Returnable bottles and crates quickly disappear into the reverse vending machine in the supermarket. Quick, effective and convenient. But what happens behind the machine with the many different bottles and containers?
Beverage logistics specialists can answer this question. One of the big players in Germany is Deutsche Getränkelogistik GmbH & Co. KG (DGL), with administrative offices in Lingen and Dortmund and 19 branches. In total, more than 375 trucks ensure smooth deliveries to supermarkets, beverage retailers and, last but not least, beverage manufacturers and bottlers. DGL offers customers comprehensive concepts for full bottles and empties logistics.
König Maschinenbau GmbH and DGL
DGL uses machines from machine builder König Maschinenbau GmbH throughout its operations. König has designed and implemented customized sorting and transport systems, palletizing applications, and packing machines in the beverage and logistics sector, for more than 30 years.
Kai Lohmeier, Site Manager at DGL, discusses the upgraded system with Christian Prakesch, Danfoss.
This project is a continuation of König Maschinenbau’s long cooperation with DGL. Learn more in the video.
Play the interview to hear more about the contribution of iC7-Automation to the sorting system upgrade.
When consumers deliver their empties to the return machine, the various crates are stacked unsorted on a pallet. The result is a hodgepodge of different crates and bottles from different manufacturers. Before the empties are returned to the beverage companies, they must be sorted. This intermediate step in the recycling process takes place in DGL's sorting systems for empties.
In Bad Oeynhausen, North Rhine-Westphalia, DGL relies on one of Europe’s most efficient automatic sorting systems for empties crates. It was designed and built by long-time supplier and partner König Maschinenbau GmbH, specialist in beverage conveying systems. Thanks to their long-established cooperation, the project was completed quickly and smoothly and was up and running within a few months. Since then, the system has been running reliably, without failures.
The constantly increasing number of new beverages and therefore container sizes makes sorting empties a complex task. The automatic crate sorting system from König Anlagenbau GmbH helps us to master this complexity
Crate sorting is fully automatic. First, the unsorted pallets run along a roller conveyor for processing. A robot unloads the pallets and places the crates on the infeed. The crates then travel through the system fully automatically. They are separated, then an image processing system scans the crates and recognizes the type and manufacturer. The crates are then moved into the respective buffer lines on the sorting line using hydraulically operated pushers.
The system sorts about 3,600 crates per hour and runs in two-shift operation in the low season. This means that the crate sorter still has sufficient reserve capacity for hot summer months where the volume of empties increases, by operating the system in 4 or 5 shifts.
Over many years of cooperation in the past, König has always relied on the VLT® Automation Drive FC 302. However, for this crate sorter, König Maschinenbau opted for the next-generation drive from Danfoss: iC7-Automation. It offers reverse compatibility with FC 302, for example with a compatible mounting plate.
For future-proof communication in the plant, they chose Ethernet-based fieldbuses. A total of 133 iC7-Automation units in the range 0.55 to 3 kW are installed in the system.
Discover iC7-Automation
The mechanical compatibility between VLT® AutomationDrive FC 302 and iC7-Automation was the decisive factor enabling DGL to switch easily to the new iC7 drives. The mounting plate and 150m cable length match perfectly.
The powerful premium drive iC7-Automation is based on a newly developed, modular concept with more customization options than the previous model. With more internal sensors, it offers improved control accuracy, in open- or closed-loop control. iC7-Automation offers variable networking and significantly more intelligence thanks to more powerful processors and more internal memory.
The crypto chip integrated directly into the drive hardware ensures secure communication. This applies both within the system and when accessing the drive itself – including via Internet - with securely encrypted data. The drive also has a larger number of slots for expansion modules, so that it is open for adaptations and new developments now and in the future. Danfoss thus provides a future-proof drive solution that is flexible enough to follow new trends and technologies as they develop.
Our first-time use of iC7-Automation worked very well, mainly because the Danfoss technical supporters helped us with commissioning on site at the plant. Since executing this project, we always use iC7-Automation!
Thanks to the close cooperation between the three companies, the system was designed, planned and built within four months. König used technical support from Danfoss to smoothly integrate iC7-Automation into the machine and to carry out commissioning and programming quickly and reliably, as usual. The result is one of the most efficient crate sorting systems in Germany, sorting 3,600 crates per hour. This enables DGL to offer its customers and partners a comprehensive range of products and services with individual system solutions. This also includes modern empties management at the highest level, which will continue to increase in efficiency through investments in empties sorting systems, to provide the industry with top-quality empties in the future.
In the DGL project, the specific expertise of Danfoss and König Maschinenbau in the field of beverage systems once again proved its worth. The many years of successful cooperation ensured rapid implementation in just 4 months!
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