Increased production efficiency for Perform with Graco electric supply pumps

PERFORM A/S, based in Daugård, Denmark, develops, manufactures, and sells a wide range of high-quality flashing products to seal exposed areas of buildings, particularly roofs and façades. Their flashing products are characterised by installing environmentally friendly, modern, and innovative building materials. Examples include self-adhesive flashing, membrane bushings, and damp sealings. PERFORM flexible flashing has achieved BBA Approval (British Board of Agrément) for weatherability, fire-resistance, strength, and durability.

One of PERFORM’s key applications is to apply a two-component modified silicone (MS) polymer to a flexible laminate line to produce a multi-layered product which is then sold as roof flashing. This product is supplied to the domestic and commercial construction industry and used for finishing roofing installations (‘flashing off’) to prevent water ingress into joints.

For many years, PERFORM had used a Graco HydraCat 2K mechanical proportioner to mix and proportion the 2K MS accurately and was always satisfied with the minimum maintenance and maximum up-time.

"While satisfied with the HydraCat, we were looking to increase our production throughput while retaining sustained reliability to support our continuously operating lamination line," explains Managing Director Jesper Quist. "We, therefore, approached our Graco distributor Mouritsen A/S for the best upgrade solution."

Founded in 2007, Mouritsen strives to take an holistic look at their customers’ business needs, including investment, material usage, use of time, and environmental sustainability, to help customers optimise their processes and efficiency.

"After carefully analysing PERFORM’s specific requirements, we proposed Graco’s new E-Flo SP electric supply pumps," says Jacob Axelsen, Chief Sales Officer at Mouritsen. "We showed PERFORM the results of trials that clearly demonstrated that these pumps provide superior performance and efficiency when compared to pneumatic supply pumps in constant pressure systems."

Developed specifically for industrial sealant and adhesive applications, the Graco E-Flo SP enables the evolution of control strategies from constant pressure to flexible flow and can be coupled with Graco’s Precision Continuous Flow (PCF) to provide real-time, closed-loop flow control.

"We considered the E-Flo SP as offering a simple, cost-effective solution for PERFORM, and we confidently predicted it would improve process performance, prevent downtime, reduce maintenance costs and increase electrical efficiency," adds Morten Trads.

Four pumps were supplied; one pair pumping the A and B components (resin and hardener) and the second pair as a standby (tandem), allowing for continuous production even during barrel changes.

A small PLC controls the pump speeds with proportional flow volume control with both pumps synchronised to obtain the required mix ratio (1:1 in this case). Both pumps feed the polymer and hardener to the existing mixing block and disposable hose to the applicator valve on the lamination machine.

This set-up negates the need for a dispense mixing machine. It offers a controlled ‘on-ratio’ material supply with flow rates adjusted by the PLC set to match the lamination machine production speeds. The smooth delivery pressure (even during pump stroke changeover) provides a consistent bead width from the dispense valve.

Each system (A & B pump set) consists of 200 litre CheckMate 500cc D200 3” rams with a single Advanced Display Module (ADM) controlling both pumps. The maximum (dynamic) working pressure is 103 bar, with a stall pressure of 110 bar. Mouritsen provided the PLC control, software, and installation.

“Right from start-up, full production was obtained immediately, and the pumps have since run smoothly and successfully,” remarks Jesper Quist. “Once they were up and running, we went ahead and removed the old mixing machine.”

Besides simplicity and reduced maintenance, PERFORM are enjoying the following additional benefits of the E-Flo SP electric supply pumps:

• Material savings with less waste material left in the barrels using the E-Flo SP dual post ram units, allowing at least 98% usage of the material.
• Reduced electricity costs, since less compressed air is now needed for the plant.
• Huge noise level reduction in an area in which local production operatives are working.
• A ‘greener energy’ solution for a progressive high-profile manufacturing company.