SMALL PACK
A spiral accumulation
Innovation is about survival
The challenges of a modern small pack line
In Western Europe the
beer market is becoming
increasingly competitive.
It is now evermore
important to have an
appealing product on the
shelf to ensure that it will
be the consumer’s first
choice. Once purchased,
the product must be right
and be of consistent
quality to capture
brand loyalty.
By Jeremy Browne
A s figures 1 and 2 overleaf show,
the market in the UK is falling
whereas the market in Russia is
buoyant. This typifies the markets of
Western Europe and North America
versus those in Russia, ex Russian
Republics, China and India. This
leads us into two different scenarios.
In Western Europe breweries are
competing with one another to
increase their share of the market.
This cannot be done solely by relying
The BREWER & DISTILLER INTERNATIONAL • Volume 4 • Issue 1 • January 2008 • www.ibd.org.uk
conveyor taking bottles
from the top of a
depalletiser down to
ground level. This one,
in the Miller plant in
Milwaukee, was built by
Northfield Freezing in
on budget products; it is all about the USA and similar
extensions to those brands or coming devices are used in cold
up with new ideas that can take their cabinets for chilling
frozen foods.
place in the premium market. It is
often said that ‘innovation is about
survival’, this has never been more
important. Combined with the
product mix, companies are looking
at ways to reduce their unit costs – this
is done by rationalising output and
consolidating volumes to fewer sites.
This makes the challenge even
greater!
In the developing markets it is all
about producing as much beer as
possible to satisfy thirsty populations.
11
SMALL PACK
This in itself has its own problems
with breweries being built and then
almost immediately being extended,
often whilst commissioning is still
going on! This scenario is difficult
enough to deal with, but to add to this,
there is nearly always a skills
shortage.
In this article the author will look at
the equipment and material suppliers
to see if there is anything out there
that is designed to make life easier.
Then it is up to the managers to ensure
that their assets are used to their
maximum ability. All too often,
sophisticated plant is blamed for
lacking performance when culpability
is clearly down to management who
are often guilty of falling far short of
what is expected of them.
Packaging equipment
Servo Technology
Servo technology has made a big
impact on packaging machinery and
is now used on nearly every machine
TOP: Figure1– Russian
beer volumes by
package type.
ABOVE: Figure 2 – UK
beer volumes by
package type.
Figures supplied by Canadean.
RIGHT: Figure 3 –
Static accumulation
table.
RIGHT: Figure 4 –
Dynamic accumulation
on conveyors.
The BREWER & DISTILLER INTERNATIONAL • Volume 4 • Issue 1 • January 2008 • www.ibd.org.uk
12
on the packaging line. This allows
mechanical movements in a machine
to be controlled electronically. This
would include vertical and horizontal
drives on a depalletiser or palletiser,
separate drives for fillers giving them
a more open design, torque checks on
screw cappers giving them much
greater reliability, embossed bottle
orientation on labellers, separate
drives in dry end machines to replace
chains and shafts and so on. The
synchronisation of a can filler and
seamer has now been developed to
replace the seamer drive which
presently drives the filler via a cardan
shaft. Servo technology has also
allowed changeovers to be faster and
more accurate, making machines
more flexible with less settling down
time.
Line Control
Control systems, with the
developments in communication
technology, are much more refined.
Frequency drives are now fitted
locally and communication cables
fed back to a PLC at a central point
using a profi-bus system. A wireless
asi-bus system is also used to
transmit data from all the sensors on
the line to the same PLC. This
substantially reduces the cost of
cabling and allows programming
from one central point. It also makes
it possible for the supplier to carry
out diagnostics, and perhaps
adjustment from his home base. This
can avoid costly journeys and time
delays.
Tunnel Pasteuriser
For small pack, the UK beer industry
has been happy to settle for a
traditional line with a tunnel
pasteuriser taking up a huge space on
the floor. For a 60,000bph line, this
would be in the region of 200m2.
Meanwhile in the rest of Europe, the
favoured route is to go for a flash
pasteuriser or sterile filtration. The
result is a much neater line which is
also easier to run as it is more open
and has less accumulation. Further,
there is a capital saving of at least
£0.8 million as well. The concern, of
course, is whether the product will be
sterile and have a good shelf life.
At Magor, Inbev has at last broken
this trend by not installing a tunnel
pasteuriser. Having put in a new
KHS line at 50,000bph with a flash
pasteuriser three years ago, they have
now just put in a second KHS line
which was commissioned end of last
year. This in itself is a great
endorsement. Beer, indeed, is a
robust product, and with good
microbiological control, there is no
reason why a tunnel pasteuriser
should be installed. With pressures on
energy conservation, and the cost of
running a flash pasteuriser at about
15% of the cost of a tunnel
pasteuriser, which, incidentally, costs
over £1 per hectolitre to run, how can
a tunnel pasteuriser be justified?
Accumulation
By taking out a tunnel pasteuriser,
accumulation is immediately
reduced. It is, however, recognised
that accumulation is still required in
order to balance the line and give the
filler the chance of running without
interruption. With accumulation,
machines need to run faster upstream
and downstream from the filler. A
standard would be an 8% uplift
between each machine, giving what
is known as a ‘V’ curve. This, of
course, would vary according to
circumstances.
Accumulation can be achieved in
two ways, statically or dynamically.
Accumulation tables are static and are
placed beside a conveyer. They would
normally be full before the filler and
empty after the filler (see Figure
3).The downside is that they operate
on a first in last out basis. With this
system, the first containers to enter
these tables may not be totally
discharged until the end of the day’s
production. For 100% traceability this
is a disaster. The other way is to
include accumulation within the
conveyor system making it dynamic.
This will increase the width and length
of conveyors, but some cases can
crowd a packaging hall and make the
lines more difficult to operate (see
Figure 4).
There are now some very neat
accumulation devices available which
will reduce the number of conveyers.
Krones offer three different systems:
• Accuflow
• Accutable
• Accutower
All these accumulators (Figures
5,6,7,8 and 9) work on the very
important concept of first in, first out
unlike the earlier accumulation tables.
Due to the compactness of these
systems, lines are easier to manage
due to the increased visibility.
Accumulation offered is around the
three minute mark and this caters very
well for short stops which is what
accumulation is designed to cater for.
When deciding on accumulation,
there is another consideration which
relates to the time interval between
operator interventions for each
machine on the packaging line. For
example, what time does it take,
during normal operation, before an
operator has to fill a label magazine
etc? As a result of this assessment
operators can be properly allocated to
individual machines. The jargon for
this is Mean Time Before Touch
(MTBT).
Filler
There has been a move in the last few
years towards electro-pneumatic
fillers. Earlier machines were difficult
to maintain, but with improved
performances and easier maintenance,
they have become more popular for
good reason:
• The filler can modulate in speed
without affecting the filling
performance. This allows catch up
The BREWER & DISTILLER INTERNATIONAL • Volume 4 • Issue 1 • January 2008 • www.ibd.org.uk
should a crown hang in the chute.
Also speeds can easily be adjusted
for unstable bottles.
• The filling tubes do not need to be
changed – the filling height can be
adjusted and levels trimmed during
operation.
• Changeover times are shorter.
Short tube fillers are now using swirl
tubes for filling as they give a much
more reliable beer transfer into bottles
than spreader rubbers (see Figure 10).
They are also less prone to damage.
Mechanical fillers still use spreader
rubbers.
Labeller
The majority of packaging lines have
wet glue labellers. Due to the
popularity of Pressure Sensitive
Labels (PSL) which give the see
through look, the trend is now to
purchase a modular rather than a
dedicated labeller. Marketing
departments like the PSL label as it
gives the bottle an up-market or
premium image.
The modular labeller (Figure 11),
allows the switch from wet glue
labelling to PSL by switching the
labelling stations. A few things need
to be noted however:
• The highest speed for a wet glue
operation is 72,000bph
• The highest speed for a PSL
operation is 48,000bph
• The wet glue operation is
continuous for as long as the
operator keeps filling the label
magazines with cut labels, so two
label stations are sufficient for neck
13
SMALL PACK

label/body label (first station) and amount of product is being labelled Packaging Materials
back label (second station). with PSL labels, the glass
• The PSL labeller is fed with labels manufacturer will arrange for the PET Bottles
on reels, so for the same job, four bottles to be pre-labelled. This may be Every time one writes about PET
stations are needed to carry out an the best way to go initially. A small bottles there is an expectation that
automatic switch over from one warning – if bottles are pre-labelled brewers have started to adopt them.
station to another to allow a and then tunnel pasteurised, always Maybe, but the love-hate relationship
continuous operation. test the colours in the pasteuriser first! continues. They will be used for
By integrating both labellers into one, An alternative maybe to use a wet special functions where glass is not
space, conveying and capital glue labeller for the application of allowed but brewers are still loathe to
expenditure are saved. If only a small PSL labels. A dream? Read on. put their premium brands in PET. The
perception of the consumer has not
RIGHT: Figure 6 – changed – if it is in PET it is cheap!
Krones Accutable Mass The major growth for PET has been
Flow. in Eastern Europe – mainly in Russia,
Romania and Ukraine together
account for nearly 80% of the total
BELOW RIGHT: output in PET. Most of this PET
Figure 7 – Krones production is in 2 litre bottles (see
Accutable Single Line Figures 12 and 13 on page 16). Glass
Flow. packaging in these countries is still
used for premium beer brands,
however.
Perhaps a notable change is in the
“Accumulation can
production of PET bottles for beer.
be achieved in two
For beer it is necessary to use barrier
ways, statically or
technology in order to protect the beer
dynamically. from oxygen ingress and prevent CO2
Accumulation loss. The favourite way of doing this
tables are static is by introducing another layer within
and are placed the PET bottle wall, forming three
beside a conveyer. layers; this is known as multi-layer
They would technology. The extra layer is usually
normally be full nylon, which will act as a barrier. An
before the filler and oxygen scavenger is often added to
empty after the this. A bottle is made by first
filler.” producing a preform by injection
moulding and then, in a separate
process, it is blown into the bottle
shape desired (Figure 14 on page 16).
The extra layer is introduced during
the injection moulding process and
the technology is expensive.
Due to the development of a unique
catalyst, it is now possible to add the
(All photos on this page: Krones UK.)
RIGHT: Figure 8 –
Krones Accutower
concept drawing.

FAR RIGHT: Figure 9 –

An Accutower in action.

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14

barrier and oxygen scavenger to the
PET polymer at the point where the
material is fed into the injection
moulding machine. This means that a
monolayer preform with a barrier can
be produced using standard injection
moulding equipment making the
process much cheaper. The two main
producers of this material are M&G
and INVISTA. The early bottles
produced in this way were muddy
looking but since then the clarity has
improved to an acceptable level. Also
in large countries like Russia, it is also
easier and cheaper to transport one
trip PET than glass; firstly it is
unbreakable, and secondly it is about
one tenth of the weight.
Chain Lubrication
Chain lubrication for a beer
packaging line is an absolute
necessity, and if it is not done
correctly, there is a lot of grief due to
loss of line efficiency. It is usually
better to have a contract with the
supplier company and let them
maintain the system and clean nozzles
as necessary. It is vital that the water
used is clean and softened to ensure
that there is nothing that will cause
blocked nozzles. The lubricant should
not only lubricate the conveyors to
allow bottle slip, but also disinfect
them to prevent growth of micro-
organisms on the conveyor. No matter
how good this is there is usually
growth of yeast and algae after the
filler. Finally there is always a mess
on the floor under the conveyors, and
if this is not kept clean, it can quickly
become slippery and therefore a
hazard.
So is there any alternative? The
idea of dry lubrication has been
around for a few years and is slowly
catching on. In the brewing industry
there does not appear a lot of interest
– why is this?
Dry chain lubrication is formulated
from various ingredients – perhaps
one of the most common being a
synthetic oil. The first company
(Both photos: Krones UK.)
RIGHT: Figure 10–
Swirl filling tube.
FAR RIGHT: Figure 11
– Modular labeller.
involved with this was Dry Lube Ltd good when used for glass on stainless
which is British and was formed in steel or on plastic conveyors, but a
2002. It specialised in producing little better for cans running on plastic
synthetic oil based dry lubrication conveyors. JohnsonDiversey maintain
systems for packaging lines using a that one of the issues with oil is that it
lubricant that is approved for must be used in a totally clean
incidental food contact and is beer environment. Oil attracts dust and
foam stable. Their initial success was with a small amount of dirt leave
with international soft drinks black marks on the containers and on
companies conveying PET and cans, the conveyor or, indeed, the oil
both upright and inverted. The unique together with any soiling/deposits can
selling points were no loss of water, become abrasive. Also when cans run
much safer working conditions and a on the conveyor inverted they could
more hygienic environment (see pick up some oil on the chime of the
Figure 15 overleaf). There are other can.
proven advantages in that the oil acts JohnsonDiversey offer a range of
as a mechanical lubricant
giving longer life for
conveyors and wear strips,
also a reduction in conveyor
power costs.
Dry Lube Ltd pointed out
that for dry lubrication to work
well, the lines must be in a
good state of repair and they
must be clean. Also, and most
importantly, Dry Lube’s
engineers, who all have
bottling line operating
experience, will set the rate of
lubrication which is applied
by brushes (Figure 16
overleaf). This must be set up
precisely to match the
prevailing conditions, and is
especially so when running
glass on plastic conveyor.
Glass on stainless steel is more
difficult as the two materials
together cause the standard
lubricant to become tacky. As
a result Dry Lube has
developed an upgraded
synthetic oil lubricant for this
application which has been
trialled commercially with
satisfactory results at a major
carbonated soft drinks plant in
Germany.
JohnsonDiversey have
found that their synthetic oil
based dry lubrication works
well for PET but it is not so
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15
 SMALL PACK
Figures 12 and 13 show the growth in the Figure14 – PET Showing Multi-layer,
PET beer market. Preform and Bottle.
dry chain lubricants known as Dry
(Photos: Dry Lube Ltd.)
Tech™ and maintain that there is no
complete answer for the use of dry
lubricant only on a beer packaging
line. For example, in and around the
filler, wet lubrication would still be
the best answer. For the rest of the
line, a product known as Dry Tech 2
could be the answer. This is not oil
based and nor is it Teflon or PTFE
based – the manufacturer declined to
divulge the formulation! Their
application is controlled from a user
friendly control station.
Dry lubrication is again applied
with brushes which need to be
cleaned once or twice a month
depending on circumstances.
JohnsonDiversey currently have
conducted successful trials using a
non contact applicator. They have a
range of five different Dry Tech
products as different packages and
conveyors dictate product
specification, they are also involved in
looking at hybrid lubrication products
that can be applied as a traditional wet
lube on certain areas of the conveyor
system and neat (similar to a true dry
lubricant) on other areas. So they are
moving towards application through a
ABOVE: Figure 15 –
Dry lubrication with a
dry floor.
RIGHT: Figure 16 –
Dry lubrication is
applied by a wide brush.
The BREWER & DISTILLER INTERNATIONAL • Volume 4 • Issue 1 • January 2008 • www.ibd.org.uk
16
(Diagram: Kortec.)
nozzle and towards a lubricant that
can be applied wet or dry according to
the circumstances.
Thonhauser/Pentasol also have a
dry lubrication system which allows
precise control of the volume dosed
over the full width the conveyor
ensuring the usage is fully optimised.
The application is via brushes and is
truly “dry” and not “hybrid dry “
technology. The product itself is not
mineral oil based so does not attract
the dust deposits that cause the
soiling and line hygiene issues
associated with such technologies.
This technology is being developed
further, especially with regard to
glass bottles on stainless steel
conveyors.
Label Adhesives
Casein-based glue is accepted as the
best for paper labels . Casein is the
main protein found in milk and the
price of it will fluctuate according to
the quantities of milk available in the
global market, and this is usually
cyclical. Special properties for casein
glue are:
• It can be easily washed off the
labeller using warm water
• It works well on bottles that are wet
and cooling
• Used at the right temperature, it is
easy to manage
• It gives good ice-proofing qualities
(bottle can sit in iced water for a
period in excess of 24 hours and the
label will not come off)
• The labels can be easily be removed
by soaking in warm water or in a
washer where the caustic digests the
protein
National Adhesives have been
working hard to develop synthetic
glue which matches casein, and they
have almost succeeded. The initial
issues with synthetic glue related to
cleanability and the difficulty of label
removal in the bottle washer.
Synthetic glue would now be sold
with the following selling points:
• Can be formulated to have high tack
and ice-proofing
• Clean and trouble free machining at
maximum speeds
• Very easy to clean labelling
machine parts
• Very stable viscosity during storage
• Good price stability
When packaging beer, the bottle, when
it reaches the labeller, can be slightly
damp having exited the tunnel
pasteuriser, or if sterile filling there
maybe condensation on the bottle.
Unfortunately the synthetic glue will
not handle this, and it is specifically
stated that it is not suitable for wet
bottle surfaces and has no
condensation water resistance
So if the bottles are dry when they
reach the labeller a synthetic glue
maybe worth considering. Otherwise
it would be wise to stay with casein.
Wet Glue for PSL Labelling?
Another area of interest is the
development of a glue that can stick a
PSL label onto a bottle in a wet glue
labeller. This would be a major
breakthrough as it would mean that
companies with existing wet glue
labellers could apply PSL. Initially
the idea looked hopeful with a trial
being carried out by a major packager
using a special glue and a compatible
PSL label under the brand name of
Clearlok. Unfortunately the trials
were not completely successful. The
author is told that in order for this to
work, a capital investment would be
need to be made in order to modify
the labeller and this is something that
customers were not prepared to do. It
appears that, if this idea is really
worth pursuing, a labeller
manufacturer needs to be involved.
Management – Keep It Simple,
Stupid (KISS)
For packaging, good management is
the key area for success. Line
efficiencies are often not being
achieved because plants are not being
managed effectively and with
passion. At the end of the day results
are achieved through people and if
they are not motivated and well
trained to achieve results, it will not
happen.
When visiting a plant for the first
time, there are four things that would
quickly show it off as a good
operation:
• It is clean, neat and tidy. Also there
is no evidence of a previous to what they see as the real issues. ● The author
product run. They then like to see action being
Jeremy
• Notice boards give relevant and up- quickly taken to rectify those issues Browne
to-date information. (if the action is outside their own joined
• The people on the shop floor know realm). Guinness in
what is going on, and also who is This subject is too big for this short 1966. After
working for a
visiting that day. Also, as a visitor, I article, but it is a plea to those who are period in
am introduced to some of the creating more and more complex Ireland in the commercial,
employees. management tools to remember the sales and production
• The line is running, and if it is not, three guiding principles – which are departments, he then worked
for a short time at Guinness
there is positive activity in trying to quite simply:
Exports, Liverpool. After
rectify the problem. Everyone is • Being the best of the best and being working in Cameroon, Ghana,
involved, they know what they are proud of it Malaysia and Nigeria, Jeremy
doing and they are supporting one • Continuous Improvement as part of returned to the UK in 1985.
another. daily life During his time with the
company he commissioned
• Customer Focus – knowing how the four packaging plants,
This is surely a demonstration of products are perceived by customers managed three and has been
world class. World Class and if there are any complaints. ■ involved with the widget
Manufacturing and World Class technology from its inception.
You can reach the author at Jeremy left the company in
Organisation as it is taught today is jeremy.browne@btinternet.com April 2001 and started his
important, but is it breeding a own consultancy, Technical
different type of manager who speaks Management Support Ltd.
in a language that is often foreign to ● There is now a new Packaging Course He published a packaging
– Diploma in Packaging (Beverages) book, Excellence in the
the shop floor. There is a danger in which has recently been introduced by Packaging of Beverages, with
ostracising the very people that need the IBD. This is designed for managers in Eric Candy and won the BBI
to be endeared. And the bigger the packaging, and will give managers much Achievement Award in the
organisation the worse it seems to be. greater confidence to manage a same year. He has recently
packaging operation. Enquiries should been involved with the
One sees lists of acronyms e.g.
be directed to Andrea Williams at the introduction of the new
BCM, FI, EHS, VPM and SUTR. All Institute of Brewing and Distilling – Packaging Diploma for the
these could easily be put into simple andrea.williams@ibd.org.uk. IBD.
words. For example, SUTR is
‘set up time reduction’, in
other words quicker
changeovers. It encourages a
talk down philosophy when,
what is wanted, is free flowing
two way communication.
It seems, today, that every
idea has to be turned into an
acronym. When it is found
that, for example, Quicker
Changeovers is QC which is
also Quality Control, a more
complicated phrase is
dreamed up to create another
acronym like SUTR!
The essence of good
manufacturing is good
communication. Without it
there is absolutely no hope of
becoming world class. How
often are managers sitting at
their desks ploughing through
e-mails, creating wonderful
PowerPoint presentations,
plotting graphs, attending
meetings when they should be
on the shopfloor showing their
interest and passion in
continuously producing good
quality product into the
warehouse? The people on the
shopfloor, after all, are human.
They like their work to be
appreciated; they like to see
that someone is taking an
interest in them and listening
The BREWER & DISTILLER INTERNATIONAL • Volume 4 • Issue 1 • January 2008 • www.ibd.org.uk
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