SIPA supplies XFORM to leading company in Andean region

Leading rigid packaging company in the Andean Region, San Miguel Industrias PET (SMI), made a major investment in XFORM preform production technology from SIPA to boost output at plants in its home country of Peru and in Ecuador.

SMI a long-standing SIPA partner: it has been using a large number of the company’s equipment and preform tooling for many years. In 2013, SIPA installed two of its high-output XFORM 500 systems for production of preforms for carbonated soft drinks at SMI’s plant in Lima, Peru. The successful introduction of these systems led SMI to order a third XFORM 500, which SIPA installed at the company’s subsidiary in Guayaquil, Ecuador.

Juan Alberto Franco, CEO of SMI said that when the company decided to expand its capability in preforms in Peru, it relied on SIPA as it is an expert in PET technology. SMI chose the XFORM 500 for its high level of performance and its  competitive overall total cost of ownership. Initial experience was positive that SMI ordered a third system for its Ecuador plant.  

The first two units run with molds with 96 and 128 cavities, while the third is equipped with one of SIPA’s new GEN3 of molds with 144 cavities. SIPA is among a highly select group of global equipment suppliers offering preform injection molding systems capable of handling molds with 144 cavities. SMI is using the three systems to produce various sizes of preforms, weighing 17.7, 51.7 and 54.7 g, all with PCO 1881 neck finishes.

Latest SIPA XFORM 500 “EVO” systems like the one now running in Ecuador are now equipped with second-generation high-speed cooling robots that help ensure that equipment operates with short cycle times while still producing preforms with high dimensional consistency. The new robots also accept legacy end-of-arm tooling (EOAT), increasing even further the flexibility of the machine and eliminating additional costs for the user.

SIPA’s own EOAT can be configured with three or four cooling stages, and is especially low on maintenance, thanks in part to the introduction of a new high-speed system for ensuring there are no blockages in the cooling tubes that eliminates the need for photocells.

Further features on the 144c tooling include new lateral guides to assure perfect alignment of the tooling moving half, as well as a new hot runner system design that keeps imbalance levels below 20%.