Davis-Standard has introduced a new high performance air ring system for blown film processes – the Upjet™ Air Ring. This next generation air ring system is the latest in Davis-Standard’s line-up of performance-improving extrusion technology for blown film processes. With a stalk configuration, improved IBC and Venturi ring design, the Upjet enhances the cooling efficiency of new blown film lines to increase output while improving thickness tolerance. The result is an output increase of as much as 25 to 40 percent over similar designs.

“The Upjet is ideal for blown film processes requiring increased rate and improved quality, especially in commodity markets such as stretch film, can liners and industrial films. We’ve already seen impressive results for processing stretch films and can liners for a variety of applications including technical agri-stretch products and general purpose sheeting,” said Rick Keller, Davis-Standard’s Vice President of Blown Film. “We’ve engineered this air ring for use on existing and new lines in a manual or auto-profile mode. When used with Davis-Standard’s WesJet TPC automatic profile control and our Centrex or Vertex dies, we’ve seen output increases of up to 40 percent.”

The Upjet™ Air Ring is available in sizes ranging from 7 to 40 inches (180 to 1016mm). It is available in manual or motorized elevation control and passive or automatic thickness profile control configurations. Advantages include an easier method for stringing the bubble, minimal operator adjustment, more stable bubbles and fast response to auto profile control.

Davis-Standard offers a process analysis to determine potential rate improvement on existing equipment. Factors related to line speed, blower volume, internal bubble cooling (IBC), extrusion and blending capacity are evaluated based on existing equipment specifications. This is a highly economical way to increase existing film line capacity while offering customers the opportunity to reduce their variable manufacturing cost per unit. The benefits of the UpJet can be maximized when new Davis-Standard lines are specified with this technology. This is part of Davis-Standard’s commitment to offering customers The Global Advantage™ in blown film equipment.

For more information about the Upjet, contact Rick Keller at rkeller@davis-standard.com.

 

The performance and value of Davis-Standard’s extrusion equipment will be on display at booth #455 at PLASTIMAGEN in Mexico City, November 18-21. This is an important show for Davis-Standard as the company continues to expand its reach throughout Mexico, offering its Global Advantage™ through innovation, support and technology. During the show, Davis-Standard will promote its aftermarket capabilities and new technology in blown film, cast film, extrusion coating, pipe, profile and tubing and sheet. Following are highlights:

Davis-Standard and Jinming Alliance – Davis-Standard and Jinming of China have allied to offer customers a wider range of best-in-class blown film machinery. As well respected industry leaders in blown film, this alliance provides customers with performance, quality, service and support for the best possible return on investment. Customers can design a line with Davis-Standard equipment, Jinming equipment or a combination of both to address application requirements and cost efficiency.

dsX s-tretch™ Cast Film Line – This is the first cast film line of its kind, providing an alternative to pre-stretching techniques traditionally done on blown film lines. Processors can take advantage of thinner films, higher line speeds and improved film strength. From a cost and environmental standpoint, benefits include consistently high-quality pre-stretch film produced with greater efficiency and reduced waste via coreless winding. The line is equipped to support a range of resins and applications at web widths from 775 to 1550mm (30 to 45 inches). For added efficiency, it is pre-configured for availability within six months of order to acceptance.

dsX flex-pack™ Extrusion Coating Line – This line supports cost-sensitive flexible packaging applications. It is pre-configured to merge customer demand with the best components in the industry for better end-product quality, greater uptime and productivity, reduced waste and production costs, and application versatility. It is also engineered with proven components and an adaptable machine configuration, making it ideal for converters, printing companies, multinational companies and start-ups.

New Lab Line – To support proof-of-concept development of small, tight tolerance tubing used in medical applications, Davis-Standard installed a medical lab line in a dedicated, climate-controlled area at its technical facility in Pawcatuck, Conn. The line features two direct drive interchangeable-barrel MEDD extruders in 1-inch (25mm) and ¾-inch  (19mm) 24:1 L/D sizes, enabling a full range of product development opportunities. The MEDD is Davis-Standard’s premier compact extruder optimized for clean room environments with efficient operation and a replaceable feed section liner.

Super Blue^® Extruder – Celebrating 10 years of market excellence, Davis-Standard’s Super Blue extruder continues to impress processors in the pipe and profile and sheet markets. It is designed for performance, cost-efficiency and a fast delivery, and available in sizes ranging from 2 inches (50mm) to 3.5- inches (90mm) with a 24:1 L/D ratio. Design advantages include a rigid base with structural steel construction; a wear-resistant bimetallic barrel; a modular inverted-L style control panel; and gear reducer with a heavy-wall, two-piece iron housing and single helical gearing. It is available with a range of DSB® barrier screw designs and Davis-Standard control systems.

 

A new lab line at Davis-Standard’s Technical Center is empowering customers to turn innovative medical tubing concepts into reality. The line, installed last spring, is engineered for end product development of small, tight tolerance tubing used in medical applications. Customers are able to test new resins, make parts for proof-of-concept, and conduct downstream R&D prior to making a large capital equipment investment. The line is also situated in a dedicated, climate-controlled area, offering a cleanroom environment for trials.

“There continues to be significant growth and development in medical tubing applications. We want to ensure our customers have the resources for success,” said Wendell Whipple, Vice President of Davis-Standard’s Pipe, Profile and Tubing Group. “This line provides a fully equipped option to develop new products and test equipment, which is aligned with our commitment to support customer profitability.”

The line features two direct drive interchangeable-barrel MEDD extruders in 1-inch (25mm) and ¾-inch  (19mm) 24:1 L/D sizes, enabling a full range of product development opportunities. The MEDD is Davis-Standard’s premier compact extruder optimized for clean room environments with efficient operation and a replaceable feed section liner. The line incorporates Davis-Standard’s patented alternate polymer process, with all components being monitored and controlled by our EPIC-III. Other advantages and capabilities of the line include:

• Enclosed, ventilated and air-conditioned space
• EPIC-III control and process data collection
• Bump/taper tubing capabilities
• Able to process common thermoplastics (PE, PP, PA, TPU) as well as high temperature polymers (PEEK, PEKK and others) including fluoropolymers (FEP, PFE, ETFE, and others)
• Highly instrumented extruders and extensive screw inventory
• Desiccant drying capabilities, up to three resins simultaneously
• Melt pumps with servo drives
• Mono and coextrusion capabilities
• Multi-lumen capabilities
• Vacuum sizing capabilities
• Laser and ultrasonic gauging including trim control; two gauging systems
• Dual servo belt puller capable of 250 fpm
• Six-foot belt conveyor for sample collection
• Space for customer-supplied equipment (coiler, payoff)
• Product development including microbore, multi-lumen and catheter tubing

Interested customers should contact their local sales representative. They can also contact Jason Baird at jbaird@davis-standard.com or Bill Lee at blee@davis-standard.com to schedule a trial.

 

A new Davis-Standard seven-layer blown film line at Raven Industries exemplifies the benefits of performance and efficiency for lightweight films. The line, installed at Raven’s facility in Sioux Falls, Sound Dakota, features next generation technology for manufacturing precise lightweight barrier films ranging from 0.80 mil to 10 mil in thickness. Adding this capability has expanded Raven’s product range by targeting thinner film profiles with several distinct features. It has also increased throughput efficiencies for consumer-sized rolls, which are packaged and sold straight off the line.

“This line has met or exceeded our expectations on several levels,” said Anthony Schmidt, vice president and general manager of Raven Industries Engineered Films Division. “We collaborated with Davis-Standard on several add-on features that control film profiling and processing to meet performance parameters, along with barrier design flexibility that delivers added value to end-use applications. Our customers have been pleased.”

The seven-layer coextrusion system features in-line web-flattening capability, necessary for precise films used in lamination and conversion operations. The Vertex die configuration includes high volume IBC airflow and is expandable to nine layers. The machine is configured with two sets of winders to produce small diameter rolls for hand carrying and large diameter rolls for converting.  SLC Surface winders with full shaft handling enable production of mill rolls up to 40 inches (1,016mm) in diameter.  The Model 1750 turret winder with swing-out shafts produces the small reels. The system operates in trimless mode. However, to support Raven’s sustainability efforts, the line also features the capability of direct recycling by converting excess plastic film to reusable resin pellets.

For more information about Raven Industries, visit www.RavenInd.com. For more information about Davis-Standard’s world leading blown film capabilities, visit www.davis-standard.com.

About Raven Industries, Inc.

Since 1956, Raven Industries has designed and manufactured high quality, high-value technical products.  Raven is publicly traded on NASDAQ (RAVN) and has earned an international reputation for innovation, product quality, high performance, and unmatched service.  Raven’s purpose is to solve great challenges in areas of safety, feeding the world, energy independence, and resource preservation.  To realize this purpose, we utilize our strengths in engineering, manufacturing, and technological innovation to serve the precision agriculture, high performance specialty films, aerospace, and electronic manufacturing services markets. Visit www.RavenInd.com for more information.

About Davis-Standard, LLC

Davis-Standard (www.davis-standard.com), headquartered in Pawcatuck, Conn., is a global leader in the design, development and distribution of plastic and rubber extrusion and converting technology. Davis-Standard systems encompass over 10 product lines to support manufacturing applications and customers within every major industry. This includes the agriculture, automotive, construction, healthcare, energy, electronics, food and beverage packaging, and retail industries, among others. With more than 850 employees worldwide and a network of independent sales agents and suppliers in nearly every country, Davis-Standard is committed to engineering equipment that is cost effective, environmentally friendly, and offers a high return on investment. The company has two manufacturing and technical facilities in the United States, as well as subsidiaries with facilities in China, Germany and the United Kingdom.

 

In the realm of exceptional extruder performance, it’s hard to beat the track record of a legendary Davis-Standard extruder being used at Southwire Company’s Carrollton, Georgia Building Wire Plant. The extruder is better known or identified as 0750-02 in the plant, and, with a few exceptions through the years it has been running virtually nonstop, 24 hours a day, seven days a week since 1966. Southwire purchased this particular extruder “used” in the market and it was one of the first extruders installed in the Carrollton Building Wire Plant. Based on Davis Standard records, this extruder was purchased new by a Southwire competitor at that time where it had run nonstop six years prior, making this hard-working machine more than 50 years old.

Since 1966, Southwire’s “IRON HORSE” Davis- Standard extruder has processed approximately 20 billion feet of 2-Conductor NMB wire that has a market value of over $5 billion based on today’s NMB prices. According to Scotty Ledbetter, Process Engineering Support Manager at Southwire, this extruder performs as well as the newest machine in the building in terms of efficiency and production.

“This extruder is an iron horse; there’s no other way to describe it,” said Ledbetter. “The only thing it has required is barrel and feed screw replacement several times throughout the years. We have never rebuilt or replaced the gearbox, which is rare. It is one of two machines in Southwire’s Carrollton Building Wire Plant with the old-style, round-top gearbox. We have one employee (Patsy Lambert) working in the Plant that was employed at Southwire in 1966 when the extruder was installed and commissioned.”

Southwire’s appreciation of Davis-Standard’s commitment to quality equipment and service is evident by the number of Davis-Standard extruders lining the company’s production facilities. Within Ledbetter’s group, there are approximately 130 Davis-Standard extruders that the group monitors. Within Southwire as a whole, Ledbetter estimates about 90 percent of all extrusion equipment is Davis-Standard. Just how much wire are these extruders processing each day? According to Ledbetter, the company ships multiple tractor-trailer loads of finished product daily, which is destined for big box retailers and other Southwire customers throughout the United States.

“Davis-Standard has played an integral role in our success,’’ says Ledbetter. We like that they consistently make great equipment that we’ve relied on to grow our business over the past four decades. It’s heavy-duty,

reliable and built to last. It has enabled us to supply our customers with superior quality and value,” he said. “I have never heard of anyone else possessing an extruder that has a record like this machine’s. This extruder exemplifies all the reasons we like working with Davis-Standard.”

For more information about Southwire Company, visit www.southwire.com. For more information about Davis-Standard’s extensive wire and cable systems which are engineered and built to make manufacturers more competitive, contact info@davis-standard.com or visit www.davis-standard.com.

 

To better support customers in the Asia region, Davis-Standard is pleased to announce the opening of the Spare Parts and Service Center located at the company’s manufacturing facility in Suzhou, China.

This innovative center will specialize in high usage maintenance items for customers throughout this important region. The ongoing expansion of service capabilities is aligned with Davis-Standard’s Global Advantage™ initiative developed to ensure premier service enabling customers to increase productivity by keeping equipment in the best working condition.

Advantages of the parts center in Suzhou include a vast inventory of maintenance items, shipment within 24 hours of order for stock inventory, local language support, and acceptance of payment in RMB. Customers are welcome to call for any parts, service, or performance inquiries related to Davis-Standard equipment brands.

The toll free number for the parts and services hotline for customers within China is 800-820-7477. For customers outside China, please call +86 21 6440 0468, ext. 108. Customers can also correspond via e-mail to Nicole.wang@davis-standard.com. Please provide the machine SO number and specific part number in all communication to facilitate processing.

For more information about Davis-Standard’s facility in Suzhou, visit www.davis-standard.com.