O-I is the primary supplier of glass bottles for the North American beer industry. In addition to standard 12-ounce long-neck bottles, O-I manufactures containers ranging in size and color, including its newest750-ml. share bottle. The share bottle offers greater volume and impressive style to match. Visit o-i.com for more details about the beer bottle capabilities.
- O-I, One Michael Owens Way, Perrysburg, Ohio 43551; 567/336-5000; o-i.com.

Pallet transport carriers

Sonoco introduced new Firma brand carriers and pallet components, a line of transport packaging products engineered to address problems associated with traditional pallets. The line includes FirmaLoad bulk bag carriers, FirmaCore lightweight carriers, FirmaDeck lightweight corrugated carriers, FirmaMax recycled plastic carriers and FirmaGuard components. Firma line is made from a variety of sustainable materials such as recovered paper, recycled plastics and compressed wood. The carriers are 100 percent recyclable and were designed with the total supply chain in mind, beginning with the selection of recycled raw materials, the company says.

- Sonoco, North Second St., Hartsville, S.C. 29550; 843/383-7000; sonoco.com.

Pilot manufacturing

Ball Corp. expanded its metal beverage packaging pilot manufacturing line at the Ball Technology & Innovation Center in Broomfield, Colo., by adding a new palletizer, a decorator and several other improvements. The improvements to the metal beverage pilot line enable production of between 10 and 50,000 aluminum cans or Alumi-Tek bottles for consumer testing or small product launches; flexibility to produce a range of can sizes from 202 to 211 in diameter, 307 to 708 in height and 5.5-ounce to 16-ounce in volume; pilot production of standard cans or Alumni-Tek reclosable bottles; and testing of graphics innovations such as Eyeris high-definition printing, thermochromatic ink and matte finish.

- Ball Corp., 9300 W. 108th Circle, Broomfield, Colo. 80021; 303/469-3131; ball.com.

Pallet truck option

The Raymond Corp. added a new PowerSteer option to its 8000 Series rider pallet trucks. The feature is available on the Raymond Model 8400 end rider, Model 8500 center rider and Model 8600 tugger trucks to improve productivity in dock, horizontal transport and low-level order picking applications, the company says. The PowerSteer option has an AC-powered motor and controls. Raymond center rider and tugger trucks with the PowerSteer option also feature an adjustable-height handle to accommodate a wide range of operator heights and preferred operating positions. In addition, with the option, center rider and tugger trucks automatically slow down when turning corners.

- The Raymond Corp., South Canal St., Greene, N.Y. 13778; 800/235-7200; raymondcorp.com.

Beverage end measurer

CMC-Kuhnke introduced a new set of Opening Force Gauges specifically to measure the re-sealable beverage end. The MARS-OFG is used to test and measure the opening and closing force, and the overturn of re-sealable ends. It is equipped with a hopper with eight bins, each able to stack eight ends. A pick & place system picks up the end, moves it into the alignment station, and then into position for testing. The company also introduced OFG-1000, a standalone gauge used to measure the opening force of filled, seamed cans. The results are displayed on the touchscreen. Both systems measure the loose ends during the production phrase, as well as the seamed cans in the filling environment, the company says.

- CMC-Kuhnke, 1060 Broadway, Albany, N.Y. 12204; 518/694-3310; cmc-kuhnke.com.

Hot-melt dispenser

Nordson Corp. introduced PatternJet Plus, a new hot-melt dispensing applicator. Originally designed for roll-fed labeling applications, PatternJet Plus applicators can be integrated into a range of high-speed packaging and general product assembly operations. Integrated process-air heating and cycling provides cleanliness between patterns, increasing product aesthetics while reducing maintenance adhesive use and waste, the company says. An applicator body and module with retract-on-close actuators prevent adhesive stringing. PatternJet Plus applicators are compatible with Nordson patented Universal nozzles, which let manufacturers change adhesive patterns for different products and applications without changing the applicator or module. The design also features quick-change cord sets with an integrated heater and sensor.

- Nordson Corp., 11475 Lakefield Dr., Duluth, Ga. 30097; 800/683-2314; nordson.com.

Gear oils

Kluber Lubrication offers Kluberoil NH1 G 1 US Series and Kluberoil NH1 G 4 US Series, two gear oils for the foodservice and packaging industries. Kluberoil NH1 G 1 US Series is a white mineral oil, while Kluberoil NH1 G 4 US Series is a synthetic version. Both series of lubricants are ideal for the lubrication of production equipment in beverage canning, bottling operations, meat and poultry processing, dairy operations, fruit and vegetable processing, bakeries and pharmaceutical plants, the company says. Due to the wide temperature range of the gear oils, it is often sufficient to use one viscosity grade for both high and low temperatures, the company adds.

- Kluber Lubrication, 32 Industrial Drive, Londonderry, N.H. 03053; 800/447-2238; kluber.com.

Shrink labels

Printpack Inc. added NeoAffinia PETG Film for shrink-sleeve applications to its Affinia Series. NeoAffinia is a white film that provides light barrier protection for products negatively impacted by exposure to light. The shrink labels, such as the Nut Hill Café label, have a matte finish, the company says. The product has a 70 percent or more shrinkage rate, and it is suited for contoured containers. The film is surface printed up to 10 colors in rotogravure or flexographic processes on a variety of shrink films and laminations.

- Printpack Inc., 2800 Overlook Pkwy., Atlanta, Ga. 30339; 800/451-9985; printpack.com.

Mini-load crane

Swisslog announced the availability of its Tornado miniload crane. The crane is based on a modular system, and it is designed for high endurance and long intervals between servicing, the company says. Tornado miniload crane can be equipped with various load-handling units to transport cases, totes or trays weighing up to 250 pounds. The system supports a height range of 20 to 65 feet, and can be used for single or double-deep storage. The solution was developed by the company’s recently established Technology Center and will be used in future intralogistics products of Swisslog’s Warehouse & Distribution Solutions division.

- Swisslog, 161 Enterprise Dr., Newport News, Va. 23603; 800/783-9840; swisslog.com.

Solutions for vehicle access

KSW Microtec AG presented a new generation of prelaminates for eGovernment, ePayment and Access applications at ID World International Congress 2009. The company highlighted its Thinlam product family of prelaminates for high security high frequency (HF) and ultra high frequency (UHF) RFID card manufacturing, as well as the WindSpeed family, which provides solutions for vehicle access. Thinlam enables card manufactures to produce HF and UHF RFID cards with more layers, the company says. It is available on PVC, polycarbonate, PET or Teslin, and also can be used for transparent RFID cards. KSW Microtec’s windshield offers customers secure vehicle access into various locations and premises. It is ideal for commercial fleet operators of cars or trucks, the company says.

- KSW Microtec AG, Manfred-von-Ardenne-Ring 12, Dresden, Germany 01099; 49 351 889 6028; ksw-microtec.de.

Management capabilities

Emerson Process Management and Meridium announced a partnership to deliver asset management capabilities to customers in the process industries. The companies worked together to develop the new AMS Suite: Asset Portal v4.0 powered by Meridium. It provides integration in real-time to other AMS Suite applications to link asset diagnostics with business metrics and performance indicators. The AMS Asset Portal v4.0 includes pre-defined analysis, and views and reports of AMS Suite information. Emerson also announced its PlantWeb services, which are offered to design, implement and quantify the business benefits of asset strategies for users. In addition, Emerson released its Smart Wireless THUM Adapter, used to free up diagnostics and process information that had previously been inaccessible in wired legacy system installations.

- Emerson Process Management, 12301 Research Blvd., Building 3, Austin, Texas 78759; 865/675-2400; emerson.com.

Pest prevention program

The Steritech Group Inc. introduced the AuditReady Pest Prevention Program, a pest prevention service custom-tailored to help beverage and food processing, distribution and warehousing industries address the food safety requirements of government agencies, certification bodies and third-party auditors. The service is performed by specially trained commercial pest prevention service specialists, all of whom are certified by the National Pest Management Association in Food Plant Standards. Steritech management also will perform detailed semi-annual quality assurance visits with plant or facility staff. The company says that the AuditReady Pest Prevention Program has been benchmarked against Global Food Safety Initiative standards and complies with all U.S. Food & Drug Administration, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Safe Quality Food and British Retail Consortium food safety and quality standards.

- The Steritech Group Inc., 7600 Little Ave., Charlotte, N.C. 28226; 800/868-0089; steritech.com.

Lightweight conveyor belt

Ashworth Bros. released the Omni-Pro FlexLite conveyor belt, a rugged, lightweight belt for conveying pans, trays and large products. The design is manufactured with the Omni-Pro link and uses a 1.5-inch by 3-inch (fixed loop) flat wire overlay. The belt has a spiral-turn-curve tension rating of 400 pounds for 100,000 cycles. Turn ratios range from 1.6 to 2.5 and belt widths are available in even widths from 24 to 60 inches. Omni-Pro also features a patented “protusion leg” that prevents welds from contacting spiral cage bars and permits the belt to run smoother, the company says.

- Ashworth Bros., 450 Armour Dale, Winchester, Va. 22601; 800/682-4594; ashworth.com.

O-I Specialty Bottles

O-I Specialty bottles showcase products in a way that stand out from the rest. Whether you’re a large or small company, O-I has the production flexibility to meet a beverage company’s exact tastes. O-I specialty solutions are truly top shelf, it says. Visit o-i.com for more details about it’s specialty capabilities.

- O-I, One Michael Owens Way, Perrysburg, Ohio 43551; 567/336-5000; o-i.com.

Multiple bill vending machine

MEI released Cashflow Series 2000 VNR Vending Recycler, which allows vending machines to accept $20, $10, $5 and $1 bills. It uses cash recycling technology to dispense previously accepted bills ($1 or $5) as change. The Cashflow VNR features a modular design and a small cash recycler footprint, the company says. An optional high-visibility bezel with bright, low-powered LEDs informs customers which denominations are being accepted. The MEI 4-in-1 bezel also can be installed, which allows the Cashflow VRN to accept cash, MEI coupons, credit card and contactless payments.

- MEI, 1301 Wilson Drive, West Chester, Pa. 19380; 610/430-2700; meiglobal.com.  

Thin-wall label system

Label-Aire launched Inline Series 6200 Front/Back Labeling System designed to apply front and back labels to thin-walled containers with its airfill capability. The system also has the capability to reject bottles that do not meet a customer’s criteria prior to the containers reaching the filler, the company says. Series 6200 is based on the stainless steel/cabinet based Inline Series 6200 labeling system with a pair of Label-Aire 3125 applicators with 10-inch wide roll label capability to handle the large front and back bottle labels. The system also can inspect the absence of label on product, and can remove the empty container from the line. The company also introduced Trunnion Series labeling system, which wraps labels at high speeds to small diameter products. The Trunnion Series is a stainless steel cabinet-based PLC-controlled labeling system designed for heavy-duty wrap labeling applications. It can be built for horizontal, vertical or angled trunnion labeling.  

- Label-Aire Inc., 550 Burning Tree Road, Fullerton, Calif. 92833; 714/449-5155; label-aire.com.

Vacuum conveying

Spiroflow Systems Inc. offers the Pneuvac vacuum conveying system, which is ideal for long-distance conveying and situations in which product degradation is a concern. The vacuum can convey up to 6,000 pounds of material per hour at distances up to 300 feet. The system is suited for rapid discharging of material from road or rail tankers into silos or the transfer of product from bulk bags, hoppers or silos to production processes. The vacuum conveyors allow for easy maintenance of a head of material in a process machine hopper, filling blenders, check sieving, feeding mills, loading table presses and conveying material into mixing tanks. Material can be taken directly from bags, drums or kegs.  

- Spiroflow Systems Inc., 2806 Gray Fox Road, Monroe, N.C. 28110; 704/291-9595; spiroflow.com.

Infrared spectrometer

Ocean Optics Inc. introduced the NIRQuest Spectrometer, a fiber optic near-infrared spectrometer for online process control measurements from 900 to 2,500 nanometers. Applications for the spectrometer include bacterial detection in beverage and food production, moisture detection in grains and meats, materials characterization of semiconductor components and chemical analysis of pharmaceuticals. NIRQuest uses Indium Gallium Arsenide-array detector in a compact optical bench with thermoelectric cooler and low-noise electronics. The equipment couples to a PC and can operate via USB 2.0 or RS-232. In addition, NIRQuest can be bundled with the Ocean Optics Remora Network Adapter to turn the system into a networked spectral data server, other Ethernet or an existing Wi-Fi connection.  

- Ocean Optics Inc., 830 Douglas Ave., Dunedin, Fla. 34698; 727/733-2447; oceanoptics.com.  

I/O on demand

Emerson Process Management released the DeltaV S-series platform featuring “I/O on demand” and Electronic Marshalling. The release includes enhancements to all the systems’ I/O processing, operator displays, asset management, batch capability and system security. By using Electronic Marshalling, a technology that streamlines design and installation, companies can eliminate two-thirds of the wiring and connections needed for today’s conventional marshalling cabinets, the company says. The DeltaV S-series also has redundant communication, which together with the wireless network can provide high uptime, the company adds.  

- Emerson Process Management, 12301 Research Blvd., Building 3, Austin, Texas 78759; 512/835-2190; emersonprocess.com.

Virtual reality training

Invensys Operations Management announced the commercial availability of its new EyeSim virtual reality immersive training solution. The solution is based on first-principle simulation and augmented reality. It also enables engineers and operators to see and interact with the plant and processes they control, the company says. EyeSim combines virtual reality technologies with high-fidelity process and control simulation, computer-based maintenance and documentation management. In addition, EyeSim technology is geared toward the energy, chemical, oil and gas, and other process industries.  

- Invensys Operations Management, Portland House, Bressenden Place, London, SW1E; 020 7834 3848; invensys.com.