Maguire Products has developed a new dual control system for its Sweeper, a device used to fully empty bulk boxes of resin without wasting the time of the operators. Using this dual control the downtime has been eliminated completely while changing an empty resin container to a filled one.
Dual Sweeper System
The Sweeper is now globally available and it can be delivered in a size capable of housing European-style octobins, which can hold 1,000 kg of resin. The company also supplies its original model that accommodates Gaylord boxes in two versions. The boxes hold resins ranging from 450 to 680 kg.
The main element of the new system is a dual control that can automatically toggle between a Sweeper in a full box and a sweeper in an empty one. A diverter valve interconnects the Sweepers. Once the switching is completed, the operator can substitute the empty box without interrupting resin transfer to the dryer or processing machine.
The Sweeper usually operates during pulling of material by the material loading system, however it is possible to set a time delay using the dual control from one Sweeper to the an alternate one between loading cycles enabling continuous resin removal till the octobin or Gaylord is empty.
The system is installed on a steel stand, so that the resin box changeovers are done easily by a pallet jack or forklift truck. At the top of the box, a set of vertical rails is found over, which a trolley can move upward and downward. The trolley has an aluminium conveying tube, which is connected to a rotating tube. The rotating tube moves the resin pellets from the center to the sides of the box. Thus, the Sweeper does not require operators to continuously oversee to ensure that the machine has insufficient material.