Food Manufacturing

igus helps autonomous vehicles in ocean research

As scientists delve into the study of climate change, new strategies, products and processes are evolving to help them uncover data that is driving the world's foremost concerns. The scientific community is obtaining significant information from international oceans, especially with the support of autonomous surface vehicles. Igus recently provided data cables and energy chains to support a recent assignment in ocean exploration.

4th June 2020

Motion control improves waste recycling performance

As waste recycling industries increasingly look towards technology to improve efficiency and productivity, many are turning to motion control as part of automation systems that improve throughput and optimise processing quality. With the already ubiquitous use of sophisticated automated systems in large-scale industrial waste-processing plants where significant improvements continue to be made possible, manufacturers of special-purpose equipment are turning to solving problems relating to smaller food waste, general waste recycling and materials recovery requirements found, for instance, in industrial kitchens, restaurant groups, food outlet chains, supermarkets and logistics companies.

27th May 2020

Smart condition monitoring systems use PLC and VSD

Mitsubishi Electric has collaborated with their e-F@ctory Alliance Partner Schaeffler sensor technology to offer two Smart Condition Monitoring (SCM) solutions - one based on an integrated PLC solution and the other using the intelligent functions of the 800 Series Variable Speed Drives.

15th May 2020

igus drylin W linear systems for student spice vending machine

Curry instead of cola! Five students from Heubach, Germany have developed a vending machine for packaged spices together with engineers and trainees from EMAG LaserTec GmbH. To ensure that the salt, curry and pepper cans are picked from their compartments quickly, they used the drylin W linear guides from igus.

5th May 2020

NSK bearings save soft drinks producer over EUR10,000 per year

A UK manufacturer of soft drinks that was experiencing premature bearing failures on its automatic bottle sleeving machine resolved the issue by adopting non-contact, shielded, greased-for-life deep groove ball bearings from NSK. The move has increased the operational life of the bearings by a factor of 52, which in turn is generating annual savings of EUR10,874.

23rd April 2020

Fit and Forget actuators for low-maintenance demands of bakeries

In recent weeks, due to the coronavirus pandemic, there has been a spike in demand for bread far in excess than previously seen. Whereas many people usually buy a ready-made lunch every day, now they are buying bread and eating at home. The UK bakery market is one of the largest markets in the food industry, and not surprisingly, there is a high need for modern technology to rise up to market demands. To keep up with today's demand, the food processing industry needs to be efficient; this means most of the tasks need to be automated. But in every automated system, there are a host of smaller components that perform simple yet essential processes. Without these components, the automation could not take place.

22nd April 2020

Engineering plastics for applications in the bottling industry

Although high-performance plastics used to be overlooked as suitable materials for machine components, they are now a standard feature in food and beverage processing equipment. But their potential has by no means been exhausted. igus supplies energy chains based on hygienic design guidelines and wear resistant plain bearing components for a wide range of applications.

3rd April 2020

Pilz works with machine builder to implement new safety concept

German company Herbst was working on the delivery of a specialist horizontal mixing machine when some of the fundamental framework conditions changed close to the delivery date - meaning that the safety concept for the machine had to be adapted as quickly as possible. Within a few days, Pilz worked with Herbst to incorporate the PSENmlock safety gate system, which met the new requirements.

24th January 2020

Robot applies labels accurately to strapping instead of pallets

Canned drinks are big business worldwide and the numbers involved are staggering. For example, just one of the better-known soft drink brands claims to sell 1.9 billion cans every day across the globe, and around 2.5 billion are produced annually in the UK alone. In the manufacturing and supply chain, getting the cans to the consumer makes use of proven processes that have evolved over time and which are constantly being refined as user demand and legislation changes.