When asking moulders about their mental picture relating to temperature controllers, replies frequently include expressions such as: “low-cost purchase or leasing, easy installation, switch on and forget about it until the next mould change.”Moretto, based at Massanzago in Italy, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of automation equipment for the processing of plastics, has exhaustively looked at the subject of mould cavity temperature control, undertaken research and finally presented the gathered requirements to its in-house research and development department. The aim was to introduce a complete market-ready family of temperature controllers at FAKUMA for the first time worldwide, named TE-KO, comprising two stand-alone product ranges, one based on water, one on oil, each with eight models, satisfying present and future market requirements. Those requirements are solved as follows, taking into specific consideration fast and impeccable commissioning:
- Working controls: the device controls volume and checks operating pressure, ensuring that the coolant volume is actually circulating.
- Heating: the resistors located in two different areas increase the relevant performance
- Cooling: a tubular stainless steel heat exchanger with double winding generates 50 kW refrigerating capacity. Heat accumulation is impossible.
- Electrical connections: TE-KO comes with power supply cable. RS485 serial port.
- Hydraulic connections: TE-KO has 4 input and 4 output connections as standard, in order to solve the issue of branchings, connections and manifolds once and for all.
- Filter: available with high capacity, accessible from the outside, due to fast lock feature (optional). The cooling liquid contains glycol or anti-freeze agents. The large filter absorbs sediment over long periods of time, thus maintaining optimum long-term heat exchange capability.
- Volume: the 16 liter capacity of the super tank is double that of conventional systems. The oval shape of the trough ensures ideal mixing of the coolant; the stainless steel construction guarantees a long service life.
Great emphasis has been placed on accessibility, so that all essential tasks required for problem-free operation of the equipment are easy to perform. A version designed to operate under vacuum – to prevent possible loss of liquid – completes this range of products which are designed specifically for a long operation lifespan – Lifelong.
Considering the current economic climate, moulders will show particular interest in product longevity, easy operation, cost reduction, and optimisation of energy consumption. With the coming together of state-of-the-art technology in construction and performance optimisation at low energy consumption, providing attainable solutions for a number of customer requirements, Moretto products will receive an excellent response. Moretto constantly maintains its quest for continuous development of new applications and innovative solutions in the automation of plastics processing.
