Page 53 from: Recycling Technology 2016

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2016

Application: PAPER BALING

requirements on the paper press at the end of
the production line, saying: ‘If the baling press
malfunctions, the entire production comes to
a standstill.’ In a plant which produces round
the clock from 6 am on Monday to noon on
Saturday, there are, understandably, maxi-
mum requirements regarding operational
reliability of a baling press. ‘The disposal
process must run absolutely smoothly,’ Graf
insists.

Points system
After 20 years of operation, the existing

baling press in the corrugated cardboard fac-
tory had reached the end of its life. Down-
time was increasing so a search was initiated
at Neuburg for a successor. Several suppliers
were contenders in this race and all machines
were evaluated via a points system and ob-
served in use at reference customers, Graf ex-
plains. He adds that two small HSM presses

had already been running at Smurfit Kappa in
Neuburg for some time and that the company
had had ‘a good experience’ with them.

This assessment was further validated in
the selection procedure for the new machine.
As explained by the operations manager,
HSM was not only well ahead in the afore-
mentioned points process but also following
a visit and assessment by the company’s own
maintenance and service technicians.

Price was not the only factor; the entire
service package offered by the manufacturer
from Frickingen in Germany also played an
important role. And Graf adds: ‘We simply
had high-level confidence in the operational
reliability of the HSM press.’

Fire-resistant fluid
‘Installation of the new investment at

Neuburg was not easy,’ Graf continues. ‘HSM
could not simply take the VK 7215 from the
assembly line and leave it with us.’ The HSM

channel baling press is much larger than the
machine it replaced but the installation team
had to work only with the space available; in
particular, they had to fit in with the current
ventilation technology. In addition, HSM had
to make centimetre adjustments to the ma-
chine onsite at various points. As a supplier
to the food industry, Smurfit Kappa imposes
strict requirements regarding health & safety
and risk management.

This meant that, instead of using conven-
tional hydraulic oil for the HSM baling press,
they had to work with a fire-resistant fluid
specified by Smurfit Kappa and normally
used in aircraft engines. HSM modified the
machine accordingly and enabled the use
of this hydraulic fluid for the first time. The
standard use of high-strength steels in the
baling press also met the customer’s require-
ment for high wear resistance given that cor-
rugated cardboard is a very abrasive material.

Graf praises all the work undertaken, adding:
‘The adaptation to our interfaces also ran
without any problems.’ The supplier showed
its commitment to the project even after the
commissioning process: for example, HSM
promptly made the necessary arrangements
when it transpired that the wire feed required
modification.

Smurfit Kappa’s operations manager is also
pleased that HSM was able to install the baling
press in two days instead of three such that the
plant could start production again half a day
earlier than planned. HSM guarantees cus-
tomers a machine availability of 95% thanks
to its local presence and extensive service
network. Today, Graf is enjoying an increase
in capacity: the previous machine managed 4
tons per hour whereas the new one can handle
twice as much. Currently, this capacity is not
being fully used and room exists for further
development of the site. Meanwhile, Smurfit
Kappa is saving money through greater bale

HSM balers are used to treat the 48 tonnes of cutting waste produced at Smurfit Kappa’s facility every day.

compression, lorry transportation and en-
ergy cost benefits. Thanks to its frequency-
controlled hydraulic controller, the customer
is also seeing energy management benefits in
accordance with ISO standard 50 001. Fur-
thermore, says Graf, the ‘sophisticated safety
system’ of the VK 7215 also meets all of his
company’s expectations.

On all counts, Graf rates the collaboration
with HSM as ‘very co-operative and very suc-
cessful’.

Harry Weiland, Journalist
Website: www.hsm.eu

PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS

Project
Fully automatic baling press

Company
HSM GmbH + Co. KG

Operator
Smurfit Kappa is one of the world’s leading
providers of paper-based packaging
solutions. The plant in Neuburg an der Donau
in Germany has specialised in the production
of multi-colour, printed and punched sales
and dispatch packages.

Industry
Packaging

Implementation
2014

Task
Smurfit Kappa in Neuburg an der Donau needed
a reliable baling press for the disposal of larger
volumes of cutting waste. Among other require-
ments, the new baling press had to tightly
compress the cutting waste, fit with the limited
available space and work with a prescribed fire-
resistant hydraulic fluid.

Solution
Following a thorough selection procedure,
Smurfit Kappa decided to purchase the HSM VK
7215 channel baling press.

Advantages

compression of the cutting waste

operational reliability

thanks to frequency-controlled hydraulic
controller

specified by Smurfit Kappa

following commissioning