What parts do we clean for plastic recyclers ?

Typically the parts Sonic Solutions clean for plastic recyclers are the filters, the heat exchangers, the print rollers and other precision engineered parts that have small holes or internal cavities that require cleaning. They are difficult, if not impossible, to clean through conventional jet washing, soak or other abrasive methods. They also tend to have small particulate contamination and are expensive to replace.

Let's look at each in turn:

Filters - these come in all shapes, sizes and function but the most common filters in plastic recycling are

• Laser disc filters, or hot melt filters, used to filter remaining contamination from the plastic being treated;
• Extraction filters used to keep the work environment free of dust, oil and other airborne contaminants;
• Oil filters from hydraulic or lubrication systems for fast moving parts.

Ultrasonic cleaning with the right chemistry for the relevant contaminant is ideal to remove small particulate from small openings and internal cavities typical of filters .

Heat exchangers - Most machines that work under high pressures and/or for long periods reach temperatures above their optimal working conditions and therefore require some form of cooling. This is done via heat exchangers, sometimes water based, sometimes oil based or even air based coolers. By their very nature the cooling media will create and then deposit particulate matter within the cooling mechanism. Over time this will reduce its effectiveness until it no longer performs its function. The removal of this contaminant is essential for it to continue doing its job. Ultrasonic cleaning reaches all surface areas of the part submerged in the cleaning solution, including internal cavities. With the right chemistry any type of contaminant can be removed, from scale and rust to carbon and solidified oils.

Print Rollers - A lot of plastic is essentially packaging and therefore is ultimately printed upon to identify its contents or promote its producer. Many plastic recyclers offer some printing on the plastics they manufacture from recycled product. And this printing process on packaging material often users print rollers to carry the ink. These rollers are precision engineered to carry precise volumes of the ink but overtime get dirty and cannot carry the necessary volumes of ink for good print quality. Ultrasonic cleaning is a well proven method for restoring these rollers to full volume and optimal print quality.

All the parts mentioned above share common features. They are commonly highly engineered, high performance, high value and highly critical to the overall process of recycling plastic and converting to the desired end product. The alternative to ultrasonic cleaning is either replacement or highly laborious and time consuming manual cleaning that is usually only partially or temporarily effective.

if this sounds familiar because you either have the parts mentioned above or you have another cleaning issue then the chances are we can help, saving you time and money, improving the quality of your end product, and reducing your stress levels. Just get in touch and we’ll be happy to discuss your options, how we can help, and offer you a free trial clean to prove it will work for you.

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Ultrasonic Cleaning  saves Plastics Recycling Company over £75,300 per year

A leading UK plastics recycler started having their Erema hot melt lasered filter screens ultrasonically cleaned instead of replacing after burning off. This resulted in annual cost savings on replacement discs that THEY estimated at £75,328.

In addition to these direct cost savings their engineering support manager reported increased productivity totalling over 20% from the recycling lines using the cleaned screens compared to the blocked old screens.

Other reported benefits included:

• improved quality and consistency of finished product;
• increased reliability of production output;
• Higher capacity allowing quicker delivery;
• Improved ability to increase output in response to demand;
• higher customer satisfaction from a more consistent product.

As their Engineering Support manager concluded “ All in all a massive win for us, reducing costs and increasing revenue simultaneously in a very competitive market.”

CALCULATIONS

Direct Cost Saving:

• 196 discs cleaned in 15 months = 13 per month
• Each disc lasts at least twice as long with ultrasonic cleaning (minimum 4 times burnt/ultrasonic cleaning, compared with maximum 2 burnt alone) = 50% reduction in replacement discs
• 4 discs cost €7,000 = £1521 each at 1.15 exchange rate less cleaning and carriage cost = net saving of £965.74.

Annual saving = 13 discs per month x 50% replacement x 12 months x £965.74 net cost = £75,328

FREE BONUS - Productivity Improvement

In 2 cycles a burnt disc gives 120 + 20T = 140, an ultrasonically cleaned one gives 120 +120T = 280T. This represents a 71% improvement, assuming a new and ultrasonically cleaned disc have similar productivity rates

A burnt disc lasts for 1 day giving 20T, an ultrasonically cleaned disc lasts an extra  4 days giving 120T = 30T per day. 20T to 30T per day is a 50% improvement in productivity

If an ultrasonically cleaned disc goers for 5 days giving 120T this is 24T per day, compared to 20T in 1 day from a burnt disc = 20% uplift in productivity

This is far more complex to calculate with variables such as duration of discs in various states of cleanliness and their respective production rates to arrive at like for like productivities. We have gone for the lowest level of improvement based upon a conservative interpretation of the figures.

EXTRA FREE BONUS – Lower Capital Cost  

Burning Service offered by Sonic Solutions– Erema’s approved cleaning method for cleaning these hot melt laser filter screens is to burn off the plastic and other residue blocking the holes in a vacuum oven followed by a jet wash. These ovens cost nearly £50,000 and still only result in a limited extension to the life of these disc filters. Our customer already uses this burning technology but find our ultrasonic cleaning process dramatically extends the life and productivity of their discs. However if you either don’t want the cost or hassle of burning your discs in-house then Sonic Solutions can do the burning for you. You just ship the filter screens to us as they are when they come out your melt block. We burn them, ultrasonically clean them and return them within a few days, ready to use again !”

EXTRA EXTRA FREE BONUS – Lower Cost on other parts   

If you are replacing other process parts like dust filters, heat exchangers, dies and rollers because they’re dirty you could save yourself thousands of pounds by ultrasonically cleaning them instead.

We are also cleaning anilox print and costing rollers, dust particulate filters and heat exchangers for this customers improving quality of end products, production throughput and operative productivity.

LETS’S START THE SAVINGS !

For a free trial clean, a no-obligation discussion, or even a visit when the current situation permits, just call Sonic Solutions on 01924 495975, or e-mail Ben on [email protected] and get your triple whammy today.

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