03 November 2022
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Eliminate waste and be able to rapidly respond to customer's needs with flexible and agile powder handling using Intermediate Bulk Containers (IBCs).
Parallel processing is the decoupling of each of the manufacturing steps so that formulation, blending, packing and cleaning take place simultaneously.
IBCs are used to transport material between the manufacturing processes, therefore each process step is independent of the other so no time is wasted waiting for the previous step to complete before moving on.
One recipe can be packed, at the same time as one is being mixed and another being formulated, whilst used IBCs are cleaned.
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Typically Blending can be a bottleneck. With in-line systems such as pneumatic conveying or close coupled mixing towers, a hold-up in one area affects the whole process chain.
With IBC Systems there is no waiting at the blending stage. The Intermediate Bulk Containers (IBCs) are filled off-line and, as they also act as the blending vessel, they are loaded on and off the blender immediately.
As soon as one IBC is removed, the blender is ready to receive the next formulated container. No cleaning of the blender is required between batches or recipe changes.
This is in stark contrast to fixed mixer systems which can take a few hours to fill the mixer and then several hours to empty as they are coupled to the packing lines.
With an IBC Powder Handling System, there is no need to create WIP/WIQ to overcome bottleneck issues.
As the IBC is the blending vessel, it doesn’t need cleaning between recipe batches. Contrast this with an in-line mixing system, where the whole line has to be shut-down for hours.
We have created this Knowledge Hub of related articles to help you understand more about your powders and parallel processing.
Learn more about Matcon's Powder Handling Equipment and how it provides manufacturers with effective opportunities for parallel processing.
Guidance, best practice articles and related reading for Parallel Processing.
Over the years we have seen a wide range of different powder types and production issues that our Cone Valve technology has been able to overcome. This gives us the confidence to believe we can handle any challenge you wish to put to us.
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