Taking control

To help beverage manufacturers control and maintain dissolved gases, 3M Industrial Business Group introduced its Liqui-Cel Dissolved Gas Control Skid, which simultaneously provides convenient and rapid in-line carbonation, decarbonation and nitrogenation, the company says. Because the all-in-one unit also contains a vacuum pump and measuring devices, the Liqui-Cel eliminates the need for separate systems/processes, saving time and money, it adds. Additionally, the contractors also are flexible and can easily be adjusted for a near instantaneous impact on dissolved gas concentrations. Using the membrane-based Liqui-Cel Contractors technology also can reduce residence time, complexity and product inconsistency because gas concentrations can be precisely predicted and controlled, it adds.

3M Industrial Business Group, Membranes Business Unit, 13840 S. Lakes Drive, Charlotte, N.C. 28273; 704/587-8888; liquid-cel.com.

Measuring can seams

Wilkens-Anderson Co. offers its SEAM360 as part of its line of quality-control equipment for cans. The SEAM360 is designed to improve speed and accuracy while eliminating human error and misinterpretation, the company says. Conventional seam inspection occurs at two or three points around a can, but the SEAM360 scans the entire circumference of a can in approximately eight seconds while simultaneously measuring seam thickness and seam height at 360 points to a 0.0002-inch resolution, it adds. The nondestructive SEAM360 quickly and expertly detects any can defects, such as false seams, seam bumps, broken chucks, droops, vees and knocked down flanges, the company says.

Wilkens-Anderson Co., 4525 W. Division St., Chicago, Ill. 60651; 773/384-4433; wacolab.com.

Safe transportation

Since acquiring the assets of Beyond Products Inc.’s The Mule’s battery-powered lifting products, Magline Inc. released a newly branded and upgraded LiftPlus. The versatile all-in-one system encompasses an electric screw drive system that provides smooth, quiet operation, the company says. Its narrow footprint also can fit through doorways and in tight spaces, eliminating the need for a fork truck, it adds. Additionally, the end effectors are equipped with quick-change brackets, which enable the LiftPlus to perform multiple jobs, and it easily folds for storage and transportation, according to the company.

Magline Inc., 1205 W. Cedar St., Standish, Mich. 48658; 800/624-5463; magliner.com.

Crowning perfection

KHS GmbH offers a new, hygienic crowner that increases microbial safety during beer filling while also shortening cleaning times, the company says. Other features include simple cleaning, effective protection against oxygen penetration in beer bottles and the ability to retrofit the new element into existing lines. The crowner prevents oxygen from entering a bottle during filling and closing processes, preventing poor taste and increasing shelf life, it adds. The device features a reduced-contact area on the capping ring’s head piece, which allows for more forceful rinsing while reducing the amount of residual beer on the components, the company says. Additionally, the distance between the cork shoe and head piece has been enlarged to enable optimal flushing, while a special sealing ring prevents beer from flowing into the thread of the crowner, it adds.

KHS USA, 880 Bahcall Court, Waukesha, Wis. 53186; 262/797-7200; khs.com.

Improved battery life

Because industrial forklift batteries can be an expensive investment, Yale Materials Handling Corp. released a new battery management solution designed to improve battery care and life, it says. Powered by PosiCharge technology, Yale Battery Vision monitors battery health and usage to help facilitate proper maintenance and warranty compliance tracking. Installed in as few as 20 minutes, the low-profile device employs cellular communications to deliver actionable, real-time data on key performance metrics like state-of-charge, water levels, voltage current and temperature, it adds. Additionally, email notifications alert operations managers to potential battery issues that could affect equipment performance and uptime. In addition to 24/7 monitoring, Yale Battery Vision is supported by PosiNET back-office data-management software that offers extensive reporting capabilities and data analysis tools that provide easy visibility to battery health across an entire fleet, helping to maximize profitability, productivity and operator safety, it adds.

Yale Materials Handling Corp., 1400 Sullivan Drive, Greenville, N.C. 27834; 252/931-5100; yale.com.

Precise positioning

Verti-Lift Inc. offers its new, integrated scissor lift tables that feature tilt, turn and conveying capabilities in order to enhance product positioning and ergonomics from a single station, the company says. The height adjustment of the scissor lift integrates with the tilt function, ensuring that workpieces are easily reached by the operator, it adds. With a 2,000- to 6,000-pound lifting capacity and a tilt range as wide as 60-degrees, the scissor lift also features height adjustment capabilities, and the manual turntable has a conveyor that safely and efficiently transports finished work to its next destination. Additionally, the manual turntable can include detents, or mechanical stops, for repeatable precision and accuracy, the company says. A variety of conveyor tops also are available. Suitable for a wide range of assembly line or batch production applications, the lift-and-tilt-tables feature easily accessible internal power units, heavy-duty cylinders, hand or foot controls along with sturdy tubular frames, heavy-duty hydraulic cylinders and lifetime lubricated kingpin bearings to ensure a long service life, it adds. Optional accessories also can be added, including accordion skirts, an oversized platform, a portability package, PLC controlled, foot-pedal control and an external power supply. The equipment is available in pneumatic designs with custom-size options.

Verti-Lift Inc., 5559 National Turnpike, Louisville, Ky. 40214; 502/361-0180; verti-lift.com.

Door safety

Rite-Hite Corp. introduces its LiteSpeed Clean high-speed, roll-up door that has been designed to deliver maximum clean-room integrity, reliability and safety, the company says. The door also is compliant with guidelines established by the Food and Drug Administration’s Good Manufacturing Practices and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, it adds. Made from a tough PVC vinyl curtain, the LiteSpeed Clean has a tapered design that uses nonexposed fasteners, which make it dust-resistant, the company says. Due to its tight seal, the door also maintains room-to-room pressure differentials as high as 0.2 inches of water, and the door’s roll-up design features operating speeds as fast as 65 inches a second and a smaller physical footprint. Designed with safety in mind, the door features safety presence sensors and, if the door is bumped or impacted, the True Auto Re-Feed automatically will reconfigure the door back on its tracks, it adds. The door’s bottom features Soft-Edge Technology, a reversing slack sensor that reverses the door’s course if an obstruction is sensed, providing more protection for product, personnel and equipment, it says.

Rite-Hite Corp., 8900 N. Arbon Drive, Milwaukee, Wis. 53223; 800/456-0600; ritehite.com.

A sustainable footprint

Kotkamills OY released its new carton board machine, BM2, which produces folding boxboards and foodservice boards for the consumer packaged goods market. The machine, along with its add-on capabilities, offers a wide range of possibilities for converters, brand owners and designers, the company says. Made from Nordic fresh forest fibers, the barrier boards can be re-pulped because they contain no plastic content and can be recycled with normal paper waste. They also can be produced with a silk matte finish, giving brand owners differentiation for their products, it adds. Additionally, the machine  reduces the consumption of electricity and water by nearly half when compared with the former paper production process, the company says. The effluent treatment plant also helps to improve the cleanliness of the waste water, while an on-machine dispersion coated barrier can replace the nonrenewable plastics traditionally used, it adds.

Kotkamills OY, P.O. Box 62-63, FI-48101 Kotka, Finland; + 011/358-5-210-11; kotkamills.com.

Disinfecting prowess

Advanced Diamond Technologies Inc. launched two Diamonox Ozone Technology systems: an inline industrial system and portable ozone sprayers. The systems provide precise point-of-use ozonated disinfection through small, water-based devices that use electrolysis, the company says. The ozonated water acts as a non-toxic biocide that overcomes disinfection challenges in the food and beverage industries and other markets, it adds. The cost-effective system requires only tap water and electricity to generate ozonated water, allowing operators to reduce biological contamination without the use of expensive or harmful chemicals, it adds. Additionally, the company’s easy-to-operate portable ozone sprayers are compact, mobile versions that enable operators to incorporate ozone-based disinfection into breweries, grocery stores and restrooms, among other markets, it adds.  

Advanced Diamond Technologies Inc., 48 E. Belmont Drive, Romeoville, Ill. 60446; 815/293-0900; thindiamond.com.

Emergency stopping 

Apem Inc. added a new high-security, emergency-stop switch to its existing lineup of industrial switches, it says. The AO2ES-H features an automatic disconnect from the power supply for cases of operator damage or switch block separation along with a built-in safety feature that reduces accident risk if the switch is damaged, destroyed or incorrectly assembled, it adds. The device features a 22-mm diameter bushing, a long mechanical lifespan of 250,000 cycles and a panel sealed up to IP65 rating. Optional backlit illumination also is offered. The A02ES-H emergency-stop switch is intended for applications where safety and regulatory levels are particularly high, such as in the material handling and industrial automation markets, it adds.

Apem Inc., 63 Neck Road, Haverhill, Mass. 01835; 877/246-7890; apem.com.

Product purity

ULVAC Technologies Inc. offers vacuum distillation systems, including its Centrifugal Vacuum Distillation CEH-400B II. The system is designed for highly functional, efficient small-lot manufacturing and features quick changeover to handle a variety of raw materials, the company says. Ideal for liquid-separation applications in the healthcare, electronics and food industries, the system provides product purity and removes unwanted materials by using heat to vaporize and separate compounds within a liquid, it adds.

ULVAC Technologies Inc., 401 Griffin Brook Drive, Methuen, Mass. 01844; 978/686-7550; ulvac.com.

Lighting it up wirelessly

Legrand North America offers a new two-button, programmable keypad that provides wireless, full-scene lighting control. The Vantage RadioLink EasyTouch II keypad provides seamless scalability, is designed for quick installation without the need to run new wires and is ideal for retrofit projects, replacing standard three- or four-way switches, the company says. The keypad also fits the needs of any new construction projects and features a robust communication protocol, incremental system expansion and fully synchronized on/off and ramp up/down of lighting loads, it adds. Other features include an expanded wireless distance for keypad-to-controller communications; multi-event programming; control of discreet loads or scenes with a single button; hidden, ambient light and IR sensors; and custom color options.

Legrand North America, 600 Woodlawn St., West Hartford, Conn. 06110; 877/295-3472; legrand.us.com.

Coming through in the clutch

Force Control Industries Inc. introduced Posidyne long coupled C-Face clutch brakes for high-cycle applications of 50 to 300 cycles per minute (cpm). The clutch brakes reduce motor shaft and keyway damage, which is common in high-cycle count applications, the company says. When indexing with a clutch brake, each clutch engagement transfers a torque spike to the connection between the motor shaft and the input shaft of the clutch brake. The shrink-fitted C-Face offers 360-degree connection that transfers the torque through the shaft, not just the key, which prevents the continuous, severe hammering on the shaft connection, it adds. The long coupled Posidyne clutch brake also offers the simplicity of C-Face mounting and a tight-fitting coupling. It also features oil shear technology that allows rapid and precise stopping, starting, reversing, speed change and positioning, it adds. With cycle rates as high as 300 cpm, the motion control device also offers production times as much as 10 times longer than traditional (dry) clutch/brakes, reduced downtime, no adjustments, minimal maintenance and a multi-year service life, it adds. The Posidyne clutch brake is available in multiple sizes, from ½- to 350-horsepower (99- to 79,000-pounds), with cooling options, control logic and mounting arrangements to simplify and speed installation, it says.

Force Control Industries Inc., 3660 Dixie Highway, Fairfield, Ohio 45014; 513/868-0900; forcecontrol.com.

A powerful connection

Antaira Technologies Inc. announced the expansion of its industrial networking infrastructure family with the LNX-2012GN-SFP series. Designed to fulfill applications in harsh or outdoor environments, the unit has one of the highest density, small-form pluggable (SFP) fiber port counts on the market for a DIN-Rail unit, the company says. The SFP fiber connectivity also is ideal in providing centralized connection of multiple devices, especially in environments with a lot of electrical noise, including power/utility and factory/process control automation industries, it adds.

Antaira Technologies LLC., 3490 E. Miraloma Ave., Anaheim, Calif. 92806; 714/671-9000; antaira.com.