Lightweighting: just do it with SACMI

June 5, 2023 by Asia Food Journal

Courtesy of SACMI

The company is revving up for ProPak Asia, Southeast Asia's biggest beverage and food packaging fair. On show: ready-to-market solutions that reduce the weight of the neck-cap system and, in the aluminum caps sector, everything needed for a successful PVC-free transition.

The global beverage and food packaging industry is facing a huge challenge: it needs to save energy and raw materials while giving consumers the best possible product experience. That's why SACMI will illustrate its main technological solutions at ProPak Asia 2023, the hugely important Southeast Asia fair to be held at BITEC, Bangkok, from 14 to 17 June 2023.

Thanks to unrivalled proficiency in all cap- and preform-making technologies, SACMI is successfully developing lightened necks and caps and establishing new standards that are more sustainable, both economically and environmentally.

The work begins in the Laboratory, spanning from the complete characterization of the materials and extending all the way to product development, in close collaboration with the major international brand owners.

An example: the GME 30.40 neck standard for CSD caps lets manufacturers reduce plastic consumption (PET and HDPE) by at least a third compared to today's commonplace PCO 1881. For the customer, that means an immediate, tangible advantage.

The same solution can also be extended to water caps, yielding logistical savings. Alternatively, by staying with the traditional 29/25 mm and taking advantage of SACMI-developed lightened necks, producers can cut material consumption by about 20% (from 2.4 to 2 grams).

SACMI also has tools that let manufacturers complete the transition to the 26/22 mm standard, a global trend that is, once again, driven by the need to minimize environmental impact by saving raw materials.

With regard to bottled water – fundamental in Thailand and neighboring countries where many people have no access to drinking water – and CSDs, the transition announced by SACMI rests on our rock-solid market positioning (over 70% of the installed one-piece cap production lines).

With CCM and the IPS preform machine range, SACMI provides a complete package to accompany manufacturers through this transition. Different parts of the world are proceeding, of course, at different paces, but they all have the same goals: to safeguard the environment and ramp up their competitiveness.

Other suppliers might be able to match us in specific areas, but with SACMI, customers can rely on a sole partner: a clear advantage as it allows them to provide markets with products that comply with the highest standards proposed by international brand owners.

The SACMI-developed Smart Pack was recently integrated into the latest-generation CCM compression machines. Using sophisticated in-machine sensors that automatically control the process without needing worker intervention, Smart Pack warns the operator when something is wrong, thus preventing waste and errors.

That same reactive control logic also sees vision systems – proprietary SACMI solutions for every stage of the process – taking on an increasingly central role. Here, visitors to the fair can check out exceptional new solutions such as the PVS156, the first vision system integrated into the press (IPS 300) to perform an intensive inspection of preforms.

On the alu cap lining machine front, SACMI is driving the transition to PVC-free liners. From roll-on pilfer-proof caps – for which SACMI provides a complete line – to lugged caps, SACMI liner application technology ensures exceptional strength and sealing properties.

With SACMI PMA, PVC-free liner forming requires no oily substances or plasticizers, thus eliminating the risk of product contamination; on the complete aluminum screw cap line, output rates can reach 2,500 pieces per minute.

All solutions can be equipped with dedicated inspection systems (MVS range) produced by SACMI Vision Systems.

With over 200 cap presses and dozens of IPS preform presses installed in the area, SACMI is perfectly placed to take the market to the next level by drawing on its in-depth understanding of the different manufacturing contexts (Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and Indonesia).

This lets us diversify the approach according to the specific needs of each country and the individual customers within them: all while continuing to deliver excellent technical assistance and spare parts services through SACMI Thailand.

We look forward to seeing you at ProPak Asia 2023, BITEC, Bangkok, Thailand, 14-17 June 2023

Other Topics: beverage capping, lightweighting, neck-cap system, Packaging, ProPak Asia, SACMI