Düsseldorf, October 29, 2010 – During the K2010, KraussMaffei announced the winners of the BluePower Award for exemplary energy efficiency and resource savings in plastics or rubber production. Entries to the international competition were assessed by an independent jury to select the winners in three categories. In the category Injection Molding, the award went to Gerresheimer AG, in the category Reaction Processing to Peguform GmbH, and in the category Extrusion to AGRU Kunststofftechnik GmbH (Austria).
Need to assess the process as a whole
“Energy efficiency and the economical use of resources are key levers which our customers can apply in order to cut their production costs long term. We believe it is essential to take the whole process sequence into account,” emphasized Dr. Dietmar Straub, the Chairman of the Management Board of the KraussMaffei AG. The BluePower awards go to companies which have been impressively successful in saving resources and energy operating KraussMaffei machines, processes or applications. “The competition has shown us how seriously plastics and rubber processors take their responsibility for the environment and sustainable development. We thank all participants and the members of the jury for their enthusiasm and commitment,” said Straub. The independent jury was made up of the following experts: Steffen Joest, Divisional Manager Energy Efficient Power Utilization at the German Energy Agency (Deutsche Energieagentur), Prof. Dr. Lothar Kroll, Institute for Lightweight Structures and Plastic Processing (SLK) at the TU Chemnitz, Dr. Reinhard Proske, Honorary President of the General Association of the Plastics Processing Industry (GKV) and Prof. Dr.-Ing. Johannes Wortberg from the Faculty of Engineering and Plastics Machinery at Duisburg-Essen University.
Winner Injection Molding Machinery: Gerresheimer AG
In the category Injection Molding Machinery, the Medical Plastic Systems division at Gerresheimer AG won with an integrated concept. Operating 15 KraussMaffei EX all-electric injection molding machines at its Wackersdorf plant, the company is saving the almost 900,000 kWh electricity a year compared with using hydraulic machines. In addition, a CHP (combined heat and power) plant has enabled Gerresheimer to reduce primary energy consumption by around 28% compared with previous solutions. The company has also installed heat recovery systems for the pressurized air systems at several of its production plants. This change has reduced CO2 emissions by around 20% per plant and year.
Winner Reaction Process Machinery: Peguform GmbH
Peguform GmbH won the award in the category Reaction Process Machinery for a manufacturing cell integrating an injection molding compounder and a polyurethane system to produce door modules with a foamed-in-place-gasket in an inline process. The multiprocess Technology3 solution is saving the company almost 300,000 kWh per year. In addition, the company is saving the cost of the space and power requirements for conventional process logistics with separate stations.
Winner Extrusion Technology: AGRU Kunststofftechnik GmbH
In the category Extrusion Technology, the winner used resource-saving QuickSwitch systems. The ability to change pipe dimensions steplessly during running production eliminates up to 600 conventional dimension changes a year, reducing energy consumption by around 100,000 kWh/year. At the same time, the KraussMaffei Berstorff systems shorten the non-operational time for the systems during the up to 15 automated changes that take place every week.
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