Energy-efficient innovation for liquid filling

The Sneyders Scaldis filling machine combines servomotors with the SINAMICS S120 drive for energy efficiency, minimal downtime and sustainable production.

At 3,000 units per hour, every percentage of efficiency gain makes a big difference. Therefore, industrial liquid filling machines need to run as efficiently as possible. Machine manufacturer Sneyders fitted its Scaldis machine with electric servomotors. But it doesn't stop there. The SINAMICS S120 drive also recovers all braking energy.

Lower energy bills = direct competitive advantage

Sneyders designs its machines for maximum operational and energy efficiency. “Minimal downtime and lower energy bills give our customers a competitive edge,” says Charles Van Bavel, COO Sneyders. “That is why we use electric servomotors in our machines. These require five to ten times less electrical energy to perform the same mechanical work than a pneumatic alternative.”

This is also the case in the Scaldis, Sneyders’ machine for highly viscous liquids. “This makes it popular with motor oil producers. For example, Lukoil, Total and Q8 are customers. But also for detergents and healthcare products the Scaldis is often used. Henkel and Ecolab also work with it.”

Siemens supplies the HMIs, PLCs, motors and drives for Sneyders’ machines. Jeroen Pieters, account manager at Siemens: “In the Scaldis machine, we chose a SINAMICS S120, our high-end servo drive that allows multiple servomotors to be controlled simultaneously. The big advantage to this is that these motors use the same DC-link, allowing you to reuse the braking energy from motor A to accelerate motor B. This way, no energy is lost in the form of heat. The S120 is the central drive, the PLC as orchestrator gives the commands.”

About Sneyders

Sneyders builds high-tech filling and sealing machines that fill and seal containers of liquid products. The family business owned by Yves Van Bavel (CEO) and Charles (COO) has 35 employees. Yves took over the company from Peter Sneyders in 2012.

All servomotors use the same DC-link, so you can reuse the braking energy from motor A to accelerate motor B.

Jeroen Pieters, Account Manager, Siemens

Starting and stopping is crucial

Quite a few starts and stops happen in the machine. Charles: “The motor control ensures that the filling needles of the Scaldis sink deep down into the bottle and gently rise again as the bottle is filled. The flow rate and filling height adjust automatically: starting slowly and slowing down again at the end. During filling, the filling needles follow the liquid level. That way you don’t spill anything and avoid foaming.” So residual energy recovery does not yield insignificant energy gains here. It is an absolute gamechanger. For 5-10 per cent, the machine is braking. The residual energy can be used by shafts that are then accelerating.

Avoiding product loss

Recovery of braking energy is not the Scaldis’ only sustainability trump card. Charles: “The Scaldis has eight filling needles. It can fill up to eight bottles—ranging from 1 to 10 litres—simultaneously. The integrated Clean In Place (CIP) module automatically flushes the machine between batches of different products—as if it had its own dishwasher. There is no external device involved. The machine polishes itself. Moreover, virtually no product is lost when you switch fluids.”

Intuitive and ergonomic

Sneyders places high value on homogeneity in user interfaces. Jeroen: “I find that very clever about Sneyders’ machines. If you can operate one, you can work blindly with all their machines, so to speak. The HMI shows the operator step by step what needs to be adjusted. Ergonomically, they are also nice machines. They are not difficult or heavy to work with at all. Which in turn benefits the operator’s sustainable employability.”

Charles: “Ergonomics is indeed crucial. Also for the end user of the products. This is how we calculate the ideal closing torque for the servomotors of our sealing machines: how strong should caps be mechanically tightened so that they are firmly seated, yet do not require too much force to open?”

Virtually no downtime

Avoiding downtime is also crucial. “For Sneyders, sustainability starts with efficiency,” Charles continues. “And the S120 drive makes our machines hyper-efficient. They work quickly, accurately and there is virtually no downtime.”

“Our machines are made for continuous production," Charles continued. “The Scaldis fills 3,000 bottles per hour, which is 24,000 on an eight-hour shift. Does it involve shampoo bottles of €5 each? Then, as a producer, you are already losing €120,000 if your machine is out of service for one shift. That’s why we want to minimise downtime.”

The S120 drive makes our machines hyper-efficient.

Charles Van Bavel, COO, Sneyders

Every little bit helps...

Sneyders extends that efficiency exercise to all levels. “The super-compact PLCs can be nicely integrated into the machine housing. We no longer need a separate control box, keeping the footprint of the machine as small as possible.”

“The servomotors require hardly any maintenance, which significantly reduces the total cost of ownership. Last but not least, our machines easily last 20 years. All these small benefits keep our customers one step ahead.”

The benefits in a nutshell

Energy-efficient servomotors
Brake energy recovery thanks to S120 drive
No spillage during filling
Hardly any product loss at liquid switch
Fast and minimal downtime
Compact design, less cabling
Low-maintenance (reduces total cost of ownership)
Lifespan of 20 years