Environment friendly production processes

The environmental protection concept plays an important role at our company. Recently the ninth production plant of eleven has qualified for DIN ISO 14001 certification and this process will be concluded with the certification of the remaining two plants in the near future.

This concept has proven to be very effective in developing existing processes under environmental aspects as well as providing new manufacturing processes for product development.

Production procedures for product innovations

Within the scope of the development work to reduce weight, it is necessary continously adapt the entire production processes to the lower plate thicknesses.

The baking processes were adapted when the switch was made from solvent-based to water-based varnish systems (internal spray varnish, base spray varnish and external overvarnish).

Varnish is applied to the can ends in a reverse coating process in which the solvent is optimally applied and baked and consequently the emission of volatile organic compounds (VOC) is minimal.

A more recent development and significant challenge for the can end production process, was the switch to lubricant-free processing of the metal band.

Optimisation of existing processes

Over the past years, decisive environmentally relevant enhancements have been introduced step by step. Some examples:

• Savings in energy through the use of frequency-controlled drives, state-of-art burner equipment for thermal drying processes, consistent implementation of best practice and internal benchmarking.

• Savings in water through the use of a cascade connection in the washing process. In this case the beverage can is conveyed through the process in counter-flow to the washing agent so that the amount of water required can be minimised. In addition fully de-mineralised water which is used in one of the cleaning stages is conveyed in a closed circuit and consequently the required quantity kept to a minimum.

• Savings in varnish through optimal varnish application and avoidance of varnish wastage
  Coating technology is the subject of on-going development. Optimal varnish dosing corresponds to the current state of the art. Beverage cans are coated internally by a co-ordinated system of jets which apply a specifically defined quantity of varnish to the parts of the rotating can where it is required.

• Minimal waste and spoilage through enhanced utilisation of material, narrowing of tolerances etc.

• Continuous improvement in production efficiency, reducing spoilage to a minimum

Modification of existing processes or introduction of new processes

Important process enhancements to reduce harmful effects on the environment:

• High temperature incineration of discharged gases.
  The technology used here combines maximum cost efficiency with an environmentally friendly regenerative process. The process uses the incinerated discharged gases which have been treated to remove solvents and then heated, to preheat the discharged gases still to be treated.
  

The current and future requirements of the 31.BimSchV (federal legislation on protection against harmful effects on the environment).

• Treatment of waste water
  
• Reduction of noise emissions