+100 guests attend open house event

The biggest gathering of customers and suppliers at ARBURG Ltd. for many years were treated to a packed programme that included a demonstration of the first UK showing of a new energy-efficient 470 H hybrid machine. Guests also saw automation and pad printing solutions, heard from several expert presentations on energy saving, hot runner technology, the circular economy and robotic automation, and learned more about 100 years of the family-owned company from colleagues in the UK and Germany.

Focus on energy efficiency

Energy efficiency has been at the top of all moulders’ minds for months and the programme did not disappoint. Customers saw the UK premiere of the new ARBURG 470 H hybrid Anniversary energy-efficient machine – a 100-tonne “Comfort” model – fitted with a new 8kg MULTILIFT robot system and automation turnkey cell. The machine featured GESTICA control technology and received a lot of attention.

Best practice shared by experts

Expert presentations and discussions covered sustainability and recycling, energy, digitalisation and increasing your machine’s OEE and included the following talks.

  • Energy efficiency across the process chain: Lukas Krueger, ARBURG’s Applications Energy Consulting expert, explained that energy-saving across the entire plastics process chain must be analysed and applied and there are eight separate stages where adjustments can save money. A summary of his presentation is covered here.
  • Cut energy usage in peripherals: Reiner Heendeniya, Sales Director of Günther UK Ltd, presented Günther’s “BlueFlow®” hot runner technology.
  • Sustainability in plastics: Dr Robin Kent of Tangram Technology delivered a Q&A about the future of the planet and sustainability.
  • Circular business: Giorgio Santella, Managing Director CMG Granulators, on behalf of Piovan UK, presented on the circular economy.
  • Automation: Chris Burton of GEKU Automation discussed identifying automation projects for moulding companies.

Customers happy with energy focus

Tex Plastics’ managing director Justin Davies said. “What stood for me here was the recognition and importance of energy efficiency, and the need to analyse the processes and grasp hold of this. Tex Plastics has a lot of energy measuring equipment, and we are now planning our production around machines’ energy consumption, so what I have seen today is very encouraging.”

Gary Carter from Gripple said, “ARBURG has always produced a very good machine, I’ve used ARBURGs at Gripple and previous companies I have worked for. Today, I’ve taken a lot from energy efficiency. How to reduce energy consumption across the breadth of the machine, the mould, settings and the process was an eye-opener. I’m going back with a lot of ideas about how we can change things.”

ARBURG Ltd. managing director Colin Tirel said. “It is clear that moulders are interested in keeping up with the latest technology and thinking, be it new tools and processes, energy consumption – especially now – sustainability or digitalisation and they look to ARBURG for that lead. We are extremely well placed to offer all of these to our customers, well-established and new.”