Vecoplan AG, the German maker of shredding equipment, says more companies are doing in-house recycling of their waste.
Vecoplan was commissioned by one of world's major makers of intermediate bulk containers to design, engineer and build a machine that could economically shred large scrap from production into a grain-size of 400-by-40 millimeters.
Vecoplan does not identify the customer, but said it produces IBCs in white, black or blue. That meant the plant scrap had to be treated for 100 percent color separation, for reprocessing.
“The system must therefore be absolutely clean before changing the color. It is therefore crucial that operators are able to clean the system easily,” said Martin Klotz, area sales manager at Vecoplan in Marienberg, Germany. The material slso must be homogeneous when it passes into the grinder, he said.
Another factor: Space in the IBC plant was at a premium, so Vecoplan had to make the machines as compact as possible.
“We also had to ensure that the material flow between shredding and granulation was coordinate,” Klotz said.
Vecoplan supplied a shredder from its V-ECO 1300 range. The hydraulic upwards-pivoting bottom flap and the downwards-pivoting screen enabled the operator to gain easy access to the rotor.
The material gets fed continuously because of the angled design of the machine base and the steplessly adjustable slide controller. Material is fed in and shredded via a lifting/tilting device. It then passes into a grinder via a feed channel for granulation.
The current consumption of the grinder motor determines the load taken by the shredder, allowing Vecoplan to optimally match the material flow between the two systems. The shredder is integrated into production at the IBC maker's plant, in a closed loop.
The shredder maker's U.S. unit, Vecoplan LLC, is based in Archdale, N.C.
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