FLEXICON FLEXIBLE
SCREW CONVEYOR
A new low profile Flexible Screw Conveyor with
integral bin and castor-mounted frame can roll
below mezzanines and other low-headroom
areas, receive material from overhead equipment
and discharge the material into process
equipment and vessels throughout the plant.
Ready to plug-in and run, the self-contained unit
features a ‘push type’ drive system positioned
at the lower intake end of the conveyor, versus a
standard ‘pull-type’ drive positioned at the upper
discharge end of the conveyor, reducing overall
height by approximately 610 mm. At 250ℓ, the
integral bin accommodates the contents of
approximately one-third of a bulk bag measuring
1 x 1 x 1 metres, or several typical 25 kg bags,
depending on bulk density. A specialised BEVCON
screw within the straight conveyor tube is
engineered to move a range of difficult-to-convey
bulk materials that tend to cake, pack, smear or
plug, as well as fragile products prone to breakage,
with no separation of blends. With the exception
of the polymer tube, all material contact
surfaces are of stainless steel finished to food,
pharmaceutical, dairy or industrial standards for
rapid wash down and/or corrosion resistance.
www.flexicon.com.au
MARKEM-IMAJE AND COGNEX
Products with incorrect, unreadable or missing codes can cause significant problems
for manufacturers. Not only is traceability made difficult, if not impossible, during recall
situations, but also retailers may fine manufacturers or reject products. Markem-Imaje
and Cognex are deepening their existing partnership to develop the next generation of
Mark & Read applications for global fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies.
Both companies’ research and development and commercial teams will be working more
closely together to integrate their printing and reading solutions, collaborating at regional
and global levels on opportunities and projects in the packaging market. Markem-Imaje
chief executive Vincent Vanderpoel says manufacturers can expect to see the first of a new
generation of solutions by the end of the year, with an added range of improvements next
year. “This combination will allow us to capitalise on our major customer references, helping
them minimise rework due to missing or unreadable text and barcodes, reducing waste from
using incorrect data in printed messages, and avoiding scrapped product due to incorrect
packaging materials being used on the production line.” www.markem-imaje.com
UNIVERSAL ROBOTS
LAUNCHES E-SERIES RANGE
Universal Robots, a pioneer and market leader for collaborative robots (cobots), is continuing to evolve
its ground-breaking, collaborative automation technology with the introduction of the flagship e-Series
cobots. The e-Series cobot platform includes technology advances that enable faster development for a
wider variety of applications. Improvements include the ability to economically deploy even more applications,
thanks to greater precision and sensitivity provided by a built-in, tool-centric force/torque sensor.
Like other Universal Robots offerings, the e-Series offers unparalleled convenience. It takes just one hour
to unpack the cobot, mount it and programme the first task. A wrist-join-tool communication interface reduces
production line integration time and complexity, and all joints can be replaced in two-to-six minutes.
A re-designed intuitive and responsive-touch user-friendly interface streamlines programme development
by simplifying programming to a few clicks on a new lightweight, wide-screen teach pendant.
Safety has also improved with 17 safety functions, including customisable stopping time and distance,
making collaborative automation easier. Certified by TÜV Nord, all safety functions are in compliance with
the industry best-practice EN ISO 13849-1 and EN ISO 10218-1 (Cat. 3 PLd) machinery safety standards
for unobstructed human-robot collaboration. www.universal-robots.com
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/www.universal-robots.com
/www.markem-imaje.com
/www.flexicon.com.au
/www.foodtechnology.co.nz
