BMG’s Light Materials Handling division has introduced a new condition monitoring system, which has been developed to automatically monitor the coefficient of friction of bottling or canning lines, ensuring consistently high productivity levels.
“BMG continually extends its product range to keep abreast of pristine safety, hygiene, sustainability and efficient total cost of ownership (TCO) requirements in the food and beverage sector,” says Ryan Forsyth, Business Unit Manager, Light Materials Handling division, BMG. “The company’s new System Plast iCOF condition monitoring device continuously measures the coefficient of friction, to ensure efficient handling and flow of all container types, including PET, glass and cans. Variations in the coefficient of friction are reliable indicators of changing conditions and even pollution of the conveyor, especially in dry running lines.
“A permanent control process of real-time monitoring of the line condition – independently of operator intervention – helps to maintain optimum conditions, ensuring high efficiency of conveying in food and beverage plants.”
This iCOF device is a complete unit, with sliders, which can be mounted on a conveyor and integrated into the line control system, to temporarily or continuously monitor friction. The condition monitoring unit is programmed to collect performance data, obtain data for trouble-shooting or to act as continuous input for the line controls. It can also be used as a stand-alone or portable device for spot measurements, without the need for operator intervention.
Obtained data is then used to calculate the average value, as well as the standard deviation and the trend. These values trigger an alarm if pre-set limits are reached and based on this signal; the user can check the situation and take corrective action before efficiency is compromised.
Another key feature is an easy-to-define optimum cleaning regime called ‘Smart Cleaning’. Long-term line conditions can be analysed using data obtained through ethernet or Modbus connections.
All BMG’s light materials handling products for food handling, bottling and packaging applications, meet the highest conveying and packaging standards, in terms of reliability, flexibility and consistent quality and hygiene controls.
