A new blender from Maguire Products Inc. (Aston, PA) that provides extrusion control based on batch precision and metering accuracy can be interfaced with a supervisory system that controls the total production line. It has been proven effective in blown and cast film, sheet, pipe and profile, and wire and cable applications, said Maguire.

The new WXB weigh extrusion blender incorporates a gain-in-weight (GIW) weigh bin and loss-in-weight (LIW) mix chamber in one machine with a Maguire 4088 controller. While the GIW function precisely weighs batch ingredients as they are dosed sequentially into the weigh bin, the LIW mix chamber accurately meters the blend into the processing machine. Extrusion control and haul-off in accordance with process variables, thus, is facilitated. The tight tolerance achieved by the blender—within +/- 0.1%—is a key to conserving raw material, according to Maguire.

The 4088 controller is Maguire’s most advanced blender control and is designed for communication with other systems in an Industry 4.0 setting. It enables the WXB blender to interface with the Maguire + Syncro supervisory system, which provides control of all segments of the production line from a single touch-screen HMI control. In blown film production, for example, the system controls extruder temperature, raw material metering and consumption data, air ring automation, gauging, internal bubble cooling, web and cage handling, haul-off and winder. The system can be deployed for co-extrusion with multiple extruders.

The Maguire + Syncro brand is the product of a partnership between Maguire and Syncro srl, which began in 2016 when Maguire took an investment position with Syncro. “The partnership draws on Maguire’s experience in materials handling and blending systems and Syncro’s extensive range of control systems for extrusion applications,” said Frank Kavanagh, Maguire Vice President of Sales and Marketing. “It enables us to provide customers with turnkey control systems for virtually any type of extrusion operation.”

The Maguire + Syncro control display allows users to easily visualize single-layer and co-extrusion processes. Modes of extrusion control available include pounds or kilograms per hour, weight per length of extrudate and product thickness in microns.

Three WXB blender models are currently available: WXB 100 for throughputs of 100 to 220 lb/hr (50 to 100 kg/hr); WXB 200 for 220 to 440 lb/hr (100 to 200 kg/hr); and WXB 400 for 440 to 880 lb/hr (200 to 400 kg/hr). The blenders can be configured for up to 12 ingredients, each with a separate dispenser. The WXB blender is compact and includes guards for safe operation. The mix chamber is easily removed for quick clean out. All loading system options available from Maguire are integrated into the controller.

» Publication Date: 09/07/2018

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