Turkish container glass manufacturer Gürallar Cam Ambalaj (GCA) has selected Bucher Emhart Glass to provide equipment for its new plant.

Gürallar’s new facility was built next to its existing site in Kutahya, western Turkey and began operations in February with a focus on producing food jars and soft drinks bottles.

It has a capacity of 400 tonnes a day and employs 300 people. It has ISO 9001 and BRC/IOP management systems implemented in all processes, from design to sales and marketing.

The plant mostly uses Bucher Emhart Glass (BEG) technology.

For the new furnace, Gürallar commissioned three forming shops, each with three inspection legs. Forming is carried out by three identical AIS 12-section machines in triple gob. The AIS machines are equipped with BEG’s latest servo technology and use FPS valves for the plunger-up and counterblow functions.

Finished wares are handled by the BEG servo-electrical take-out mechanism, machine conveyor and FlexStacker unit. A VFT-1000 ware transfer unit was supplied by the UK’s Sheppee International.

At the cold end, inline inspection is handled by nine FleXinspect C and nine FleXinspect T inspection machines, plus three inline MiniLabs (one per shop). Together, FleXinspect C and T offer a solution for inline inspection, while MiniLab adds statistical sampling to ensure quality criteria are being met and provide feedback on the production process.

The inspection configuration was developed based on expert advice provided by BEG and finalised in partnership with GCA’s executives.

Gürallar stated that the process of selecting BEG as a supplier was rigorous. The GCA family, who own the company, were directly involved, along with their management team and their team of technicians.

GCA staff visited the plants of some of BEG’s major European customers to see first-hand the firm’s machinery in operation and also build the foundations of a strong relationship.

“We’re delighted to welcome Gürallar to the glass container market in Turkey,” stated BEG project manager Fabio Ghiglino.

“We wish them the very best in this competitive market and are pleased to commit ourselves to supporting their operations and expansions long into the future.”

Read the full, comprehensive article in the September issue of Glass International.