PROCESS WEIGHING TECHNOLOGY FOCUS
Nothing stops for tea
Tea company R Twining &
Co. has installed Chronos
Richardson weighing and
packing equipment at its
Andover factory in
Hampshire during an Easter
2008 shutdown. The
equipment supports the
‘Twining Tea Process’, where
the premium grade tea
leaves are carefully graded
and classified according to
their type and appearance.
A vibratory-fed automatic
E55 bagging weigher
discharges the weighed and
graded leaves into plastic-
lined cardboard cases,
which have been manually
placed at the filling position
by the operator. The boxes
are pre-assembled before
the filling station and have
been carefully designed to
provide added protection
for the high value leaves
and to eliminate moisture
ingress during storage.
The weigher, installed
Feeds unit is 99% accurate
Animal feed producer A
Nichols is achieving 99%
accuracy for 50 different animal
feed recipes following the
installation of a throughput
weighing system. The company
specified the system from
Avery Weigh-Tronix to
accurately formulate the feed
recipes from ingredients held in
13 storage hoppers.
A Nichols previously used a
hand-controlled auger system
and a scale to weigh out the
ingredients, which would,
typically, give formulations to
an accuracy of about 80%. With
the cost of ingredients such as
barley and soya bean rising, it
has become more important to
accurately control their use and
improve efficiency.
In addition, all animal feed
has to meet strict traceability
legislation. Paper records were
kept using the old system, but
34 PROCESS ENGINEERING : JULY/AUGUST 2008
now all the formulations are
recorded on a PC. This can
record both the normal recipe
and the actual formulation
used, as if an ingredient is
running low in a hopper the
system can suggest substituting
an alternative.
"The new system gives us an
accuracy to the nearest
kilogram for each ingredient. It
is also faster and easier for the
operative to use, with no
onto a bespoke design of
support framework, is
controlled by a SpeedAC
NXT weighing controller.
Quantities in the range of
12.5 to 45.0kg are settled,
under vibration, into the
manually positioned lined
cardboard cases. The filled
cases are moved away
from the filling area via
an integrated box-liner
sealer and takeaway
conveyor system.
According to Chronos
Richardson, the whole
project was supplied on a
turnkey basis, with full
installation and
commissioning being
undertaken by its
service engineers.
chance of error," said Graham
Millard, mill manager at the
Chipping Sodbury Mill, near
Bristol. "Using the old system
we could mix about three
tonnes per hour, now we can
mix up to six tonnes per hour."
The system uses a P911
throughput weigher with high-
resolution technology to
provide accurate bulk weighing
of free-flowing solids.
An E1310 programmable
indicator from Avery Weigh-
Tronix controls the system,
stores recipes and collects and
records data. The unit
interfaces with a PC and
software, also supplied by
Avery Weigh-Tronix.
A Nichols has now added a
second system to its other mill,
based in Warmley, Bristol. This
uses an existing weigh hopper,
which is again controlled by an
E1310 programmable indicator.
In brief ...
Mettler Toledo has launched the IL
platform weighing cell, which, it claims,
enables platforms of up to 2,000kg with
dimensions of up to 1m 2 to be weighed
both simply and accurately. The design
features a double-bend beam for
enhanced accuracy, with the weight
force fed into the weighing cell via
flanged elements. The flanged elements
are decoupled from the measuring
points of the weighing cell by slots to
virtually eliminate the influences of
screwed connections or uneven
connection flanges.
Mobile scales producer RAVAS has
established a UK office in Berkshire,
which is being run by Nicola Whittle,
area manager. The company’s
equipment is installed on forklift
trucks, warehouse trucks and pallet
trucks, and can display the weight of
every pallet or container lifted. Ravas’
mobile scales can link directly to WMS
or ERP software packages, via existing
wireless networks.
HBM’s new PW15AH single-point load
cell is designed to provide long-term
stability of the strain gauge. The unit
provides IP68/IP69K protection from the
combination of an hermetically sealed
body and a special cable inlet welded to
the measuring body. With a stainless
steel construction, the load cell is highly
resistant to humidity and ambient
influences, allowing thorough cleaning
with high-pressure steam.
Sartorius has introduced the Signum
ingredient scale, which helps users
ensure the accuracy of weighed
ingredient to maintain the quality of the
end-product. Users can choose from
three indicators providing three levels of
usage, from just simple weighing to a
full suite of application programs, and
three levels of weighing technology to
give the correct resolution from 0.1g
and capacities up to 65kg. The scales
have the option of ATEX approval for
use in zones 2 and 22 and can be
protected up to IP65 against the ingress
of water and dust for certain models.
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