Packaging: Mold Maintenance Case Study

#083808032023

PAC K AG I N G : M O L D M A I N T E N A N C E C A S E S T U DY

Packaging manufacturer experiences rapid return on investment with dry ice blasting while improving the safety of their operators.

The Cold Jet cleaning system is compact, easily moveable and very efficient while remaining easy to use. The cleaning time is reduced by about 50% and sometimes even more.

-

Mr. Fontaine | Mold Workshop Manager

The Situation Jokey is one of the largest packaging manufacturers

because it has a direct impact on our product quality.

of rigid plastic with worldwide influence. The

In addition, some of our products are intended for

company fabricates plastic buckets, boxes and trays

the food market so cleanliness is essential,” said Mr.

using plastic injection molding. For 50 years, Jokey’s

Fontaine, Mold Workshop Manager.

name has been recognized for having outstanding

Jokey’s team cleans the molds at the end of each

expertise in injection molding and customer-focused

production cycle and each time the tools have to be

service. With 2,000 employees, they manufacture

modified or require maintenance. The company has

their products at 15 factories in 12 countries and

also set up a preventive maintenance schedule in

serve customers across approximately 80 countries.

which cleaning is one of the critical phases.

Cleaning the tools is a crucial step in their production process, especially when it comes to meeting the strict standards of quality and hygiene required by the food industry.

All Jokey plants comply with a strict quality and hygiene management system, audited and evaluated

Improve cleaning operations Cleaning time was improved by at least 50%

Operator safety Nearly eliminated the use of harsh chemicals

by independent auditors in accordance with the international BRC/IoP standards for packaging and packaging materials, as well as DIN EN ISO

“Cleaning is very important for our finished product

9001:2015 and DIN EN ISO 14.001:2015.

Improved part quality

Cleaner mold = less scrap rates

Rapid return on investment ROI was achieved in under 2 years

Learn more at coldjet.com

JOKEY FRANCE S.A.S. - CASE STUDY

#083808032023

PAC K AG I N G : M O L D M A I N T E N A N C E C A S E S T U DY

The Solution

The Problem Because of the very strict hygiene quality

“The previous cleaning solution could have

Before choosing dry ice cleaning as a method,

requirements, the Jokey plant needs a

an impact on product quality. For example,

the company tried ultrasonic cleaning as well

full-time operator (sometimes even more

we sometimes had to stop a press after a

as soda blasting, without achieving the desired

depending on the production series) to clean

cleaning so that we could intervene on traces

outcomes. The company must comply with

their injection molds. Before using the Cold

of persistent dirt in hard-to-reach areas.

ISO 14001 and uses optimized production

Jet dry ice blasting system, the cleaning

The finished product that did not meet the

systems such as 5S and internal production

was done by hand on press or the mold was

quality criteria had to be destroyed,” says Mr.

tracking systems.

removed from the machine and then cleaned

Fontaine. “For a few cases, we had to redo

with cloths and cleaning products such as

some of the orders because they did not meet

“Dry ice cleaning supports our programs

aerosolized food solvents or in a degreasing

our quality criteria.”

because it saves us time and therefore optimizes production time,” said Mr. Fontaine.

fountain.

“Another concern was the safety of our

“The quality of the cleaning is also better.”

“Sometimes it was necessary to dismantle

operators, because the previous cleaning

and move equipment for cleaning,” said Mr.

process could pose problems, in terms of

“The Cold Jet cleaning system is compact,

Fontaine. “This had us concerned because

health, caused by solvents in aerosols or the

easily movable and very efficient while

there was undoubtedly a loss of production

degreasing fountain. These products required

remaining easy to use. The cleaning time is

during the shutdown. During these stops,

medical validation and had to have food

reduced by about 50% and sometimes even

the mold could not be used from 30 minutes

certificates. The manual cleaning on press was

more. The time saved will be more significant

to 2 hours and could monopolize a mold

really not effective. Depending on the mold,

on a 4-cavity mold because there is much more

maker for cleaning. In extreme cases, a

it took between 45 minutes and 2 hours. We

cleaning to be done than on a smaller mold (1

disassembly of the mold could be necessary,

faced many challenges using the old system,

cavity). It can also depend on the number of

which resulted in a loss of up to 3 additional

like the quality in terms of cleanliness. It was

parts that make up the mold because the more

hours of production. These production stops

difficult to access and clean some places. It

parts there are to dismantle, and therefore to

could last between 1 and 5 hours and therefore

took us a long time and the use of rags and

clean, the more time saved will be significant.

generate significant production losses. When

solvent cleaning products was excessive,”

Dry ice blasting has freed up time for our mold

starting up production, we could also lose

concluded Fontaine.

makers to perform more complex maintenance

between 50 and 200 parts for the removal of

or machining operations requiring a high level

food solvent traces on the finished product.”

of expertise,” stated Mr. Fontaine.

The i3 MicroClean 2 shaves dry ice into MicroParticles (sugar-sized particles) for precision cleaning

Learn more at coldjet.com

JOKEY FRANCE S.A.S. - CASE STUDY

#083808032023

PAC K AG I N G : M O L D M A I N T E N A N C E C A S E S T U DY

Before

After mold cleaning with dry ice MicroParticles

“With the Cold Jet cleaning system, staff use fewer chemicals and cleaning time is reduced. In addition, the system is more rewarding and efficient. The results obtained are much better and the operators don’t have to do double the work.”

Mr. Fontaine | Mold Workshop Manager

The Results Cold Jet dry ice blasting has been beneficial for: • Reduction of cleaning times • More accurate and efficient cleaning • Near elimination in the use of chemicals • Lower costs through the elimination of soiled cloths • Decrease in start-up waste Before

• More environmentally friendly “The initial investment remains significant, but the return on investment is relatively rapid,” said Fontaine. “Cold Jet’s return on investment was calculated before the machine was purchased for use in our mold shop only. This compares our old cleaning solution with the Cold Jet cleaning solution. The times could be measured thanks to the week long trial conducted under real operating conditions. At that time, we noted that profitability was achieved in less than 2 years (excluding the cost of stopping production and recycling of soiled cloths and aerosols).”

After tool cleaning with dry ice MicroParticles

“With the Cold Jet cleaning system, staff use fewer chemicals and cleaning time is reduced. In addition, the system is more rewarding and efficient. The results obtained are much better and the operators don’t have to do double the work.”

Learn more at coldjet.com

JOKEY FRANCE S.A.S. - CASE STUDY