We spoke to Rollon to learn more about the issues around contaminants affecting Industry Automation and what you can do if this sounds like an all too familiar problem.
Can you tell us a bit more about the company?
Rollon is a world leader in linear motion. We specialise in the design and manufacture of engineered linear guides, telescopic rails, linear actuators and gantry portals used in a wide range of industries, including food and beverage.
Rollon is headquartered in Milan, Italy and has manufacturing operations in Italy, Germany and the United States. Rollon boasts an extensive Global network, including here in the UK, to serve our customer base with customised product solutions and hands on technical support.
Where does Rollon step in for Food and Beverage Automation?
When bottling, packaging or bundling, there are typically two challenges you may face regarding linear motion hardware: performance and protection.
So, how do you ensure lifetime best performance?
The beverage sector, and related automation applications, are characterised by demanding time cadences, needed for maintaining high yield and efficiency for maximum productivity. To guarantee these challenging results, it is necessary to identify the correct type of actuator (i.e., the elements capable of making the difference when it comes to performance). To guarantee high dynamics, the ‘natural’ choice is to adopt a belt drive solution that allows for considerable accelerations and offers a load capacity suitable for the drink sector.
What should be considered when it comes to protection?
Furthermore, beverage automation must be protected from contamination (meaning debris in the form of dust and/or liquid spills). Liquids or impurity deposits that could accumulate on the motion equipment can significantly affect both the performance of the system and the quality of the finished product. If a linear guide becomes blocked with dirt for example, there are also possible maintenance and downtime costs to consider. The excessive presence of liquids, on the other hand, can cause corrosion.
Performance and protection are therefore closely connected…
Liquid leaks can cause machine downtime, potential maintenance interventions and,
over time, corrosion…with the consequent repercussions affecting cycle, yield, efficiency, and productivity.
So how do you avoid contamination and keep up performance?
Rollon’s experience over the years can shed some light on the issue and provide a few useful guidelines:
- Use the best protected linear actuators available
- Use corrosion-resistant materials and food sector specific components
- Carefully evaluate whether to “make or buy”
What are the Protected Linear Units?
Rollon’s range of solutions are designed to ensure maximum protection, even in the harshest of environments, for example the Plus System series. This family of Plus System actuators include the ELM linear axis. These linear belt actuators with specially designed extruded aluminium profiles and integrated linear recirculating ball guides are the most suitable choice when it comes to resistance to liquids and contaminants. A lipped polyurethane protective strip seals the extruded aluminium profile, preventing contaminants and liquids from affecting the function of the bearing elements contained within. The ELM series can also be positively or negatively pressurised with approximately 0.7/0.8 atmospheres, being more than enough to create a solution which allows for an excellent seal.
The other two members of the Plus System family are the ROBOT, with double recirculating ball guide for the heaviest loads, and the SC, specifically designed for vertical movement.
All sizes of ELM, ROBOT and SC linear actuators are available in an anti- corrosion version, with treated aluminium and stainless-steel components. Features that guarantee high resistance to corrosion, which is essential in applications in the beverage sector. Equally fundamental is the use of food-grade grease and specific FDA belts for use in the food sector, options available in the Rollon offer.
Why is a Rollon solution often the winning choice in beverage applications, especially when compared with the possibility of independently designing linear motion applications?
There are four main considerations:
- Easy design and maintenance guaranteed by compact and self- supporting solutions that enclose the essential protection elements in these applications
- Years of experience in the beverage sector is leveraged upon by specialist designers to prevent contamination and corrosion in a ready-to use solution.
- Benefiting from continuous technical improvements that increase performance and reduce assembly and maintenance time, such as the use of symmetric hollow shaft drive heads, easy access to the belt for tensioning or replacement and the simple installation of gearmotors without the use of additional elements such as joints or belts.
- Free of charge technical support from a dedicated application department and degree qualified sales engineers during your design phase. This includes a sizing service and demo CAD models, to allow designers to focus on the essence of their project.
In conclusion, the risk of contamination can be mitigated by taking advantage of the technological solutions available from the right partner.
Discover the range of PLUS SYSTEM linear actuators, visit www.rollon.com