Investment in four KHS Innofill DVD can fillers in just four years
Schweppes Australia values innovative, flexible technology and outstanding service from its trusted partner
Frank Hollmann*
Kurt Hofmann**
With a market share of around 25%, Schweppes Australia is the clear number two in the soft drinks business in Australia. At nine manufacturing sites the company produces over a billion liters of non-alcoholic beverages a year. Schweppes Australia has been part of Japan's Asahi Group Holdings since 2009. In 2013 Schweppes Australia (soft drinks) and Asahi Premium Beverages (alcoholic beverages), which together make up Asahi Group Holdings' beverage business in Australia, were integrated into Asahi Beverages. Schweppes Australia and KHS share a long history. Wayne Angus, General Manager Manufacturing at Schweppes Australia, explains. "We value KHS' technical systems as highly as the company's drive for innovation which –attaches great importance to sustainability. We have also benefited from KHS having a branch in Australia which provides great local service."
It thus comes as no surprise to learn that Schweppes Australia has repeatedly invested in KHS lines and machines at its various bottling plants. One good example of this is the purchase of four Innofill DVD can fillers within the space of just four years. It all began with the procurement of an Innofill DVD for the plant in Huntingwood, near Sydney in 2010. In 2011 and 2012 two more Innofill DVDs were acquired for the production site in Tullamarine, a Melbourne suburb. The Schweppes Australia facility in Welshpool near Perth took delivery of a KHS can filler of this type in 2013. Angus says: "With this many orders, the question of whether we're satisfied with this machinery or not is totally superfluous!"
Broad range of non-alcoholic beverages
Schweppes Australia's portfolio is extremely varied, with more than 40 product groups in the range from carbonated soft drinks and fruit juices to mineral water and spring water. Besides its own brands the company also manufactures a number of licensed products, including the Pepsi brand range for Australia. Angus states, "The water market is growing particularly fast in Australia at the moment. The still, carbonated and flavored water segments are all seeing a clear upswing. As a very consumer-oriented company, we're of course showing a strong presence here."
*Head of Market Zone Asia Pacific, KHS GmbH, Bad Kreuznach, Germany. Phone: +49 671 852 2888
**Manager of KHS Pacific Pty. Ltd., Tullamarine, Australia. Phone: +61 393 351331
Present throughout Australia and in all distribution channels
Schweppes Australia's product range includes a host of well-known brand names, such as the famous Schweppes range, SOLO, Spring Valley, the Real Iced Tea Co, Cool Ridge, Frantelle and Cottee’s Cordial. The company also manufactures Pepsi, Gatorade and Sunkist under license and distributes Monster Energy in Australia. Schweppes Australia beverages can be found in supermarkets, hotels, restaurants, cafés, milk bars and gas stations – just about everywhere, in fact. They are very much a feature of everyday life in Australia.
About 40% of total sales realized in cans
In order to best serve its presence nationwide, Schweppes Australia has production sites strategically placed across the country. The three largest plants are in Tullamarine, Huntingwood and Welshpool, for which a total of four KHS Innofill DVD can fillers have been ordered over the last few years. With 124 filling stations and a filling capacity of up to 1,500 cans per minute Schweppes Australia's first investment in Huntingwood is the can filler with the highest performance. Angus states, "We immediately saw that the filling system here works extremely reliably in a three-shift operation at the top capacity we require." The two filling systems for Tullamarine and the Innofill DVD in Welshpool each have 108 filling valves and process up to 1,200 cans per minute.
Various products are filled at Schweppes Australia in a number of can sizes. The 0.375-liter variant is especially popular in Australia and the majority of Schweppes Australia’s cans are also filled in this size. The company sells about 40% of its beverages in cans, with a further 45% marketed in PET bottles and 15% in one-way glass bottle.
Innofill DVD extremely flexible
As far as the processing of different can formats is concerned, the Innofill DVD can filler is extremely flexible and can be quickly adjusted to meet new requirements. The Innofill DVD is prepared for lightweight cans, for example, as the pressing pressure can be perfectly configured for the scheduled can at the press of a button, The Innofill DVD could, for example, easily process sleek or slim cans, which are much more slender than the classic can, to mention just two different possibilities. To this end Schweppes Australia would need to invest in special format parts and guides which could be changed over in a short space of time. Angus claims, " We have options open to us and it's this flexibility we need to be perfectly able to meet consumer demands both now and in the future."
The Innofill DVD is also very flexible when it comes to the type of beverage to be filled. It can master the filling of both carbonated and non-carbonated soft drinks and as well as alcohol products, beer through wine, sparkling wine and spirits to mixed alcoholic beverages.
Volumetric filling using electromagnetic inductive flow metering
Australian packaging regulations are based on the minimum principle. Here, the can must contain at least the declared amount (e.g. 500 ml). The filling accuracy of a system thus inevitably results in the average value being greater than the declared amount, i.e. the container is overfilled. In this respect Schweppes Australia profits from the especially high filling accuracy on the Innofill Can DVD.
The Innofill Can DVD operates according to the principle of volumetric filling using electromagnetic induction flow metering. This filling system has a standard deviation of s = 1 ml. On mechanical filling systems standard deviations of 2 ml are common. This means that the average overfill is only half that of a mechanical filling system. This is a definite advantage over classic fill level filling, where overfilling of cans is necessary in order to ensure the declared filling quantity. This overfilling is necessary because cans supplied by different manufacturers can vary slightly in volume. Variations in size are no longer of significance for the volumetric filling process using magnetic inductive flow metering. If 0.375 liters is programmed, the can contains this amount after the filling process. If a new can size is scheduled for filling, an entry on the operator terminal is all that is needed to make the necessary change to the filling quantity. To this end, the machine operator simply calls up the relevant preprogrammed settings.
When the Innofill DVD cans carbonated beverages under pressure, the air contained in the can is purged with CO2 after the can has been sealed. In the next step in the process the return gas path is closed while the gas supply remains open; the can is pressurized to a filling pressure which is adapted to suit the specific CO2 content of the product. Once the required pressure has been reached, the liquid valve opens. Product then gently flows down the walls of the can at a constant rate and into the receptacle. The filling valve closes automatically and low-foam snifting takes place when the electromagnetic inductive flow meter registers the target fill level. Still beverages are filled at normal pressure. If sensitive beverages are being processed, the machine can purge the can with CO2 or nitrogen prior to filling.
All passages are smooth-surfaced throughout the Innofill DVD from the ring bowl to the filling valves. Aseptic membrane and sealing technology is used in all Innofill DVD filling valves and in all other channels and routes exposed to the product.
Emphasis on sustainability
Each Innofill DVD is blocked with a can seamer. Upstream of each of the systems is a can rinser, with an Innopas heater inserted after each Innofill DVD which operates during the summer months as required to prevent condensation forming on the cans before packaging. Says Angus, "As we fill our soft drinks at a temperature of 18 to 20°C, we very rarely need the heater. This means we save energy – in full keeping with our concept of sustainability."
KHS Innopro Paramix C blending technology also included
Schweppes Australia also ordered KHS Innopro Paramix C blending technology to go with its four can fillers. "It was clear to us from the beginning that the filling and process equipment had to come from a single source," says Angus. "This means that we avoid any interfacing problems in such a sensitive spot right from the start." The three-component Innopro Paramix C dosing and blending system continuously produces both still and carbonated beverages. The single, compact unit deaerates mixes and carbonates. The first step in the Innopro Paramix C involves deaerating water using the two-stage vacuum spraying principle. The sophisticated process takes place in a horizontal deaeration tank and yields a residual oxygen content in the water of less than 0.3 milligrams per liter. The deaerated water is passed to the mixing pump where it is mixed with syrup. Precision flow metering of both the product's mass and Brix value takes place in the syrup pipe train upstream of the mixing pump. This means that diluted primary syrup feeds are also detected and do not have to be discarded. It also enables extremely fast product changeovers and ensures that the mixing ratio of water and syrup always complies exactly with specifications. After blending the syrup and water the Innopro Paramix C carbonates the product. KHS' special carbonation nozzle ensures that the carbon dioxide is optimally distributed and bonded in the product. The number of recipes that can be kept on file on the Innopro Paramix C is virtually unlimited; there can be over 1,000 of them. Says Angus, "This will always be enough – even for such an innovative company as Schweppes Australia!"
KHS palletizers and depalletizers equally convincing
The investments in 2010 and 2011 for Huntingwood and Tullamarine concerned the aforementioned components only, which were integrated into existing lines. In Tullamarine in 2012, however, a depalletizer also had to be replaced. Schweppes Australia decided to procure the Innopal ASH depalletizer which lifts pallets loaded with empty cans in a three-sided enclosed pit to the pushoff position. A four-sided enclosed pusher system ensures a gentle depalletizing process by centering each individual layer during depalletizing. All the surfaces of the depalletizer that come into contact with the cans are covered with plastic sheeting to prevent damage to the cans. An automatic pallet liner remover picks up the cover frames and pallet liners with vacuum grippers and places them in separate dispensers provided for this purpose. Angus explains, "Gentle depalletizing is very important for our very light cans which is why we also opted for this system for our recent investment in Welshpool. In addition, we've again extended our range of KHS equipment and are now also relying on KHS technology for palletizing in Welshpool."
Here, cartons of packed cans pass a KHS inline robot grouping before being palletized. Two four-axis Innopal RK 4 robots precisely position the containers, gripping, turning and moving them with millimeter accuracy. The gripper elements on both Innopal RK 4s are coated with plastic for gentle container handling. All necessary pushing motions are perfectly adjusted to match the speed of the conveyors. The positioned packs are driven against a stop for the formations to be centered. An Innopal RS 3 column robot with a roller carpet head picks up each individual layer and places it onto the pallet with the utmost precision.
Win/win situation all round
Schweppes Australia's has been very satisfied with the KHS technology it has installed. Angus claims, "We have a genuine partnership with a supplier we trust, who in our opinion provides us with excellent technical equipment and the best service. We appreciate the fact that, prior to each investment, KHS provides us with a comprehensive consultancy program which continues throughout the service life of our machinery and line technology. This goes as far as drawing up detailed TCO calculations which enable us to accurately evaluate every investment."
Further growth already planned
Schweppes Australia aims to keep growing its business, setting new trends in the Australian soft drinks market and living up to their ambition of "A refreshingly better choice". Angus concludes, "As part of the Asahi Group we're perfectly set up to do just this. With our strong parent company behind us, we're all set to continue on the road to success."
