Sidel tells that its new low output aseptic blow-fill-cap machine lends opportunities for beverage producers to test the market with PET on a smaller scale, and naturally suits ‘more niche brands’.
The Combi Predis/Capis FMa machine has a standard output of 12000 bottles/hr for a 1 liter bottle, and can handle low- and high-acid products from 200ml up to 2 liters, with a maximum output of 16000 bottles/hr, as opposed to 48000/hour for Sidel’s higher-output range.
A Sidel spokesperson told today that the new low output machine gave beverage producers who wanted to switch to PET bottles an opportunity to “introduce their new products to the market on a smaller scale, to validate their product’s success”.
They added that the dry preform and cap decontamination technology was, “naturally suited to smaller-scale production for more niche brands. In terms of market segments, the dairy industry is a particularly widespread user of low output solutions”.
Chemical agent demands cut by 90%
Demand for low output aseptic production was increasing worldwide, the Sidel spokesperson added, with Europe, Central and South America particuarly strong regions.
While Sidel provides both aseptic filling solutions into PET with dry preform decontamination (Combi Predis FMa replaces bottle rinsing with dry preform sterilization using hydrogen peroxide (H202) vapor), the company also provides wet bottle decontamination (Sensofill FMa).
“The aseptic dry technogloy, based on dry preform (Predis) and cap (Capdis) decontamination, is giving beverage players around the world a real edge in terms of lower total costs of ownership and sustainability advantages, with significant reductions in water and chemical agents (for preform decontamination),” the spokesperson said.
“Predis only requires 10% of the chemical agents used in traditional wet bottle systems,” they added. “It also allows our consumers to decrease their bottle weight much more than with dry bottle decontamination systems: high temperature treatment of the preforms (instead of bottles) opens up new possibilities for ultra-light containers”.
Dry preform decontamination advantage
Discussing PETs broader advantages as a packaging material, the Sidel spokesperson said it was lightweight, transparent, shatter-resistant, fully recyclable and competitive in price terms, while bottles were also easily transportable, reusable and refillable and shape innovation was emerging in PET.
Sidel’s low-output blow-fill-cap solution was the only solution on the market to use dry preform decontamination, they added, which had advantages due to PET bottle light-weighting potential, bottle shape freedom and water savings.
The machine uses Sidel’s broader Combi cocept for blow-molding, filling and capping beverages, which eliminates the need for conveying, empty bottle handling, accumulation and storage, while improving production reliability, the spokesperson said.
“This can reduce the number of machines needed in any production line and the footprint of the equipment needed, thus saving the total space of any production line,” they added.
