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Automated gas bottle processing plant


Portfolio: Production
Industries: Plant Engineering and Machine Tool Industry

CHALLENGE

Gasitech Industrie-Gas-Handelsgesellschaft is one of Europe’s strongest-performing companies in the area of regular testing, industrial processing, and filling of gas bottles. By installing a new gas bottle processing plant, the company aimed to increase its capacity, improve quality, and make working conditions less strenuous for its employees.

IMPLEMENTATION

For Gasitech, HEITEC developed and manufactured two robot-supported systems, each containing ten stations, to process used gas bottles fully automatically using a unique technology set-up. The bottles are fed into the system using an input/output carousel that can accommodate 16 bottles. A fully automatic system determines the height, diameter and shape of the bottles, then unscrews the old valves. A lot of force is required because the valves are often stuck or rusted in place. This step involves mounting the bottles on a sturdy rotary table and clamping the valves tight while the table is rotated. The bottles are then mechanically brushed in three paint-removing stations equipped with a suction device and prepared for the painting process. The valve threads are also recut and the bottles are weighed. Laser triangulation is used to record old lettering and render it unreadable; the bottles are then given new markings before being fed back by robots into the input/output carousel for further processing. A six-axis robot, which can lift up to 280 kilograms, does all the work of handling the bottles.

CUSTOMER BENEFIT

  • Production capacities doubled
  • Significant quality improvement
  • Major cost savings
  • Shorter production times
  • Less physical work for employees

 

 

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