Electric presentation of Sumitomo (SHI) Demag at Plastpol 2023

Sumitomo (SHI) Demag continues its strong commitment to sustainable development. Following its motto Act! Sustainably, this year, at the Plastpol fair on May 23-26, the company will present 2 energy-saving production cells based on on high-speed, fully electric injection molding machines, dedicated mainly to the technical and packaging industries.

High-speed full-electric IntElect S 75 ton with in-house robot SAM-C

Sumitomo (SHI) Demag will demonstrate the production of a 4 cm diameter cover for a motor component on a new high-speed electric injection molding machine IntElect S series with a clamping force 75 tons, integrated with a SAM-C handle & place robot. The detail will be produced in a four-cavity mold, in a cycle time 28 seconds. Then, the in-house designed robot SAM-C, the detail will be removed from the mold and placed on the conveyor belt. The most surprising thing about the entire process is the high energy efficiency of the production cell and the injection molding machine itself. The energy consumption of the machine is on average only 1.4 kWh. Such low energy consumption is possible thanks to the improved design of the injection molding machine, equipped with high-performance, low-inertia direct drives and high-performance ball screws. These components have been specifically designed to reduce energy consumption to just what’s needed to melt and transport the material, making the new version of the IntElect S series highly efficient and energy efficient. One of the key process advantages of electric drives is the ability to control the linear axis at speeds exceeding 500 mm/s. With energy prices rising rapidly, countering the impact of rising production costs through higher productivity, process repeatability and reduced waste is increasingly imperative from a competitive point of view. For these reasons the IntElect S version is so popular in the market.

Along with the high-speed electric injection molding machine IntElect 75 ton, the company will also showcase its automation capabilities using its own brand SAM-C handle & place robot integrated on the machine. The robot line called SAM is designed to minimize maintenance by using proprietary servo motor technology and a low-maintenance guides. Specifically designed to optimise production on Sumitomo (SHI) Demag injection molding machines, the robots SAM-C can significantly reduce overall footprint of a self-contained cell while simultaneously improving user-friendliness of the machine controls. The undoubted advantage of the SAM-C robot integrated with the IntElect S 75 is the operation of both devices from the machine panel and the ability to save process data in one place in the machine's memory. The new IntElect S 75 ton version, combined with the compact SAM-C robot, integrated housing and conveyor belt, will perfectly illustrate the synergy between the machine and the robot, creating a fully equipped, compact production cell.

To demonstrate the energy and economic efficiency of the production cell, an exciting live comparison is going to be carried out at the booth, by testing the energy consumption of an electric kettle and an injection molding machine. A kettle will be placed next to the IntElect S 75 ton, and energy consumption will be measured for both. Thus visitors at the booth can see on their own which device is more economical.

Energy efficient IntElect S 180 ton with R1 robot by Polish producer

The second production cell will also be demonstration of low energy consumption, high speed and sustainability at the same time while producing thin-wall box. The core of this cell will be fully electric high-speed injection moulding machine IntElect S with clamping force 180 tons. The machine will work with a side robot for IML applications model R1, developed and created by the Polish company Matsim SP. z o.o. from Koszalin. In this application will be produced a 150 ml thin-wall box in a two-cavity mould designed and delivered by Polish company JES Opakowania from Koszalin. The cycle time will be approx. 4 seconds. The box will be produced with two IML labels- a wrap label and bottom label. The presented part has been also designed by the Polish company JES Opakowania.

The advantage of the IntElect S 180 ton is the higher stiffness of the plates ensuring the highest precision even with very fast cycles. This high-precision production, characterized by high dynamics and high energy efficiency, contributes significantly to the success of this project. Thanks to its own direct drives, IntElect consumes up to 20% less energy than conventional all-electric injection molding machines on the market.

To achieve optimal efficiency of the production cell, the robot R1 is multitasking, from picking a labels, through side movement picking up the part from the mold, to stacking parts on conveyor belt. During all the process, the robot maintains high energy efficiency, using only 0,046 kWh/kg, and 0,36 kWh per hour. The Matsim robot has been customized to work with IntElect S 180 t. Along with the robot, the all-electric machine IntElect S 180 itself performs low energy consumption by consuming 3,6 kWh average and 0,30 kWh/kg of material in the process.

The Matsim R1 robot is adapted to retooling IML label magazine and retooling ILM hoofs and pick-ups. In production conditions, it works alternately with two different molds producing a separate parts. It takes an experienced operator up to 20 minutes to convert the robot to work with the second application. The construction of the robot is based on a steel frame on which a composite beam with a high vibration damping coefficient is placed. The robot does not require fixing to the ground - although of course it is recommended. This model has a high dynamic linear drive; it can reach a maximum speed of 7 m/s and an acceleration of 72 m/s² (~7g).

For Sumitomo (SHI) Demag and Matsim it is important to show possibilities of implementation of sustainable activities in the production process in plastic industry. Therefore the main aim during creating this production cell was its energy efficiency and environmental protection. As a result of its plans, Matsim will recycle produced parts to reuse it as a raw material in other productions.

Matsim sp. z o.o. is a Polish company established by specialists with many years of experience in automation field. The company specializes in customized automation, tailored to customer needs. They design, develop project simulations and construct the entire automation systems, as well as providing service for their products.

Sumitomo (SHI) Demag is present at the Plastpol fair in hall F, booth F-19.