For decades now, Gebo’s Aidlin brand has been the benchmark on the cap feeder market.
Launching in April 2016, the new OptiFeedTM platform takes the Aidlin range to the next level with optimised ergonomic performance for operators and a significant increase in energy efficiency. Based on the same ‘Waterfall’ technology, the most reliable system on the market, the OptiFeedTM modular platform features a new kinematic set-up which allows for positive, individual handling of each bottle cap or crown.
Capable of handling up to 80,000 caps per hour, this new platform cements Gebo’s position as a leading force in the beverage industry and extends the company’s reach in cap feeding applications in the food and dairy sectors.
New kinematic technology
With its 100% modular design, the new OptiFeedTM platform comprises 4 key components: the cap hopper which feeds the machine, the Waterfall cap sorting system, the cap distribution and elevation system and the extender arm, so the height can be adjusted to fit the required connection point. The great innovation of this new platform is to separate the sorting and elevating functions. This new configuration has allowed us to reduce the total height of the ‘Waterfall’ cap sorting and elevating system to just 2.1m, allowing operators to access the machinery from ground level.
Once they have been positioned, the caps are extracted from the Waterfall unit by a servo-motor powered belt. They are then lifted up in a controlled and reliable way, via a second belt with brackets. Gravity carries the caps over the final few centimetres to the capping machine.
Cap Feeder Product Manager Jean-Baptiste Grosperrin explains a bit more about this new system: “The first cap feeders from the new OptiFeedTM platform will be delivered in April, available first of all to European clients before we gradually roll out this new technology to our clients all over the world. In keeping with Gebo Cermex’s multi-market positioning, the new kinematic system offers a greater level of flexibility which is highly appreciated in the Dairy and Food markets, while also ensuring that we remain well ahead in the beverage sector, our core market.”
The existing Aidlin range will be gradually updated to incorporate the new OptiFeedTM platform:
- 2016: version for standard plastic bottle tops
- 2017: version for sport caps and metal crowns (glass bottles)
More ergonomic and more environmentally-friendly
In the new OptiFeedTM platform, all motorised elements have been transferred to the base of the machine. This means that all of the key components are accessible from ground level, making it significantly easier for technicians to solve blockages or other problems. Also accessible from ground level is the cap quality control system (optional), previously positioned between the cap feeder outfeed and the capper infeed and now located at the entrance to the elevating system, allowing for easy access if a problem should arise.
The new kinematic system also ensures that there are no more blockages at the top of the cap feeder, while the modular design system has allowed us to cut delivery times by 30%. Better still, the kinematic technology – particularly the individual cap elevation – has allowed us to get rid of the old compressed air or electric fan system formerly used to extract caps and crowns, with three major benefits:
- Lower energy consumption (air or electricity depending on the option chosen), reducing the carbon footprint,
- Noise output reduced to 75 Db, below the 80Db threshold at which hearing protection is required for operators,
- Removing contamination risks for the caps, thus improving hygiene.
Reduced TCO
The design of the new OptiFeedTM platform corresponds to the growing demand from industry players for lower total cost of ownership (TCO). This reduction in TCO has been made possible by the greatly enhanced reliability of the new platform, with positive evacuation and elevation, no more compressed air and more ergonomic loading of the cap hopper, which is now just 1 metre off the ground.
All components are accessible from ground level, for easy maintenance and repairs, while the ability to switch between formats without the need for special tools also helps to keep TCO to a minimum. Last but not least, the platform is easy to transport: simply remove the elevation extender arm and transfer the machine to a suitable container without disassembly or complex lifting, furthering reducing transport costs and total cost of ownership.
