With 13 facilities throughout North and South America, Plastipak Packaging Inc., a leading manufacturer of plastic containers to the food, beverage and consumer products industries, is committed to continuous improvement of operational efficiency.
For its East Longmeadow, Mass. facility, that has translated into upgrading the energy infrastructure. Working with the company's energy supplier, Massachusetts Electric, Plastipak investigated a number of options, including cogeneration. In the end, it decided to purchase Atlas Copco's PETPACK compressors, which feature a unique four-stage compression system.
Specifically designed to address the needs of polyethylene terephthalate packaging producers, PETPACK uses oil-free screw and piston technologies,the first two compression stages are rotary, while the last two are piston. This combination provides for more effective intercooling and reduced discharge temperatures.
Paul Rowlands, Atlas Copco's business manager for oil-free compresssors, explained the technology this way. "Basically, you can halve your maintenance costs for three main reasons. First, the technology matches the airflow with air requirements; second, it softens the edges, because there are no sudden startups and turnoffs; and third, it allows production to change very quickly without changing machinery. We know the energy savings are approximately 20 to 30 percent,but we haven't yet calculated the savings related to reduced maintenance and extended lifespans."
