The HEUFT squeezer QA leakage check for PET bottles

The HEUFT squeezer

- the gentle pressure

"Squeeze me" said the soft drinks bottle and expressed its thanks weeks later with contents which still tasted good. A little strange perhaps because we all know that a soft drinks bottle cannot speak but we have all sampled the excellent taste of its contents. One or two of us have possibly experienced the contrary: you go to the refrigerator, help yourself to a drink, take a long drink of the cold liquid --- and then a shiver runs down your spine.

What has happened?
The taste is insipid far removed from your expectations of a cool refreshing drink.
The cause?
A bottle which had a leak prior to its opening.

Today containers with such defects no longer have to leave the production plant. The HEUFT company has various inspection systems which can be used separately or combined according to the nature of the task in order to track down leaking plastic drinks bottles.

The HEUFT squeezer QA is an excellent example of how to find screw closures which are not correctly sealed as well as tension cracks in the neck area of a bottle. A faulty screw closure is not necessarily caused by your capping machine. Closures and bottle openings damaged during production or a missing seal in a closure can have the same effect. There are few alternatives to the HEUFT squeezer QA available for the detection of tension cracks.

During the squeezing process belts exert pressure, which can be measured out in exact doses, on the bottle while it is being transported. When a fault occurs the deviating fill level is compared to that of a good bottle. This change in fill level is detected by carrying out a comparative measurement of the bottle in an unsqueezed and squeezed condition. Consequently no absolute limits related to the product are applied but a limit value examination specifically for each bottle takes place. A fill level check can be carried out at the same time so that a further inspection device is not required.
If faults regularly recur e.g. due to a faulty closer head then a locator module can locate the defective closer element responsible. The statistical evaluation of all filler valves and closer elements in the form of a chart makes it easy to identify faults at an early stage.
The containers are transported very smoothly due to the use of soft belts. Even bottles with labels can be inspected without a problem.
In addition to a fill level check, a closure colour detection, a label check and a tamper evidence inspection can also be added to the leakage inspection.
Information collected can be transferred to the PC in the office via data transmission and it can be displayed there on-line.

This device is suitable for the complete range of products in the PET/REFPET soft drinks sector. Brand change-overs are as a rule carried out in a few minutes by simply adjusting the passing width using scaled adjustment handles and switching over the program. Faulty containers are rejected from the stream of production by one of our rejection systems ensuring that the consignment leaves your premises in good condition. Please do not hesitate to contact us for further information regarding your individual requirements.