The purpose of plastic packaging is to protect and safely deliver a product from manufacturer to consumer. Whether carrying a fragile equipment or fresh food, plastic packaging must protect the content from damage and leaking. Packaging plastics must also meet regulatory requirements. For example, pharmaceutical and drug packaging is tightly regulated and so is any packaging which comes in contact with food. Finally, packaging needs to meet the marketing expectations regarding aesthetics, merchandising, cost, ease of use, ease of opening & resealing and weight etc. The plastic packaging can be broadly categorized into soft (light weight) and rigid packaging.
Soft packaging plastics include thin flexible film in pouches & flow wraps, trays for packaging drugs and food items. Resins used for manufacturing of soft packaging products are Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET), Low Density Polyethylene (LDPE), Polypropylene (PP).
Rigid packaging plastics includes cups, bottles & drums, pots, cans, caps & closures and returnable transit packaging. Resins used for manufacturing rigid packaging products are High Density Polyethylene (HDPE), Polystyrene (PS), Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) and Polyamide (PA) or Nylon.
Prime processes for making plastic products are Blown Film, Extrusion Blow Moulding, Extrusion Profiles, Injection Moulding and Injection Stretch Blow Moulding.
Nylon and Polyoxymethylene (POM) being hygroscopic in nature, absorbs moisture from their surrounding. Polystyrene do not normally absorbs much moisture but they are able to carry significant moisture on their surface; if not stored in dry environment especially during their transit to manufacturing facility.
In case of soft packaging, moisture can even make the entire lot of material rejected. Presence of moisture leads to pinholes in packaging films resulting in uneven upper layer finish affecting clarity.
In case of rigid packaging plastics, moisture may lead to poor chemical bonding between the molecules of the material resulting in reaction between the contents and the container/bottle, leading to serious deviations from regulatory requirements of packaging for pharmaceutical and food products. Other defects such as low tensile strength & impact resistance, surface cracking, internal cracking, surface lines, bubbles, silver streaking etc, also leads to material rejection.
Injection Moulding being a fast process and Extrusion being a continuous process, requires a regular feed of blended resins into the processing machines. Handling of resins in the shop floor is a complex job, especially in the production area where large extrusion machines are placed. Manual handling of resins may lead to human errors such as spillage of resins and delay in changeover of material. Continuous feeding of material requires constant monitoring which becomes a tedious task manually, especially for longer durations.
Injection Moulding process involves injection of plastic melt into the mould and cooling the mould to take the desired shape. Water chillers are used for quick cooling of plastic melt thus reducing the cooling time in a particular cycle. However, when chilled water is used for cooling the mould, the moisture present in the vicinity of outer mould surface condenses, leading to formation of water droplets on the outer surface (Mould Sweating).
Mould Sweating is undesirable, as the water droplets tend to drip on the machine bed and seep into the mould, causing rust thus severely affecting the shelf life of expensive mould and machine bed. Further, condensation in the core and cavity of the mould will lead to formation of defects in the moulded component.
Dew point plays a very critical role in creating a lower vapour pressure around the surface of the resin. This lower vapour pressure forces the moisture in the molecular chain to dissipate out on its surface. While temperature, drying time and air flow are dependent on the type of resin ; there is a huge enhancement in the quality of molded component if the dew point can be maintained at minimum –40ºC than at –20ºC.
Bry-Air resin dryer with BryWheel ensures better control over dew point and temperature. The BryWheel Rotor works on honeycomb technology, ensuring 25% more energy savings as compared to other technologies available in the market. BryWheel Rotor is specially crafted for very low dew points (upto -65°C).
Bry-Air offers options for stand alone, single station as well as multistation centralized installation for all resin drying needs.
Bry-Air Conveying System not only ensures continuous feed of material into the machine but also the right material in the right machine and at the right time. It further facilitates quick changeover of material, making it a one stop shop for all your material conveying needs at for the shop floor. Bry-Air Auto Loaders automate the transfer of plastic pallets from shipping containers and storage bins to the processing machines.
Bry-Air Conveying System helps you work towards zero spillage, zero material wastage and zero accidents.
Bry-Air EcoDry Mould Dehumidification System is designed exclusively to prevent mould sweating.
A chilled water pre-cooling coil, combined with latest desiccant technology, ensures super dry air and prevent mould condensation.
