When US firm Avon opened a new production plant in Poland its goal was to implement a reliable, 100% in-line checkweighing solution on its deodorant spray production line. The main problem was that the tall, narrow cans have a tendency to overturn on the fast moving production line due to their high centre of gravity.
After difficulties finding a suitable solution, the company finally looked to OCS Checkweighers for help. OCS presented its HC-IS checkweigher, which is specifically designed to handle this kind of product. A tailor-made solution was configured and implemented with excellent results.
Traditionally a checkweigher consists of a series of conveyors, usually a minimum of three; this creates the critical product transitions between the individual conveyors.The HC-IS revolutionary weighing system requires no conveyors, as it is placed directly on to the production line.
The machine has an indented wheel at its core that acts like a turnstile for transporting the unstable products towards the weigh position. When integrated into the line, the wheel is inserted over the transport conveyor. The star wheel picks up the products one by one, passing them through the weighing process and back to the line without interruptions. The safe and guided product handling made the HC-IS easy to integrate into Avon’s already active production lines.
A single track HC-IS reaches a speed of up to 100 pieces per minute. With the high speed version – depending on the diameter of the cans – it is possible to weigh up to 160 cans per minute. The HC-IS is very flexible with regard to different product sizes and also allows the handling of tall products.
The machine also comes in an EX model, which is fully compliant with ATEX standards and can be used in explosion-risk areas. Avon decided on the installation of the HC-IS-EX as its position in the line is shortly after the gas filling.
With this equipment, the original target has been reached and with great success, allowing a safe and efficient check inspection and control of the filling process and thereby reducing expensive over- or under-filling.
