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| The PWDS® system is available in different sizes and numerous options |
W. MÜLLER, a global leader in mono and multi-layer EBM equipment and expertise to the blow molding industry, announced its new partnership with Feuerherm, also of Troisdorf, Germany, the leading manufacturer and supplier for radial wall thickness control systems in extrusion blow molding. This partnership is actually anything but new, as the two companies have been aligned for decades, sharing their expertise as well as an enduring friendship between the two family’s founders and generational leadership teams. But the two pioneers in the blow molding industry have now made the partnership more formal by aligning their technologies for significant value to the blow molding market in North and South America.
Blow molders around the globe are facing considerable challenges to survive in a highly competitive market. These challenges include increasing material and energy costs, which make it imperative to improve the efficient use of the blow molding machines while also meeting the demands for sustainable production techniques. The patented Feuerherm Partial Wall Thickness Distribution Systems (PWDS®) offer blow molders flexible, reproducible and modifiable wall thickness control for maximum efficiency, improved cycle times and minimum material usage. This solution combined with their Static Flexible Deformable Ring (SFDR®) creates powerful radial wall thickness control with the ability of quick product changeovers.
This PWDS® system, available in hydraulic and electric options, allows for the energy-optimized production of blow molded parts with minimum material input and maximum production output and part quality. To achieve this, it is imperative to ensure an optimum wall thickness distribution in the blown part with a flexible, reproducible and modifiable radial die gap path that the PWDS® system provides.
Used with the flexible and adjustable SFDR® unit allows reproducible profile changes without having to dismantle the core tooling. The capability to undo a setting at any time enables fast product optimization. Since the ability for quick product changeovers are becoming the expectation, 95% of all SFDR® units are equipped with quick exchangeable inserts providing fast product changeovers within minutes.
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| A longstanding friendship and cooperation is now a formal partnership. Photo of Christian and Brigitte Müller with Max and Rolf Feuerherm taken in 2019 at the K Fair trade show in Düsseldorf, Germany |
Feuerherm is a family-run company in Troisdorf, Germany, founded in 1977 by Harald Feuerherm, who manufacturers their systems for many different markets worldwide. Their trademarks PWDS® and SFDR® not only stand for outstanding quality, but also have exemplified sustainable production with less material and energy consumption. By incorporating this premium technology into both existing and new W. MÜLLER extrusion heads, blow molding customers all over the world can reap these important benefits and cost savings. No matter how long the W. MÜLLER extrusion head has been operating in the field, this technology can be easily retrofitted. Also, any existing Feuerherm Systems can be integrated into new W. Muller extrusion heads.
W. MÜLLER, also a family run company headquartered in Troisdorf, with US headquarters in Agawam, MA, specializes in extrusion heads, accumulator heads, extruders, platforms, and extrusion control. The company was founded in 1976 and supports EBM operators in optimizing the extrusion blow molding process. A combined system, born from the same town in Germany, allows powerful unmatched wall thickness control in the blow molding marketplace. The partnership also allows a faster response time with regional, local service and support available around the globe, and a combined expertise to meet the blow molding demands of today. By creating a formal cooperation each company benefits from the synergies and market opportunities of the other. The W. MÜLLER service team has been fully trained at Feuerherm, and prepared for offering wall thickness optimization and any service requirements. The focus of this new partnership with Feuerherm extends to any blow molders within North and South America.
“We are excited to bring this technology to our existing and new customer base, offering up to 15% cycle time savings and material reductions on their applications,” says Jens Schlueter, President, W. MÜLLER USA. “With thousands of these systems proved out within the market the return on investment has been a simple equation.”
