Milacron adds on to sheet extrusion line capabilities

Having delivered its first polyolefin thick sheet extrusion line, consisting of a PAK400 single-screw extruder and a PAK650 single-screw extruder, last year, US machine maker Milacron Holdings says it is making headway in this new machinery sector for the firm.

Polyolefins make up the highest volume of thermoplastic products in the world and uses range from rigid materials to industrial food packaging and waterproof film. Research and development are increasing the variety of polyolefins, and as a result, they are steadily replacing traditional materials in many applications.

In the second quarter of 2015 Milacron delivered its first twin machines that increased the output rates to 950 kg/hour, says the firm. This represents a new product category for Milacron’s extrusion offering. Milacron has since delivered a second line in the second quarter of 2016 and has additional systems to deliver in early 2017.

The first sheet extrusion line has been in operation for 12 months, running 24/7 and the customer is reporting excellent performance, says Milacron. It has also installed in-line embossing capability to these sheet extrusion lines, eliminating the need to emboss offline, saving the customer another setup and eliminating the need to reheat the sheet, which can result in additional stress, and cause possible warping. These new sheet lines are engineered and installed by Milacron. This advancement allows Milacron to broaden its capability in packaging, medical and other high-output sheet applications.

Milacron is known globally for its injection moulding prowess with its brands: Mold-Masters, Uniloy, DME and CIMCOOL. Included in this portfolio are extruder designs, a major part of the Milacron portfolio since 1972.

Brian Marston, President, Milacron Extrusion explains how Milacron’s extrusion offering differs from many of their competitors, “Milacron’s lineup of extrusion systems are designed and built in house, we are producing the equipment in our Cincinnati (US), Ahmedabad (India) and Jiangyin (China) facilities. Our demonstration and development laboratories have made a science of optimising processing via natural compression. This creates a highly customisable approach for our customers: one that increases productivity, output and accuracy, while reducing costs.”

Marston added that company also builds extruders, new and rebuilt extrusion barrels and screws, pipe heads, dies and downstream equipment.