CPL - November 2021

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NOVEMBER 2021

STAY SAFE DURING SIZE REDUCTION The latest predictive maintenance technologies for EXTRUSION Quebec rotomolder ROTOPLAST is growing strong PM# 40065710

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SNEAK PEEK Here’s an early look at what’s inside the upcoming February 2022 issue of Canadian Plastics magazine:

The cover story will be on injection molding – as people reconsider what types of jobs they want to hold during the pandemic, and on what terms, here’s how injection molders can use new automation to fill the labour void.

In addition, we’ll also feature articles on: J The latest components and Industry 4.0 functionality

for hot runners J The benefits of a planned purging program J The hot consumer colour trends for 2022

www.canplastics.com

APRIL 2021

EXTRUSION

BIOPLASTICS • How to extrude biopolymers • The newest generation of sustainable straws THE LATEST CHILLERS are very cool

Be sure to visit www.canplastics.com for daily news updates and longer feature articles, and follow us on Twitter, @CanPlastics

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contents NOVEMBER 2021 VOLUME 80 • NUMBER 5

FROM THE ARCHIVES

The November 1999 issue of Canadian Plastics reported on a busy period for Montreal-based plastic closure maker Mac Closures Inc. The company had just entered into a new joint venture, called Macap, with closure maker Delatour SA of France – Macap planned to invest about $6 million to upgrade its Montreal facility, which had 19 injection presses.

Mac Closures was also investing $4 million for new infrastructure at its plant in Waterloo, Ont., and $3 million for new infrastructure at its plant in Oakville, Ont. And both plants were shifting focus to concentrate on making closures for the pharmaceutical, household chemical, and personal care markets.

9

Number of the month:

*16,000

*The square footage of Rotoplast’s new expansion at its plant in East Farnham, Que. (See pg. 18)

18

14 cover story

9 4

Editor’s View: SMEs, defend yourselves against cyberattacks

5

Ideas & Innovations: German, Canadian researchers collaborating on AI for picking robots

6

News: • Canada Plastic Pact releases action plan to meet ambitious recycling targets • McDonald’s Canada eliminating most plastic foodservice products • Supplier News and People

SIZE REDUCTION: Let’s be careful out there

Shredders and granulators are being used in more plastics facilities nowadays, which means operators are working with more rows of sharp rotating knives. Which is why the industry and the OEMs are working to make these machines even safer.

features

14 EXTRUSION: Getting proactive with predictive maintenance

In extrusion, what you don’t see can definitely hurt you. So it’s a good thing that new predictive maintenance tools are giving extrusion manufacturers a better sense of what’s happening inside their machines, without the downtime.

18 ROTATIONAL MOLDING: Rotoplast is growing strong

Not even a global pandemic can stop this Quebec-based molder’s carefully laid expansion plans.

20 Technology Showcase 21 Advertising Index 22 Technical Tips: The two causes of flash and how to troubleshoot them

Cover photos: © AITTHIPHONG and © Seetwo / Adobe Stock

Visit us at www.canplastics.com November 2021 Canadian Plastics

3

editor’s view

Canadian Plastics magazine reports on and interprets developments in plastics markets and technologies worldwide for plastics processors, moldmakers and end-users based in Canada.

www.canplastics.com

SMEs, defend yourselves against cyberattacks

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ur cover story this issue discusses how to stay safe when working with shredders and granulators.

But there’s another, newer danger for plastics processors that’s just as deadly in its own way, particularly for small and mid-size enterprises (SMEs): cyberattacks from computer hackers.

Cyberattacks are growing in both frequency and severity across all industries, and experts estimate that cybersecurity incidents will costs businesses over $5 trillion within the next five years alone. But despite the increased threat of cyberattacks during the pandemic, almost half (47 per cent) of Canadian SMEs surveyed in a new Leger survey, commissioned by the Insurance Bureau of Canada, say they don’t allocate any portion of their annual operating budget to cybersecurity. And this figure is moving in the wrong direction – it marks an increase of 14 per cent from 2019, when one-third said they didn’t allocate any budget to cybersecurity.

The root of the problem is that the COVID-19 pandemic has forced many SMEs to adopt digital processes and move some of their traditional business online, and they don’t always know how to protect themselves – not only do many say they have no formal cybersecurity response plan in place, some business owners admit they don’t even know if their business has a cyber threat plan. Which is why the experts say that for SMEs today, it’s not a matter of if a cybersecurity incident will happen, but when.

And the results are dire: The average cost of a cyberattack has exploded from $34,000 to a staggering $190,000 per single incident, according to a 2019 report. This is a setback that many shops can’t recover from. Indeed, according to some estimates, almost half of all SMEs close within six months after a cyberattack.

But you can fight back by adopting a

4 Canadian Plastics November 2021

comprehensive security strategy to prevent a cyber threat and mitigate damage if an incident occurs. Cloud computing provider Solvere One recommends the following steps: back up your systems daily to recover your information if your system is compromised; install and update methods to protect against network attacks, including firewalls and encryption methods; conduct ongoing vulnerability testing on your networks to close gaps and address weak points; implement tools to scan networks and apps to automatically detect a breach and mitigate damage as soon as possible; use multifactor authentication to reduce the chances an unauthorized individual can access your network; and provide regular training for employees, including real-world scenarios, to help them identify threats and respond appropriately.

About this last point, Solvere One and other experts agree: all too often the employees themselves are the biggest inadvertent threat to SMEs – a reported 43 per cent don’t receive regular cybersecurity training, and eight per cent have received no cybersecurity training whatsoever. So it’s worth repeating what Solvere One says: “All personnel at an organization should receive cybersecurity training every few months to stay current on the latest attacks and do their job to prevent a breach.”

Like it or not, we’re living in an increasingly computerized world, and cyber criminals are exploiting network vulnerabilities that companies may not even be aware of. The bottom line is, as IT infrastructures become more complex, SMEs need to enhance their security measures to support these sophisticated setups.

Don’t let hackers living in their parents’ basements destroy your hard-won business.

Reader Service Print and digital subscription inquiries or changes, please contact Serina Dingeldein, Audience Development Manager Tel: 416-510-5124 Fax: 416-510-6875 email: sdingeldein@annexbusinessmedia.com Mail: 111 Gordon Baker Rd., Suite 400 Toronto, ON M2H 3R1 EDITOR Mark Stephen 416-510-5110 Fax: 416-442-2230 mstephen@canplastics.com ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Catherine McDonald 289-921-6520 cmcdonald@annexbusinessmedia.com ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Stephen Kranabetter C: 416-561-5362 W: 416-510-6791 skranabetter@annexbusinessmedia.com MEDIA DESIGNER Lisa Zambri ACCOUNT COORDINATOR Cheryl Fisher 416-510-5194 cfisher@annexbusinessmedia.com GROUP PUBLISHER/VP SALES Martin Mcanulty mmcanulty@annexbusinessmedia.com COO Scott Jamieson sjamieson@annexbusinessmedia.com PRINTED IN CANADA ISSN 008-4778 (Print) ISSN 1923-3671 (Online) Publication Mail Agreement #40065710 2020 SUBSCRIPTION RATES 5 issues Canadian Plastics, plus Dec. 2021 Buyers’ Guide: CANADA: 1 Year $77.50 plus applicable taxes; 2 Years $123.50+ taxes USA: $176.00 (CAD) / year FOREIGN: $201.00 (CAD) / year

Occasionally, Canadian Plastics will mail information on behalf of industry related groups whose products and services we believe could be of interest to you. If you prefer not to receive this information, please contact our audience development department in any of the four ways listed above.

Annex Privacy Officer privacy@annexbusinessmedia.com • Tel: 800-668-2374 No part of the editorial content of this publication can be reprinted without the publisher’s written permission ©2021 Annex Business Media. All rights reserved. Opinions expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the editor or the publisher. No liability is assumed for errors or omissions.

All advertising is subject to the publisher’s approval. Such approval does not imply any endorsement of the products or services advertised. Publisher reserves the right to refuse advertising that does not meet the standards of the publication.

MEMBER: Magazines Canada, Canadian Plastics Industry Association.

Mark Stephen, editor

mstephen@canplastics.com www.canplastics.com

ideas & innovations

German, Canadian researchers collaborating on AI for picking robots

Photo Credit: Amadeus Bramsiepe/Karlsruhe Institute of Technology

I

n plastics manufacturing and beyond, robotic picking applications guided by artificial intelligence (AI) have become increasingly important for efficient production, warehousing, and shipping. But researchers have been thwarted in attempts to make picking robots even smarter because too many companies are reluctant to hand over sensitive company data to be used for new AI product trials – which has traditionally been the necessary trade-off, as robots could only learn from each other by sharing this data and other company secrets.

Which is why German pneumatic and electrical automation technology supplier Festo is teaming up with researchers from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) in Germany and two Canadian partners – the University of Waterloo and software company DarwinAI of Waterloo, Ont. – in the FederIn the FLAIROP research project, autonomous robots process items by ated Learning for Robot Picking (FLAIROP) project, gripping and moving them at multiple picking stations. which seeks to enhance picking robots by using Distributed Artificial Intelligence (DAI), a subfield of AI that shares AI’s goals of solving complex learning, planning, and decision-making problems, but without requiring participating firms to disclose confidential information.

“The FLAIROP research project brings two major benefits: we protect our customers’ data, and we gain speed because the robots can take over many tasks more quickly,” said Jan Seyler, Festo’s head of advanced development analytics and control. “In this way, the collaborative robots can, for example, support production workers with repetitive, heavy, and tiring tasks.”

The Canadian project partners are focusing on object recognition through deep learning, which attempts to simulate the behavior of the human brain, allowing it to “learn” from large amounts of data; Explainable AI, an AI approach in which the results of a solution can be understood by humans (in contrast to the “black box” approach, where even its designers can’t explain why AI arrived at a specific decision); and optimization, which is the problem of finding a set of inputs to an objective function that results in a maximum or minimum function evaluation. The German partners, meanwhile, will contribute their expertise in robotics, autonomous grasping through Deep Learning, and data security.

During the project, a total of four autonomous picking stations will be set up for training the robots: Two at KIT and two at the Festo SE company based in Esslingen am Neckar, Germany.

The project is supported in part by advisory services and research and development funding from the National Research Council of Canada’s Industrial Research Assistance Program and Germany’s Federal Ministry of EcoCPL nomic Affairs and Energy.

November 2021 Canadian Plastics CPL_PCS_Sept21.indd 1

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2021-09-09 9:22 AM

Photo Credit: © Pavel / Adobe Stock

news

Canada Plastic Pact releases action plan to meet ambitious recycling targets In what’s being called “the most significant action plan to reduce plastic waste in Canadian history,” over 70 major consumer product companies, organizations, and governments in the Canada Plastics Pact (CPP) have released a new plan outlining actions they will undertake to recycle or compost 50 per cent of plastic packaging in this nation by 2025, and meet other targets.

Called Roadmap to 2025, the report offers a step-by-step timeline of what CPP plans to do to meet the four targets it announced in January, of defining and taking steps to eliminate a list of plastic packaging designated as problematic or unnecessary by 2025; supporting efforts towards 100 per cent of plastic packaging being designed to be reusable, recyclable or compostable by 2025; ensuring that at least 50 per cent of plastic packaging is effectively recycled or composted by 2025; and ensuring an average of at least 30 per cent recycled content across all plastic packaging (by weight) by 2025.

“Our take-make-waste approach to plastics is no longer viable,” said George Roter, CPP’s managing director. “Plastic packaging is a vital part of daily life, it’s high-performing, lightweight, and

6 Canadian Plastics November 2021

low cost; but currently, over 85 per cent of what we produce in Canada each year gets used once and ends up in landfills or the environment.”

The road map opens with what CPP describes as a “vision” for plastics use in 2035, where it says that 75 per cent of the plastics used in packaging are recycled and where reusable and refillable packaging systems are “easy and ubiquitous.” The plan then advocates three strategic priorities for 2025: first, eliminating all unnecessary and hard-torecycle plastics, which CPP says are comprised mainly of formats and resins that almost exclusively end up in landfill, are not collected, or which leak into the environment; second, optimizing the recycling system by improving the quality of inputs and driving wide adoption of circular packaging design standards; and third, improving the performance of recycling systems by championing standard definitions and measurement practices and investing in better real-time data and monitoring.

The road map calls for attention to flexible packaging in particular, noting that the pact will “urgently galvanize” partners and others “to build a comprehensive plan for addressing the complex

challenge of flexible plastic packaging.”

CPP said it will develop that plan by the end of next year, noting that flexible packaging makes up 47 per cent of the 1.89 million tonnes of plastic packaging Canadians use each year, but that only one per cent is recycled. Rigids make up the other 53 per cent.

The Canada road map also notes that the tight integration of the U.S. and Canadian economies calls for working closely with the U.S. Plastics Pact, which launched last year and released its own action plan for a circular plastics economy in June. Both the Canadian and U.S. pacts call for a 50 per cent recycling or composting rate for plastic packaging within the same time frame, and both are part of a network organized by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation.

CPP was launched in January 2021.

Members include Keurig Dr. Pepper Canada, Loblaw Companies Ltd., Maple Leaf Foods, Merlin Plastics, Nestlé Canada, Nova Chemicals Corp., Unilever Canada, Walmart Canada, as well as the Government of British Columbia and the Environment and Climate Change Canada federal agency.

CPL www.canplastics.com

news

McDonald’s Canada eliminating Plasman Holdings bought by most plastic foodservice products private equity firm MiddleGround Restaurant chain McDonald’s Canada is no longer offering plastic cutlery, stir sticks or straws.

In an Oct. 7 news release, officials with McDonald’s Canada – which represents more than 1,400 locations and 100,000 workers – said they will introduce wooden cutlery and stir sticks and paper straws by December.

“By being part of the Canadian fabric and serving close to three million guests every day...McDonald’s Canada is playing an important role in the ongoing reduction of singleuse plastics in the country,” Rob Dick, supply chain officer, McDonald’s Canada, said in the release. “By removing these single-use plastics in our restaurants, we show our ongoing commitment to minimize our environmental footprint and to help protect the planet for future generations.”

According to the release, removing plastic cutlery, stir sticks, and straws from McDonald’s Canada locations will remove approximately 840 tons of plastics from the Canadian system annually.

The only exception to the list of eliminated items will be plastic spoons used with McFlurry ice cream products.

Chicago-based McDonald’s Corp. has been operating in Canada since 1967.

CPL

Windsor, Ont.-based automotive parts maker Plasman Holdings has been acquired by private equity firm MiddleGround Capital Group for an undisclosed amount.

The injection molder manufactures bumpers, fascia, grilles, exterior trim, and subsystem components.

“MiddleGround’s vision for the future of the automotive industry aligns with the challenges that we face every day,” David Wiskel, Plasman president and CEO, said in an Oct. 25 news release. MiddleGround has headquarters in New York City and Lexington, Ky. The company’s current holdings include two other auto suppliers, Dura Automotive Systems and Shiloh Industries.

“Plasman’s ability to add value through assembly and painting make the company a critical player in their customers’ supply chain,” John Stewart, MiddleGround’s founding partner, said in the release.

Plasman operates manufacturing plants in Canada, the U.S., Mexico, Norway, Belgium, and Sweden. In late 2020, the company combined all of its global operations in the automotive, consumer, and medical markets under the Plasman brand, including moldmaker Build-A-Mold Ltd., also in Windsor.

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news

– Cincinnati, Ohio-based material supplier Michelman has named specialty chemical distributor Omya – which has its Canadian operation in Perth, Ont. – as the exclusive Canadian distributor of its surface modifiers and wax emulsion product lines.

PEOPLE

Gianzo Mastrangelo

Brian Golden

Sean Doran

Kris Fraser

Chuck Pfister

Chris Qualters

Eldon Schaffer

Paula Gates

Mitchell Hall

Bob Patel

– Extrusion systems maker Davis-Standard LLC, headquartered in Pawcatuck, Conn., has named Gianzo Mastrangelo as aftermarket regional manager for Canada and the Northeast U.S.

– Packaging machinery maker GN Thermoforming Equipment, headquartered in Chester, N.S., has named Brian Golden as sales director, Americas.

– Machinery maker KraussMaffei, which has North American headquarters in Florence, Ky., has named Sean Doran as regional manager for extrusion systems in Canada.

– Langley, B.C.-based industrial plastic and rubber maker Redwood Plastics and Rubber has named Kris Fraser as chief operating officer.

– Packaging supplier Tekni-Plex, headquartered in Wayne, Pa., has named Chuck Pfister as chief financial officer, Chris Qualters as CEO of its medical business unit, and Eldon Schaffer as CEO of its consumer products division.

– Archdale, N.C.-based shredder maker Vecoplan LLC has named Paula Gates to manage its field technical services, and Mitchell Hall to oversee replacement parts sales operations and technical services.

– Columbia, Md.-based specialty chemical maker W. R. Grace & Co. has named Bob Patel as CEO, effective January 2022.

8 Canadian Plastics November 2021

Canadian injection molding machinery maker Niigon Machines Ltd. has filed for bankruptcy and is in receivership.

Reported by other industry news outlets, the developments were confirmed to Canadian Plastics by Paul J. Denton, managing director, restructuring at Toronto-based financial consultants Farber Group. “Niigon Machines Ltd. has filed for bankruptcy and is also in receivership,” he said in an Oct. 6 email.

Vaughan, Ont.-based Niigon was founded in 2008 under the original name of Athena Automation Ltd. by Canadian plastics pioneer and industrialist Robert Schad. Schad, who is now 92 and a member of the Plastics Hall of Fame, had founded Husky Injection Molding Systems Ltd. in 1953, and sold that company in 2007.

Athena changed its name to Niigon – which means “for the future” in indigenous Ojibwa – in 2018. In a statement at the time, Schad said that the new name “allows us to emphasize our business objective of becoming a global leader in customized injection molding machines.”

Niigon manufactured eight basic models from 30 to 600 tonnes, addressing what the company called “60 per cent of the injection molding machine market.” Most recently, the company operated out of a custom-designed and custombuilt 200,000-square-foot manufacturing plant in Vaughan that opened in 2016.

CPL

SPE Thermoforming Division honours James Alongi with Lifetime Achievement Award James Alongi, president of Maac Machinery Corp. in Carol Stream, Ill., has received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Thermoforming Division of the Society of Plastics Engineers (SPE).

James Alongi Alongi entered the plastics industry in 1997 as president of Maac, SPE officials said in a news release. He soon learned the thermoforming business, and working closely his with his brother, Paul Alongi, developed business practices that improved efficiency and allowed the company to expand and flourish, they added.

“Under James Alongi’s leadership, Maac has become the world’s largest thermoforming machinery manufacturer, focusing exclusively on cut-sheet applications,” said Steve Zamprelli, SPE Thermoforming Division chair.

“The firm is an innovator and leader in the thermoforming sector.”

CPL www.canplastics.com

Photo Credit: Society of Plastics Engineers

SUPPLIER NEWS

Photo Credit: Niigon Machines Ltd.

Schad-founded Niigon Machines files for bankruptcy

LET’S BE CAREFUL OUT THERE

size reduction

Shredders and granulators are being used in more plastics facilities nowadays, which means operators are working with more rows of sharp rotating knives. Which is why the industry and the OEMs are working to make these machines even safer.

By Mark Stephen, editor

T

aking a shortcut didn’t work out too well for Little Red Riding Hood, and it’s an even worse idea for machine operators working with shredders and granulators – machines that are equipped with rows of sharp rotating knives.

But the urge for shortcuts is probably still there, especially as these machines become more common on the floors of plastics facilities. With more companies processing their own waste in order to be competitive in today’s landscape, shredders and granulators are becoming musthave pieces of equipment.

It’s now all about size reduction, first shredding into larger pieces and then granulating into a size similar to pellets to allow the clean material to go right back through the system without any production waste.

Which is why measures must be in place to ensure the safety of the operators working with this equipment. These measures come in three general types, the first involving industry safety regulations that are revised and upgraded regularly. In April, following a threeyear review by representatives from all parts of the industry, the Machinery Safety Standards Committee of the Washington, D.C.-based Plastics Industry Association issued new safety requirements, accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and released as ANSI/PLASTICS B151.11 Safety Requirements for Granulators, Strand Pelletizers and Dicers Used for Size Reduction of Plastics.

and also require a machine technician to lockout all points of hazardous energy, such as the electrical system, the hydraulic system, the pneumatic system or any other danger-prone machine attribute, should the operator step away from the machine.

UNDER REVIEW

(This standard doesn’t apply to other types of shredders or to pulverizers.)

“The fundamentals were already there, but we made quite a few updates and changes to bring safeties more in line with what we typically see,” said Conair Group’s general manager for size reduction Dave Miller, who co-chaired the committee. “It was written mainly for the U.S., and OEMs have about 18 months to get up to these standards.”

In Canada, meanwhile, safe shredder and granulator guidelines are regulated by various Canada Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) and Canadian Standards Association (CSA) regulations that relate to machine guarding, hazard areas, material handling areas, and workplace noise; and Electrical Safety Authority (ESA) electrical standards.

Federal lockout regulations prevent unauthorized operation of a grinding machine when in an “unsafe” condition;

A second overall safety measure is optional: obtaining a prestart health and safety review – known either as a PSR or a PSSR – of new size reduction machinery from a safety engineering company. “A PSSR is the gold standard of safety, and details everything about the machine, mechanically and electrically: all of the safety features, how it will be used, the environment around it, codes, standards compliance, risk profile assessment, severity of harm, and more,” said Mike Cyr, president of Rotogran International. “A PSSR tends to be done on larger installations, and isn’t as common for small, hand-fed, beside-thepress machines.” If a shop decides to request a PSSR, Cyr continued, the most efficient way to proceed is to have the OEM work with the safety engineering company from the design stage onwards, since a PSSR is intended to be a design review of the entire installation. The equipment must then be inspected by the safety engineering company once it’s installed to confirm the installation meets the standards as set out in the PSSR. “Bringing the safety engineering company in to inspect a machine after November 2021 Canadian Plastics

9

size reduction

Photo Credit: Vecoplan LLC

it’s been designed and installed in a plant can mean having to make very costly alterations before they can sign off on the PSSR,” Cyr said. “It’s the customer’s responsibility to take any measures necessary to bring the construction, addition, installation or modification into compliance before the equipment is operated; but once the safety engineering company signs off on the PSSR, they assume all of the liability, as long as the customer operates and maintains the machine properly.”

locking the cutting chamber is done with time-delay safety switches. “The screen area should also be interlocked, so that it’s impossible to access the cutting knives from below – the screen alone isn’t sufficient to prevent this,” he said.

On larger shredders and granulators with higher rotor speeds, meanwhile, zero-speed sensors prevent access to the cutting chamber until the rotor – which can be sluggish, revolving for several seconds after power is turned off – is completely stopped and a delay timer permits access to the cutting chamber.

“This is a timed process to get the hopTHE BASICS The third overall safety measure is a per open or to open the doors to the cutmix of optional and required safeguards, ting chamber part of the granulator, and comes from the machine manufac- because something that’s turning at 600 turers, who in recent years have looked rpm doesn’t stop instantly,” said Brian at ways to make shredders and granula- Davis, general manager of Maguire tors safer for operators. “There are some Products Canada, which also distributes basic standards that all OEMs must fol- for Rapid Granulator in Canada. “The low, in keeping with regulations,” said goal is to use time-sensitive electrical Bob Harrison, product manager, size interlocks to protect anything that gains reduction group with Universal Dynam- access to a moving part in a granulator.”

A general rule, the experts say, is to ics. “As a minimum, the cutting chamber area must be interlocked and the wait three minutes after shut-off before feed hopper design be such that the accessing the chamber of any size reducoperator can’t reach down into the cut- tion machine. And they caution that ting chamber.” In lower technology older shredders and granulators may not granulators, Harrison continued, inter- have these built-in safeguards.

Other increasingly common safeguards include lockout/tag out procedures that ensure the machines are properly shut off and not able to be started up again prior to the completion of maintenance or repair work; and dual-channel redundant safety interlocks, so even if one channel fails, a person can’t access the grinder while it’s running. “Dual-channel safety is emerging as a significant new topic of interest,” said Denis Metral, international product manager for granulators with Wittmann Battenfeld. “Our granulators are equipped with dual-channel safety contacts connected A dual-channel safety switch on a shredder, with an to a safety relay – the change RFID chip inside the key. The key gets paired or of state of the contacts is con“taught” to the switch to prevent personnel from having trolled by the safety relay; the an additional key and overriding the switch. position of the contactors is

10 Canadian Plastics November 2021

monitored by the safety relay on reset; and the position of the locking mechanism is monitored by the safety contacts connected to the relay, with contacts only activated when mechanical locking is active.”

And most industrial shredders nowadays come with a built-in feature that switches the machine off when not in use. “Virtually all Canadian panels now have dual-channel safety switches and e-stops that go to a dual-channel safetyrelated relay that goes back to a PLC,” said Bill Davison, vice president of operations with Vecoplan.

TURN DOWN THAT NOISE!

Depending on the application, some customers will require more than these standard features in order to get a safe size reduction process. The type of material that needs to be granulated is one consideration. “The type of material can determine what sort of classification it puts the area around the shredder or granulator into,” Davison continued.

“This is normally determined by the safety engineering company or the customer, and they will relay the requirements back to the manufacturer so it can meet the classification of the area electrically and mechanically.”

And depending on the material, extra sound dampening may be required. Canadian regulations require that no worker be exposed to a sound level greater than a time-weighted average exposure limit of 85 dBA measured over an eight-hour work day, but some size reduction systems are louder than this. “When molders for the automotive sector regrind rejects, they’re often taking glass-filled parts that engineers have designed not to break and breaking them, and this process can be very loud,” said Brian Davis. “These granulators will probably require extra noise dampening.”

Indeed, tearing up almost any material is by nature a noisy process, and OEMs say that quiet operation of a shredder or granulator is a top concern for many customers. “Reducing this sound is almost always a priority for processors, but it depends on a range of factors, including the material type, the www.canplastics.com

screen size, the evacuation equipment, and the sharpness of the knives,” said Dave Miller. Most of the sound generated by a granulating process occurs in the cutting chamber, but significant noise can also be generated by the drivetrain. According to the experts, a full sound enclosure designed for maximum noise suppression will typically lower the sound decibel level outside the machine by 10 to 30 per cent. “Some companies have additional requirements, which is where OEMs can create physical barriers to limit noise, where the shredder or granulator is placed in another room with a restricted access or opening,” said Jim Hoffman, Rapid Granulator’s president.

And if you’re using a conveyor to feed the granulator, consider including it in sound reduction considerations as well. “One of the best ways to bring the sound levels down is to use the feed conveyor as part of the sound dampening

Photo Credit: Rotogran International Inc.

size reduction

A sound tunnel around a conveyor.

package, by using rows of curtains combined with double wall insulated sound absorbing panels to create a complete sound tunnel around the conveyor feeding the granulator,” said Mike Cyr.

01-8938-COL-CanadianPlastics-Success-7x5.qxp_Layout 1 3/5/21 12:46 PM Page 1

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“We’ve found that this far exceeds the sound absorption of adding extra soundproofing to the granulator itself, and at approximately the same cost.”

But sound dampening can remain

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November 2021 Canadian Plastics

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size reduction

tricky because of factors beyond the machine that can amplify sound in a factory. “The size of the room where the machine is and the height of the ceiling also affect how much sound is directed towards the operator,” Bill Davison said.

“There are companies out there that do these calculations specifically, and they can be consulted to provide noise reduction over and above the manufacturer’s standard noise reduction.”

With granulators, the design of the feed hopper can also contribute to safe operation: it should be sized to receive the largest part being granulated without requiring labour-intensive and potentially dangerous precutting, OEMs say.

Also, a stand-alone granulator that’s used intermittently may only require manual controls. “But once the granulator integrates with the injection molding machine, a specific control is required,” said Denis Metral. “The granulator then becomes electrically interlocked with

the molding machine, allowing operation of the granulator only in an accurate position.”

Other safety features can also be added to the aforementioned feed conveyors. “To make conveyor feeding safer, put a load sensor on it to measure how much the plastic weighs going up to the granulator,” said Mike Cyr. “If it detects too much material, it shuts the conveyor off. It also shuts the conveyor off if it detects a spike in amperage caused by someone falling onto the belt.”

Finally, OEMs might also recommend installing automation as the last equipment piece in the safety puzzle.

“Automation minimizes risk by creating physical distance between the operator and the size reduction machine,” said Jim Hoffman. “With all the automation solutions now available, manually feeding a shredder or granulator really isn’t necessary.”

MAINTENANCE, TRAINING MATTER

Even if they don’t all act on it, processors know that a good preventative maintenance program helps prevent machine failure and unplanned downtime. And with shredders and granulators, it’s also another ingredient for safe operation. “Every size reduction machine has consumables that process the material, and these consumables wear out,” said Bill Davison. “Cutter wear is a safety concern because a machine with dull cutters could cause a dangerous heat incident.”

Fortunately, shredder and granulator maintenance procedures aren’t what they used to be. “The old way of changing knives involved wedging blocks of wood into the cutting chamber to keep the rotor from moving,” said Dave Miller. “Today’s machines have rotor locks that keep the rotors in place and safety interlocks to access the chamber. These aren’t mandated,

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Haitian Mars III Servo-Hydraulic IMM

To learn more, contact: In Ontario

Larry Bonehill 416-464-2070 shadowauto@gmail.com

In Quebec and Eastern Canadian Provinces Wayne Hart 514-916-4303 waynehart@barway.ca

Philippe Sisley 514-918-8393 philippesisley@barway.ca

Absolute Haitian

216-452-1000 508-459-5372 sales@absolutehaitian.com

size reduction

but most brand OEMs have developed them.” And other features like hopper and chamber lift assist and tipping prevention help ensure that service work can be done safely.

But despite the safety advancements being made, there’s still an element of resistance among some customers in a hurry, and OEMs sometimes feel their job is to protect the operators from themselves. “Some customers complain that it takes too long to open the granulator for cleaning, or that guards or safety flaps are too difficult to remove,” Miller said. “But that’s the whole point: We don’t want them to be able to defeat the safety features.”

Which is why OEMs say that good operator training remains the number one key to safe shredder and granulator use. Every operator should not only have a thorough knowledge of the machine’s capacity and how to maintain a safe operating level, but should always take a

few other basic precautions. “During regular operation, it’s important to always wear PPE such as safety glasses, gloves, and hearing protection, and never wear jewelry or loose clothing that can snag,” said Bob Harrison. “And always wear the proper gloves during routine cleanout and maintenance.”

And last but definitely not least, avoid taking shortcuts in order to save time. “Shredder and granulator operators have to remember that faster isn’t better when it comes to size reduction,” said Jim Hoffman.

Indeed, when working with razor sharp knives, shortcuts can kill.

CPL

RESOURCE LIST Conair Group (Cranberry Township, Pa.); www.conairgroup.com; 724-584-5500 Dier International Plastics Inc. (Unionville, Ont.); www.dierinternational.com; 416-219-0509 Industries Laferriere (Mascouche, Que.); www.industrieslaferriere.ca; 450-477-8880 Turner Group Inc. (Seattle, Wash.); www.turnergroup.net; 206-769-3707

DCube (Montreal); www.dcube.ca; 514-272-0500

Maguire Products Canada Inc. (Vaughan, Ont.); www.maguireproducts.com; 905-879-1100 Rapid Granulator Inc. (Leetsdale, Pa.); www.rapidgranulator.com; 724-584-5220

Rotogran International Inc. (Toronto); www.rotogran.com; 905-738-0101 Universal Dynamics Inc./Piovan Canada Ltd. (Mississauga, Ont.); www.piovan.com; 905-629-8822 Vecoplan LLC (Archdale, N.C.); www.vecoplanllc.com; 336-447-3573 Greg Parent; 416-678-0154 Wittmann Battenfeld Canada Inc. (Richmond Hill, Ont.); www.wittmann-group.com; 905-887-5355

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November 2021 Canadian Plastics CPL_Chillers_Nov20.indd 1

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2020-10-16 12:07 PM

extrusion

GETTING PROACTIVE WITH PREDICTIVE MAINTENANCE

In extrusion, what you don’t see can definitely hurt you. So it’s a good thing that new predictive maintenance tools are giving extrusion manufacturers a better sense of what’s happening inside their machines, without the downtime.

By Mark Stephen, editor

ALARM BELLS ARE RINGING

American Kuhne, a brand of Graham Engineering Corp., offers new, standard input/output (I/O) diagnostics into the Navigator control systems for its extruders. According to company officials, the diagnostics allow users to see the status of electrical system inputs and outputs in real time without having to open the electrical enclosure. Graphics displayed on the HMI match what the user would see inside the cabinet, including the status of limit switches, transducers, e-stops, and variable frequency drives.

American Kuhne has also introduced a monitoring and alert system for panel temperature, in which a thermocouple in every electrical enclosure monitors the panel temperature and triggers an alarm

14 Canadian Plastics November 2021

if temperatures exceed a predetermined level; the alarms notify users of problems such as a clogged filter or the failure of a cooling system or fan, and help them diagnose and correct the issue before it potentially triggers a system failure, the company said. American Kuhne extruders and extrusion systems also provide integrated documentation via the HMI – the operator’s manual, maintenance manual, commercial documents, electrical and mechanical drawings, and lists of spare parts are at the operator’s fingertips, accessible by touchscreen.

Coperion says the pandemic has given it the impetus to develop and more completely deploy its ServiceBox technology, which was first launched in 2010 as an integrated system for online monitoring and failure recording in extruders and compounders, as well as communication methods like video and telecommunication to complete customer requests. With a customer’s permission, Coperion installs ServiceBox for free, allowing its technicians to connect to the machine. The information collected, along with optional software modules, can provide additional insight

into the operation of the extruder and assist with predictive maintenance. As a trial project, Coperion recently upgraded a ZSK 250 high-capacity extruder at an undisclosed customer utilizing remote processes and support, in a project that included modernizing the gearbox, mounting a new coupling, installing a ZS-EG side devolatilization unit, and updating the EpcNT control. The machine builder’s three-member team in Germany did the upgrade via ServiceBox. According to Coperion, the project demonstrates that ServiceBox has been updated to perform complex, remote maintenance and modernization tasks that were beyond the power of earlier versions of ServiceBox.

MORE MONITORING

CPM Century Extrusion is working on several options for purchasers of its extruders interested in predictive maintenance. The company offers extruders with gearboxes from Eisenbeiss, which are designed for continuous monitoring of oil viscosity and impurities – for example, the presence of metal particles – that are symptoms of potential bearing failure. “These systems are connected to The new Entek 72MM twin-screw extruder has vibration and lube system monitoring capabilities.

Photo Credit: Entek Manufacturing

E

xtrusion is often called a “black box” process because processors can’t see what goes on inside an extruder.

Which is why troubleshooting and solving extrusion problems are among the most difficult activities in extrusion production operations. Add in a travel-limiting global pandemic that’s severely curtailed on-site maintenance calls from OEMs and you’ll see why it’s so important that extrusion systems be able to monitor themselves, and report potential problems, to the fullest extent possible.

The good news is, the latest predictive maintenance tools are giving both customers and suppliers a better sense of what’s going on inside the machines, without the need for downtime.

Photo Credit: Davis-Standard LLC

Davis-Standard’s DS Activ-Check provides a combination of predictive and preventive maintenance suggestions.

the extruder controls and can signal an alarm if any parameters are out of the specified limits,” said Adam Dreiblatt, director of process technology. CPM also offers a shaft torque measurement system, developed for its multi-screw RingExtruder, that monitors the absolute torque on each shaft, which can be used to indicate screw wear as well as anomalies that can cause shaft failures.

“Using high-speed data acquisition, the system is able to obtain measurements every millisecond, and application of this system for identifying screw and/or barrel wear is currently under development,” Dreiblatt said. Finally, CPM offers several vibration monitoring systems for its twin-screw extruders based on the machine condition monitoring system from IFM Electronic GmbH. “Using off-the-shelf accelerometers and signal conditioners, real-time continuous vibration monitoring is being used to detect barrel misalignment, for example, as well as screw wear,” Dreiblatt said.

Davis-Standard’s DS Activ-Check system provides continuous monitoring of new extruders, and is available as an option on the company’s new Integrator, Epic III, and DS-eVue control systems.

“Operators can monitor a variety of key performance indicators from the production line PLC or SCADA system historian,” said John Christiano, vice president, extrusion technology. “DS Activ-Check is a custom-designed, cloud-based platform that leverages systems and strategies offered by IIoT to

increase awareness. The cloud platform provides the capability to continuously run software that analyzes equipment performance.” DS Activ-Check provides a combination of predictive and preventive maintenance suggestions, Christiano continued. “Production line readiness is protected by the system’s task maintenance feature, and regular reminders of key tasks are generated by the system based on calendar, run-time, and on-demand criteria. DS ActivCheck also creates tasks to assist maintenance and operations in keeping the equipment running at maximum efficiency per OEM specifications.” Operators and other production staff receive alerts via email and/or text, Christiano said. DS Activ-Check can also be retrofitted to existing systems, including nonDavis-Standard brands.

WELLNESS CHECKS AND ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Entek Manufacturing offers customers a wellness check followed by a scheduled preventative maintenance program plan, which provides a baseline measurement for wear and regular technician visits for monitoring, either quarterly, biannually or annually. “We gather measurements from the assembled barrel set using advanced tooling for this purpose, plus digitally measure each element,” said Darla Bulmer, customer support manager. “Once the data is gathered, we provide a detailed report of the wear, along with a visual representation of the wear pattern over time.” Other variances

that are monitored include the internal temperature of the PLC enclosure, Bulmer said, and motor current and motor torque; and Entek plans to add additional monitoring for vibration of the main motor and the gearbox, as well as lube system monitoring. “Also, our recent release, the Entek 72MM twinscrew machine, offers vibration monitoring of the main motor at the front and back bearings of the motor, vibration monitoring on the gearbox at several locations, and two lube system monitoring parameters – metal particle contamination and the amount of water in the lubricant/oil,” Bulmer said. “Any of those parameters would indicate the need for maintenance above a certain threshold.”

With assistance from its data science partner ei3, Milacron is offering its M-Powered suite of applications, which use artificial intelligence (AI) to capture machine data that can be turned into predictive maintenance capabilities to avoid costly unplanned downtime.

“Our data science team has crafted algorithms that give operators valuable insights into the inner workings of the Milacron machine; for the first time, it allows us to quantify the impact of wear and tear as it progresses,” said Stefan Hild, director of data science at ei3.

“Operators can then take smart decisions by weighing that cost against the cost of maintenance.” The first M-Powered application involves the plasticizing screw, which Milacron says can wear slowly and be difficult to detect immediNovember 2021 Canadian Plastics

15

extrusion ately; the application offers touch-free functions that provide insight into the screw’s health without adding sensors to the screw or barrel. The second application involves the feed screw tip, and Milacron says M-Powered uses a proprietary shot-by-shot multivariate analysis to determine the state of the screw tip and indicate the effect of wear and tear on part quality, cycle time, and operating costs; the application gives an alert when issues develop that impact repeatability. And the third M-Powered application provides efficiency reports from aggregated machine data to understand the impact on energy cost of each shot – operators can see an efficiency summary for each machine or their entire fleet in real time, and any costly offenders of cycle deviations can be corrected.

According to Kevin Slusarz, director of process technology at US Extruders, part of a good predictive maintenance program involves being proactive – checking screws and barrels for wear and rebuilding them or replacing them as needed, for example. “Using a standard material, do an output test at three different rpm and compare the results every six months,” he said. “When the output drops, it indicates wear, and the screw or barrel may need to be rebuilt or replaced. Failing to maintain screws and barrels can affect the quality of the end product.” Another important preventative maintenance step is to change the oil in the gearbox and analyze it twice a year, Slusarz continued. “This warns you if you have either bearings or gears that are beginning to fail, and knowing this in advance can prevent a catastrophic failure,” he said. “Think of it as the equivalent of the transmission in your car, where you have to change the oil otherwise parts will start wearing out and the car fails.” The presence of steel in the oil could mean there’s a problem with the gears, Slusarz added, while the presence of brass could indicate a problem with bearings.

So while you still can’t actually see inside your extruder, the latest predictive maintenance technologies mean you CPL don’t have to fly blind during processing.

RESOURCE LIST American Kuhne (York, Pa.); www.americankuhne.com; 717-848-3755 Coperion Corp. (Sewell, N.J.); www.coperion.com; 856-256-3175 CPM Century Extrusion Group (Traverse City, Mich.); www.cpmextrusiongroup.com; 231-947-6400 Davis-Standard LLC (Pawcatuck, Conn.); www.davis-standard.com; 860-599-1010 Auxiplast Inc. (Sainte-Julie, Que.); www.auxiplast.com; 866-922-0282 Entek Extruders/Entek Manufacturing Inc. (Lebanon, Ore.); www.entek.com; 541-259-1068 Milacron LLC (Batavia, Ohio); www.milacron.com; 513-536-2000 US Extruders (Westerly, R.I.); www.us-extruders.com; 401-584-4710

16 Canadian Plastics November 2021

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GLASS IS FRAGILE AND IT BREAKS. Recycling is a great aspect of thermoplastics. Recycling distinguishes thermoplastics from thermosets. Thermosets cannot be recycled easily, if at all. However, in my opinion the purchaser of a recycled thermoplastic must understand the physical property damage thermoplastics undergo when processed. Paper (cellulose) is not that dissimilar chemically to many thermoplastics. Paper burns at 451o F. Many thermoplastics are processed at or above 450o F. When thermoplastics are manufactured, the initial manufacturer is aware of the damage heat can have on the hydrocarbon chains. Heat breaks polymer chains.

Broken polymer chains – or as it can be referred to, reduced molecular weight – indicates a damaged system.

When we speak about molecular weight we are talking about molecular length. The polymer chains are shorter than they were when the material was in its “virgin” state.

Shorter molecular weight average will affect the toughness of the molded part produced from the regrind and or reprocessed thermoplastics. Longer polymer molecules yield better toughness than shorter ones in a molded part.

The recycled thermoplastic will not have the same toughness in a molded part relative to that same part molded in virgin. Heat is the culprit. Thermoplastics are insulators, therefore localized heat such as heat generated by friction is not transferred well within the polymer matrix.

Frictional heat is localized and is surrounded by insulation.

The heat can’t transfer. Manufacturers of glass reinforced nylon add antioxidants, heat stabilizers, lubricants, and process aids to protect the polymer system from the ravage of heat. These additives can only protect so much.

They to break down with exposure to heat and friction.

Polymer molecules are fragile, and heat splits the molecules apart: chain scission. Heat is also created when parts are ground. This is more apparent when the blades of the grinder are dull. Dull blades do not cut parts but rip those parts apart. Dull blades generate more frictional heat than sharp ones. Dull grinder blades have a detrimental effect on the physical properties of “regrind”. Dull blades also create dust. Dust is very detrimental to the processing of regrind.

Recently, one of our customers was having a failure on recycled glass reinforced nylon furniture parts. The parts were being fatigue-tested. A testing apparatus flexed the recycled glass reinforced molded nylon parts in a climatecontrolled environment. The parts were repeatably flexed until they cracked. Note: in my opinion the parts would not have endured this type of flexing in the real world. Is the test applicable? Does the test simulate the real world?

Factors such as frictional heat may have played a role in

the failure of the parts. This amount of frictional heat may not exist in the real world. These parts were continually flexed back and forth for days. In my opinion the part would not have ever endured that repetitious flexing in real life. However, this is the test the customer designed for the testing of his product.

After an analysis it was determined that the glass fibers were shorter than those in the virgin polymer. This makes sense as the recycled material was produced from “regrind” where the average glass length relative to the glass length of virgin compound and the average glass length of glass in the molded parts was significantly shorter. Therefore, the parts were produced from regrind with additional damage to the glass fiber but also to the length of the polymer molecules. The additional damage was caused by the “regrind” being put through an extruder during the repelletizing process. The extrusion process caused the fiber length of the glass to be reduced as well as further length reduction of the polymer molecules. When a thermoplastic and one containing fiber glass is subject to heat and physical molestation, the glass fibers are not as long as they were prior to the thermoplastic commencing its journey. Another factor is the pelletizing process produces strands from a die. See strand die pelletization.

Strands are produced as the extruder screw forces material through holes in a die. To make the strands into pellets the strands are cut after traveling through a cooling bath. Often a length of 1/8 of an inch is used. The length then is not dissimilar to the diameter of the pellet. If 1/8inch pellet length is chosen, then the maximum length of a glass fiber in any given pellet is 1/8th of an inch. The glass fiber length average in a pellet is not 1/8th of an inch. The average length is less than 1/8th of an inch. To put this in perspective, when we compound virgin nylon with virgin fiber glass, the glass is added into the extruder near the die end of the extruder. This is to prevent the extruder from breaking the glass severely. The glass is being added toward the end of the screw of the extruder, very close to the die to minimize the glass breakage. In the case of using regrind, the glass is already part of the system and therefore enters the extruder at the throat of the extruder. This additional length of time and agitation exposure of the regrind being pelletized is great.

The glass reinforced nylon regrind must be processed through a single screw extruder, an extruder with a screw designed for this material to minimize glass fiber READ FULL breakage and reduced thermal ARTICLE HERE exposure time.

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rotational molding

ROTOPLAST IS GROWING STRONG Not even a global pandemic can stop this Quebec-based molder’s carefully laid expansion plans.

Photo Credit: Rotoplast Inc.

By Mark Stephen, editor

From left: Sébastien Daudelin, National Assembly of Quebec member Isabelle Charest, and Mathieu Arsenault break the ground on Rotoplast’s new expansion.

S

low and steady wins the race is an idea that sounds a bit outdated these days, when almost everyone wants everything right now. But the concept still holds true, as the arc of Quebecbased rotational molder Rotoplast Inc. demonstrates. The company, which is located about 70 kilometres east of Montreal in East Farnham, broke ground in September on a $2.5-million project to expand its plant by 40 per cent to meet growing demand from existing customers, and is also adding new machines and other equipment – and it’s all part of the owners’ plan to achieve slow, steady growth.

18 Canadian Plastics November 2021

EARLY DAYS

Rotoplast was founded in 1994, but its modern story begins when it was acquired in 2006 by a new ownership team that included Sébastien Daudelin and Mathieu Arsenault. “When we first started, we invested some private equity into Rotoplast to expand it, but we wanted to do it slowly, because we never wanted to grow too quickly and lose control,” said Arsenault, the company’s vice president. “In 2015, Sébastien and I bought out all of the other partners, and we’ve been running the company ever since – I’m in charge of sales and development and Sébastien, who’s the presi-

dent, handles production and human resources.” At present, about 95 per cent of Rotoplast’s East Farnham location work is custom subcontract molding for a range of markets: consumer and electrical products, food processing containers, agricultural and industrial tanks, medical furniture, and material handling pallets. It also has a nautical division that manufactures a propriety line of kayaks and pedal boats.

As with most rotomolders, the economics of shipping mean that Rotoplast services customers that are relatively close to it, geographically. “Finished rotomolded parts tend to be quite big and therefore expensive to ship, which creates a bit of a shipping barrier – for example, we can’t really compete pricewise for business in Wisconsin against rotomolding shops located in Wisconsin,” Arsenault said. “So our customers tend to be within about a 750-kilometre radius of us.”

EXPANDING INTO ONTARIO

And that radius expanded considerably in 2016, when Rotoplast acquired Pickering, Ont.-based ACO Container Systems, which rotomolds a variety of plastic storage tanks and other containers.

And again, it was part of the plan. “In addition to expanding our own business, from day one we also wanted to grow by acquisition, and having ACO Containers as a division of Rotoplast helps with that,” Arsenault said. Rotoplast and ACO have combined annual sales of about $12.5 million. “Our target is to double our total incomes within the next five years,” Arsenault added.

The expansion of the East Farnham manufacturing plant – which will add 16,000 square feet to the 40,000-squarewww.canplastics.com

rotational molding

foot facility – is the latest move in Rotoplast’s growth strategy. “We’ve quadrupled our sales since 2006 and demand is constantly increasing, so the decision to invest was a must for us to enable our continued growth,” Arsenault said. The extra space will help accommodate a new shuttle machine with a four-metre spherical swing, bringing the number of rotomolding machines at that location to five; ACO Containers has two more machines. “We’re also automating production at East Farnham by adding a robotic cell and moving to Industry 4.0 technology, using digital technology to coordinate automated manufacturing with supply chain processes,” Arsenault said. “We’re aiming to become an Industry 4.0 factory.”

Rotoplast currently employs 65 workers in East Farnham and 20 in Pickering, and the expansion will create an additional 20 jobs in East Farnham – which

is why the expansion will also include a new employee cafeteria, locker room, outdoor patio, and lounge space. “Good employees are in short supply these days, and we know that to attract new talent we have to give them a good climate to work in,” Arsenault said.

RECOVERING FROM THE SHUTDOWN

But even the best strategy can’t plan for everything, of course – the COVID-19 pandemic temporarily threw a wrench into Rotoplast’s day-to-day business and its overall business strategy, as it did for just about every other manufacturer on the planet. “We closed for seven weeks during the initial lockdown in Quebec last year, and we’re still trying to catch up because demand for leisure products and other power sports items has remained very strong,” Arsenault said. “And we were supposed

“Our target is to double our total incomes within the next five years.” to start the East Farnham expansion project a year ago, but it was delayed until now, again because of the pandemic.”

Now, however, with the expansion underway – and scheduled for completion by March or April 2022 – Rotoplast’s plans are back on track, and the owners are once again on the lookout for potential new acquisitions. “We plan to keep growing slowly but steadily,” Arsenault said. “Our customers are very loyal – we haven’t lost any yet, and as the only ISO 9001 certified rotomolder in Quebec, I think we have a good reputation in the market.”

CPL

November 2021 Canadian Plastics CPL_Struktol_Sept21.indd 1

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2021-08-19 2:50 2021-08-23 2:47 PM

technology showcase

AUXILIARY EQUIPMENT

EXTRUSION

New and powerful temperature controller

Compact traveling extrusion saw

Prompted by increasing tendencies on the market towards the necessity for fast heating of large molds, the new Tempro plus D L12 temperature controller from Wittmann Battenfeld offers a maximum heating capacity of 36 kW to ensure an optimal heating time for the mold, both technically and economically.

The Tempro plus D L120 is fitted with a 0.75-inch proportional cooling valve that operates with a step motor and continuously opens or closes to maintain constant temperature control.

And to maintain ideal conditions, the Tempro plus D L120 is optionally equipped with a new frequency-controlled pump (SpeedDrive) that lets users set the correct parameters for motor speed, flow rate, pump pressure, and differential temperature.

Wittmann Battenfeld Canada Inc. (Richmond Hill, Ont.); www.wittmann-group.com; 905-887-5355

Novatec’s new CS-6 up-cut traveling extrusion saw for cutting extruded pipe, profile, and tubing products is designed to save valuable floor space, with a base frame length of 56 inches for a footprint up to four linear feet less than traditional rigid saws.

The saw is equipped with a servo motor that provides reliability, accuracy, and repeatability; and a seven-inch colour touchscreen PLC control and user interface that ensures easy setup and recipe management.

The servo-equipped traveling saw table has a 20-inchdiameter blade and provides 22 inches of table travel. The saw has a table travel speed of up to 45 feet per minute and can make 15 cuts per minute.

Novatec Inc./Maguire Products Canada Inc. (Vaughan, Ont.); www.novatec.com; 800-237-8379 (Novatec); 905-879-1100 (Maguire)

INJECTION MOLDING

Upgraded servo-hydraulic machines ROBOTS & AUTOMATION now available in North America New series for medical and Absolute Haitian is bringing its Mars III servo-hydraulic pharmaceutical applications injection molding machines to North America this fall, designed to be more powerful and economical with mechanical, hardware, and software upgrades.

Mars III IMMs are available with clamping forces from 67 to 3,709 tons (600 to 33,000 kN); have optimized drives (Motion Plus) to improve accuracy and responsiveness; and an open communication strategy (Connectivity Plus) for automation and business interfaces that increases processing and production flexibility.

Additional improvements include injection unit speed increases ranging from six to 19 per cent on models under 1,200 tons, and three to five per cent on models over 1,200 tons, facilitating shorter cycle times.

Absolute Haitian Corp. (Worcester, Mass.); www.absolutehaitian.com; 508-459-5372 Barway (Vaudreuil-Dorion, Que.); www.barway.ca; 450-455-1396 Belplas Inc. (Toronto); 905-715-0529 Shadow Automation (Uxbridge, Ont.); 416-464-2070

20 Canadian Plastics November 2021

The new MED series of three-, five-, and six-axis robots from Sepro Group is designed to meet the growing demand for automation in cleanrooms and other sensitive environments in medical and pharmaceutical molding plants.

Delivered as packaged units, the 5X MED and S5 Line MED ranges include three different sizes of robots to serve molding machines with between 30 to 800 tons of clamping force. Nominal payload capacity (part plus end-of-arm tooling) ranges from five to 20 kilograms, or 11 to 44 pounds.

Offered in collaboration with Stäubli Robotics, the 6X MED six-axis servo articulated-arm robots have laminar airflow that allows floor or ceiling mounted side-entry installations to meet the requirements of ISO 7 and 8.

Sepro Canada (Montreal); www.sepro-group.com; 514-515-9349 www.canplastics.com

technology showcase

MATERIALS

Visit www.canplastics.com for the latest news, stories, products, videos, photo galleries and industry events

HDPE resin for flexible pack shelf life enhancement Nova Chemicals has introduced Surpass HPs267-AB, a nextgeneration HDPE for high moisture barrier performance in multilayer flexible packaging in blown film applications.

Compared to the company’s Surpass HPs167-AB resin, the new HPs267-AB delivers up to a 20 per cent increase in watervapour transmission performance in multilayer coextruded film structures.

The barrier performance of HPs267-AB enables more packaging types to be redesigned with all-polyethylene (PE) or PE-based recyclable film structures by replacing non-PE barrier materials. And the resins can increase the shelf life of packaged meats, cheeses, cereals, crackers, and baking staples.

Surpass HPs267-AB also offers improvements in processability and clarity, allowing customers to downgauge packaging, improve run rates, and enhance package aesthetics.

Nova Chemicals Corp. (Calgary); www.novachem.com; 403-750-3600

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November 2021 Canadian Plastics

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technical tips

The two causes of flash and how to troubleshoot them

By Shane Vandekerkhof, RJG Inc.

L

et me start out by telling a quick story. A few years ago, I was asked to visit a customer who was dealing with a mold that he couldn’t run without flashing. He said that he’d tried every solution possible, and he wanted me to make sure that he wasn’t doing anything to cause the issue. I arrived and saw a brand-new 16-cavity mold and immediately figured that this was a processing problem, because how could a brand-new mold be flashing so badly? So we started it up, made a shot and sure enough, the mold flashed across the parting line into the other cavities. After doing everything we could do within the process to fix the issue, I asked the process engineer for some bluing compound. We sprayed down the stationery side of the mold and clamped it up. Lo and behold, we only transferred about 50 per cent of

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WHAT IS FLASH IN INJECTION MOLDING?

The above is an extreme example, but it goes to show that you can’t rule anything out when dealing with a potential problem. Flash is quite simply caused by one of two issues. First, the mold is damaged; parting line damage can’t be processed around, so please stop trying. Second, the pressure in the cavities exceeds the tonnage.

There are several ways the second item can be accomplished. I often ask my training participants, how can you flash a mold? I get these common answers: the shot size is too big, the transfer position is too low, the hold pressure is too high, the tonnage is too low, and so on.

HOW TO TROUBLESHOOT FLASH

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the compound. The mold was not shutting off. So it was back to the tool shop for this one.

When troubleshooting the issue, where do we start? Let’s start with the fill-only part. If you turn off the second stage, the part should come out to be between 95 to 98 per cent full.

But if the part is too full, then the likelihood of flashing increases. Adjust the shot size as necessary to get the fillonly part back to where it needs to be.

Now that the fill-only part is firmly established, let’s look at the second stage pressure. I would simply put my settings back to the standard for the job and see what the results are.

If the parts are free of flash, then the job is well done; move on to the next one. But if the parts still exhibit flash, then we need to look a little deeper. Make sure that the amount of tonnage is correct. Remember, when calculating tonnage, you need to make sure there’s enough tonnage to accommodate for that little issue we call viscosity shift. The tonnage may have been correct for a while (perhaps until the material lot was changed), and then viscosity dropped, causing an increase in cavity pressure that results in flash.

And also remember to refer back to those two causes of flash, and then systematically walk through the steps to achieve a non-flashed part.

CPL Shane Vandekerkhof is the director of training and consulting at RJG Inc., a Traverse City, Mich.-based training and consulting company that specializes in the injection molding industry. He has been with the firm for almost 20 years, and is a certified Master Molder and has studied Computer Information Systems.

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