Plastics

Honeywell is a leading supplier of online quality control solutions for plastics extrusion, coating/laminating, calendering, and a variety of converting processes. Honeywell offers high-performance, application-specific measurement, control and information solutions that optimize quality and profitability, producing tangible economic results, attractive returns on investment and competitive advantage. Honeywell’s measurement and control solutions are widely installed on the following processes: Biaxially-oriented film Calendered sheet and film Cast film Extruded coatings Extruded foam Extruded sheet Most downstream coating and converting processes (slot die, hot melt, reverse roll, blade coaters, Mayer rod coaters, saturators, electrode coaters and separators for the lithium battery industry, flat panel displays) Honeywell’s primary Continuous Web Solutions (CWS) automation system platform is MXProLineTM. High-speed online sensors scan the product continuously as it is being produced, providing accurate real-time feedback of essential product parameters such as weight, thickness and composition. Real-time measurements feed application-specific software, which dynamically models process behavior, providing the basis for closed-loop control. Automatic closed-loop control substantially reduces the variation of the measured parameters, producing a variety of benefits including: Reduced scrap Raw material savings Faster startups and changeovers Elimination of out-of-spec products Improved product quality/consistency Downstream processing efficiencies Increased line speeds and material throughput MXProLine profile control systems include advanced application support such as predictive/adaptive algorithms, automated mapping utilities and live onscreen tuning. MXProLine offers exceptional flexibility, scalability and customizable features that consistently meet or exceed customer requirements, whether straightforward or specialized. MXProLine also supports a full range of standards-based communications capabilities for complete integration of process information and control with both Honeywell and third-party systems and devices. Honeywell scanning sensors are thoroughly engineered and tested to deliver uncompromised measurement performance on a wide range of applications, from 1 micron biaxially-oriented film to 0.5 meter thick high loft nonwovens.  Every CWS sensor includes a complete set of correctors and compensators to ensure stable performance even in harsh industrial environments.  Honeywell’s proven automatic control applications include: Average and profile control of either mono- or multi-layer weight or thickness Automatic die control Coordinated speed change control Growth ratio control Left/right gap and “cocked sheet” control Target adaptive control Three-zone calender control Throughput optimization control Honeywell’s high-performance automatic profile controls include: Extrusion dyes (thermal, motorized, piezoelectric and thermo-viscous) Coaters (thermal and motorized on doctor blades, roll gaps, squeeze rolls) Moisture control (via sectionalized heaters, steamboxes or sprays) Three-zone calender control In addition to MXProLine, Honeywell offers several other solutions to plastics industry customers, including: Experion® PKS for distributed, regulatory control of production machinery OptiVision software for real-time control of business transactions (ordering, planning, inventory, roll tracking) Web Monitoring Systems for detection and analysis of web handling problems