day shipment for stock items with an order received by 3:00 ET and a team of highly trained Application Engineers, we’re ready to take your call and get a solution out to you today. Don’t just take my word for it, find out for yourself!

Tyler Daniel
Application Engineer
E-mail: TylerDaniel@EXAIR.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_TD

 

Plastic bottle photo courtesy of Klearchos Kapoutsis via Creative Commons License

EXAIR’s Super Air Knife Removes Moisture From Plastic Bottles Prior to Labeling

Published on by Tyler DanielLeave a comment

EXAIR’s Super Air Knife is THE best solution for compressed air blowoff operations that require a wide sheet of compressed air. We’ve been manufacturing Air Knives for over 35 years, with the Super Air Knife making its first appearance back in 1997. Since then, the Super Air Knife has undergone a few enhancements over the years as we’re constantly trying to not only introduce new products but also improve on the ones we have. We’ve added new materials, longer single piece knives, as well as additional accessories. But, by and large, the basic design has remained the same. As the saying goes: “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it!”.

The Super Air Knife utilizes a source of compressed air to create a laminar sheet of high velocity air. This supplied compressed air mixes with ambient air that is entrained into the primary airstream. The Super Air Knife entrains ambient air at a rate of 40:1, making it VERY effective in a variety of drying, cleaning, and cooling applications. Available in lengths ranging from 3”-108” and in a variety of different materials of construction, there’s a Super Air Knife available for just about any application.

Any time you have product moving along a conveyor that needs to be cleaned, dried, or cooled off, a Super Air Knife is the ideal fit. I recently worked with our Argentinian Distributor on an application involving drying off plastic bottles just prior to applying a label to the outside. After the bottles are molded, they go through a washing operation to remove contaminants from the inside and outside of the bottles before they’re filled. After filling, a label must be applied to the outside of the bottle. Before installation of the Super Air Knives, they were allowing the bottles to air dry. As they moved along the conveyor, most of the residual water did come off and wasn’t causing any issues.

SAK and Mounting System

They were looking to increase production rates so that they could keep up with demand, however when they increased the speed of the conveyor there was still a good amount of residual water remaining on the bottles. This prevents the label from adhering properly to the outside of the bottle. Not only did this result in an added step to inspect the bottles, but those that weren’t labeled properly had to have the label removed and cleaned off before a new one could be put on. This actually ended up being less productive than just running the conveyor at a slower speed.

They came across the EXAIR Super Air Knife and decided to try (2) 110036 aluminum Super Air Knives to remove excess moisture just prior to labeling. The plant handles a wide variety of different sized bottles, so they also utilized the Universal Mounting System so that they could easily adjust the positioning of the knife based on the job. With the Super Air Knives in place, they were able to effectively run the operation nearly 20% faster without any problems.

With the quiet and efficient Super Air Knives in place, they were able to increase production rates in order to fulfill their orders on time. If there’s an application in your facility that could necessitate the use of an EXAIR Super Air Knife, give us a call. With 16 different lengths available from stock in 4 different materials, same day shipping with orders placed by 3:00 ET, AND our unconditional 30 day guarantee, there’s no excuse not to give one a try!

Tyler Daniel
Application Engineer
E-mail: TylerDaniel@exair.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_TD