Hallman Paints in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin installed a new filling system to eliminate extensive set-up times. The new system required the teamwork of RPA Process Technologies and Hallman’s filling machine vendor. Careful consultation and a quality Ronningen-Petter filtering system helped Hallman Paints bring the pieces together for a truly integrated fill line.
With the use of their new self-cleaning filtration system, Hallman Paints were able to eliminate:
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Bottlenecks in set-up during the integration of the filtering and filling systems
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Commitment of time and space to get ready for the filling process
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Clean-up time because the new DCF filter is designed so that every part is accessible, therefore there are no hidden surfaces where paint can be trapped.
SITUATION
Hallman Paints manufactures architectural finishes, including some textured finishes, for the professional paint market. The company offers a broad range of paint colors, which must be filtered and packaged into 55-gallon (208 liter) drums.
The old filling line was obsolete and inefficient, with a vibrating gravity sieve that filtered the paint.
The filtered paint flowed out of the sieve and onto a tray, which carried it to the fill tube and into one of the open drums. When a drum was filled, the tube was moved to another drum.
The problem with the old method was the long set-up time.
The Operations Manager explained, "We had to get drums in position for filling, take the rings and heads off, set up the vibrating sieve with the proper screen, and make sure everything was ready, so that when the batch became available, we were all set up to begin filling. If there was a delay in the batch — for an extra adjustment, or quality control — the open drums sat there taking up space on the floor."
SOLUTION
Hallman Paints needed a system that would deliver the strained material directly to the filter.
The Operations Manager said, "We wanted to marry the strainer with an automatic filter as a complete system, but nobody had done that before. So we started by looking at straining methods. Then we looked at automatic filters, and at how compatible the automatic filter and the straining method were for combining into one integrated system."
The search led him to RPA Process Technologies and the Ronningen-Petter DCF mechanically cleaned filter.
The DCF is specifically designed to filter solids from high viscosity fluids, like paints.
The Operations Manager liked the DCF filter and began looking for a way to combine it with Ideal Manufacturing’s combination drum/pail filler.
RESULTS
The new integrated filtering and filling system has eliminated the set-up bottleneck Hallman Paints experienced with the old filling system.
Now, the drums are brought in just when they are needed in the filling process.
Paint is filtered through the Ronningen-Petter DCF filter and sent to the drum/pail filler for automatic filling.
When a drum is full, the next drum is moved into position for filling. "We no longer have to commit time or space getting ready for the filling operation," said the Operations Manager.
The Ronningen-Petter DCF filter has also made clean-up much more efficient.
The Operations Manager likes the fact that every part on the filter that needs cleaning is accessible when the filter is opened.
There are no hidden surfaces or corners where paint can be trapped. Operators can easily make sure the filter is properly cleaned and ready for the next color batch.
"We are very pleased with the design of this filter and the way it operates in conjunction with the new filling system".
