SACMI returns to ProPak Africa, the international packaging&processing fair being held in South Africa (Johannesburg Expo Centre) from 8 to 11 March 2022. The fair is organized every three years and its 2022 edition follows a period of extraordinary continent-wide growth in installed production capacity across all SACMI rigid packaging technologies businesses. For example, in Plastic Closures alone, 2020 saw the continent achieve an increase of over 60% and in 2021 it became SACMI’s main market for the machines and systems for this sector.
A long-term strategy for Africa
The history of SACMI's presence in Africa began in the early 2010s when, realizing the continent’s enormous growth potential, the company decided to invest in Africa by opening three dedicated offices in strategic locations and focusing on the rigid packaging business.
This successful strategy has since resulted in the installation of over 400 machines that include compression presses, machines and complete lines for crown and aluminum caps, preform presses, container manufacturing plants and assembly solutions.
Trends&Technologies in plastics
Like the rest of the world, Africa is - especially in the plastics sector - increasingly aware of environmental sustainability issues and the need to optimize consumption of virgin resins. Plastic closure-preform systems are essential to packaging safety and enhance the consumer experience: SACMI has innovated them by focusing on lightweighting, with pioneering solutions making cap-preform systems ever-lighter and better-performing, especially in the CSD field and for the new tethered standard.
Another SACMI goal is to broaden the range for the increasing number of bottlers who decide to self-produce caps and preforms: in 2021 we extended our range of preform injection molding machines by launching the new IPS 300.
Moreover, SACMI equips all its solutions with advanced Industry 4.0 controls, an approach of keen interest to the entire global market as such plants boost profitability and take employees on a learning curve that promotes them from the role of ‘worker’ to that of ‘process controller’.
Crown Caps mean SACMI
The global crown cap manufacturing market is a stable one in which SACMI technology has played a leading role for decades. By expanding the range beyond traditional ultra-high productivity crown cap lines to include complete solutions such as twist-off and pull-ring lines and new multi-material caps, SACMI has diversified its technology for the aluminum caps sector, with extraordinary results that have won immediate market acclaim.
As in the plastics sector, SACMI complements its metal closures range with fast-evolving Computer Vision systems; at every stage of production, the latter are making ‘vision’ systems true ‘process monitors’, ensuring they can predict problems on the line, reduce downtimes and boost plant availability and performance.
CBF, assembling solutions
Over the years, CBF (compression blow forming) technology has progressed in leaps and bounds. It is increasingly popular, especially in the pharma sector. That technology now aims to transfer the most widely appreciated advantages of compression - process consistency, low temperatures, precision - to container manufacturing.
Recently developed to broaden the range of applications and workable resins - including PET, the recyclable resin par excellence - CBF technology also offers scope for renewed, wider use in the dairy sector by merging the best, most appreciated characteristics of alternative technologies.
Furthermore, SACMI Rigid Packaging has extended its range with new assembly solutions produced by Velomat. Their digitally controlled machines greatly simplify the assembly of complex caps (e.g. new dispensers for homecare products), thus reducing costs.
Full beverage-labelling plants
The ability to provide the market with all-round solutions, from resin processing to the final filled and labeled container, makes SACMI unique. In fact, for at least 15 years the company has combined its traditional packaging business with a capacity to develop complete stretch-blowing, bottling and labeling systems, solutions that offer outstanding versatility and enormous scope for customization.
For example: the latest range of dual-cavity Blo2Fill XL blow molding machines provide ultra-high productivity while more complete solutions (also in ‘COMBO’ mode) fill, close and label containers. Once again, these solutions come with SACMI Computer Vision systems for accurate control of both container and label, ensuring unrivalled quality and efficiency at all times, especially when there are frequent label and format changeovers.
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(Photo credit: SACMI)
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