CHICAGO (Aug. 8, 1:10 p.m. EDT) — Pipe extruders can change dimensions on a continuously running system, with the QuickSwitch introduced by Krauss-Maffei Corp. at NPE 2003.
The company in Florence, Ky., and its German parent also showed a new range of lower-price XS extruders designed to be ordered from stock.
Krauss-Maffei officials outlined the extrusion equipment at a June 24 press conference at NPE.
QuickSwitch can change pipe dimensions in a matter of minutes, without stopping the line. Normally in pipe extrusion, the line has to be stopped, the extrusion head and downstream equipment taken apart, replaced and adjusted, in a process that takes several hours.
Volker Kiel, vice president of technical operations, said a specially modified extrusion head uses a cone-shaped mandrel system driven by a servomotor, that adjusts the wall thickness and pipe diameter.
One key feature is a calibrating basket, which consists of moveable segments whose inner surfaces form a smooth, circular inner wall. The inner radius of the calibrating basket can be changed, in a stepless fashion, with precision, Krauss-Maffei said.
Much of the “on-the-fly” technology was developed and tested jointly with German pipe extruder Egeplast Werner Strumann GmbH and Co. KG.
QuickSwitch comes in three versions, covering pipe diameters from 32-63 millimeters, 75-160 mm and 160-250 mm.
In other news, KM is targeting the new XS extruders at standard pipe and profile applications at the lower end of the output range. The controller also runs downstream equipment. KM is targeting profiles for automotive, furniture and lighting, plus coextruded, multilayer pipe.
Kiel also said Krauss-Maffei has expanded the range of its parallel twin-screw extruders to include a more choices for the length-to-diameter ratio.