Ardagh’s Nienburg plant in Germany recently installed an Xpar InfraRed Dual (IR-D) camera system, including an InfraRed Gobweight Control (IGC).
The IR-D systems are positioned on both sides of the conveyor belt, between the IS Machine and the Hot End Coating tunnel, providing real time information about deviations in the Hot End of the glass production process.
The IR-D inspects all bottles in real time for critical defects and rejects incorrect bottles at the Hot End. At the same time, process information on cavity level is presented to the upkeeps and the operators, allowing them to react immediately on any form of process or quality deviation.
The InfraRed Gobweight Control (IGC) is connected to Xpar Vision’s IR-D system. It detects the intensity of infrared radiation emitted by the hot glass containers.
The pre-conditional IR-D measures the intensity of each single glass container, where the IGC relates this measurement to the weight of the gob. Any deviations in gob weight are automatically compensated by the IGC in adjusting the position of the tube.
Herbert Wilcken, Plant Manager at Nienburg, said: “The benefit of the IR-D system is that it provides us with real time information about deviations in our production process. Therefore we are able to adjust as quickly as possible.
“In this way we commit to the ever-increasing customer expectations, while increasing the plant’s efficiency at the same time.”
The partnership between Ardagh Group, the second largest container glass manufacturer in the world, and Xpar Vision, a privately-owned Netherlands-based company, started 15 years ago.
Michael Podgorski, responsible for Customer Relations with Ardagh Group, said: “We are very proud to extend our cooperation and we are committed to support the Ardagh Nienburg team through our proven Implementation Roadmap. We will embed the IR-D’s into their daily operation for the highest benefit.”
