Weighing Technology Reduces Product Giveaway
Weighing technology and software from Avery Weightronix has reduced product giveaway and improved the yield from a batch of chemicals for Schlotter by five per cent. Schlotter blends chemicals for a variety of industries, including automative, microelectronics, metal finishing and medical devices. The cost of blended chemicals varies but can be up to EUR50/kg, so process efficiency was a key driver in the company's lean manufacturing programme.
Schlotter would normally fill 25kg to 1,000kg containers but would also offer product in 1kg to 10kg bottles of the blended chemical, depending upon customer requirements. Previously the operator would place the drum or other container on to a floor scale and then fill it manually to the required level. In order never to short ship, the operator would overfill these containers so, for example, a 25kg drum could receive 1kg extra and sometimes as much as 2kg.
Giveaway was even more extreme on the smaller 4l bottles - often up to 10 per cent extra. Another problem was that if there was any spillage or product left in the filling tank, then the company has to pay for its proper disposal as a hazardous waste, in line with its IPC licence. Avery Weightronix installed and programmed its Evolution E1110 indicator to control the pump and filling head from the filling tanks in response to the weight readings from the existing floor scales.
Schlotter would normally fill 25kg to 1,000kg containers but would also offer product in 1kg to 10kg bottles of the blended chemical, depending upon customer requirements. Previously the operator would place the drum or other container on to a floor scale and then fill it manually to the required level. In order never to short ship, the operator would overfill these containers so, for example, a 25kg drum could receive 1kg extra and sometimes as much as 2kg.
Giveaway was even more extreme on the smaller 4l bottles - often up to 10 per cent extra. Another problem was that if there was any spillage or product left in the filling tank, then the company has to pay for its proper disposal as a hazardous waste, in line with its IPC licence. Avery Weightronix installed and programmed its Evolution E1110 indicator to control the pump and filling head from the filling tanks in response to the weight readings from the existing floor scales.
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