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What is Purging and How Can it Improve Dried Resin Handling?
It is not uncommon to visit a customer or receive a call about a suspected problem with material moisture. Whether the processor is using a brand new dryer or a system that is decades old, the problems they report are often very similar: Splay or streaking, reduced intrinsic viscosity, bubbling,...
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How to Choose a Vacuum Pump for Resin Conveying
Today, there are four major types of vacuum pumps available for resin conveying, as well as a number of important considerations involved in selecting, operating, and maintaining them. Key Vacuum Pump Considerations Among the most important considerations in pump selection are: Depth of vacuum provided. Length or “equivalent distance” of...
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6 Control Features You’ll Find on the Best Gravimetric Blenders
Featuring the most advanced controls available in the industry, Conair TrueBlend® gravimetric blenders represent a dramatic step forward in ease of programming and use, simplified troubleshooting, comprehensive data collection and, of course, accuracy. Those are pretty hefty claims, but TrueBlend gravimetric blenders are not like other blenders you might be...
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This is How You Can Overcome Fly Cutting Challenges for Extrusion
Fly-knife cutting, or “fly cutting,” is a fast, effective, and widely-used method for cutting smaller, softer extruded tubing and profiles. Fly cutters use one or more blades, mounted on a flywheel that provides cutting inertia. The flywheel is driven by a motor that transmits rotational force through planetary reducing gears....
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How to Ramp Up Medical-Grade Plastics Production for Increased Demand
Coping with the sudden pandemic threat of COVID-19 has turned much of the business world on its head, causing enormous changes in economic activity and product demand. At Conair, changes have rippled through our operations as well. Some customers are coping with production slowdowns, while others are rapidly adapting or...
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How to Be Sure Your Dryers Run Optimally in the Summer
Summer: Birds are chirping, flowers are blooming, and scrap rates are up! It’s not just you; summer months can bring challenges when it comes to processing and handling plastic materials—specifically materials that are hygroscopic and are prone to taking on moisture. Let’s take a quick look at why that is...
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Plastic Size Reduction FAQs
There’s an old saying: “The older I get, the less I know for certain.” After 35 years of answering questions about shredding and grinding equipment, I continue to learn about what size reduction equipment will—and will not—do, and I am often reminded why this statement rings true. For this reason,...
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Why You Need Precision Maintenance and How to Get Started
Have you ever stopped in at one of the many “10-minute” or “quick” oil change locations? If so, you’ve heard and seen the service technicians there execute a good, basic example of “precision maintenance.” Above and below your car, they work down a list of very well established procedures—open the...
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“Passive” vs “active” equipment alarms: Know the difference, save 100X in costs!
Recently, our service team learned of a major equipment breakdown that ended up costing a processor a lot of money. What was unfortunate about this breakdown was that it could have been prevented at a cost of about 1/100th of the final repair bill. This huge savings would have been...
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What are the three primary types of sizing tooling for extruded tube and pipe?
Sizing comprises the tooling and techniques that are used to manage the controlled shrinkage of an extruded tube or pipe from the time it exits the die as hot extrudate to the time that it has cooled to the dimensions of the finished product. A typical sizing process involves three...
By A.J. Zambanini 
By Nick Paradiso 
By Alan Landers 
By Ernie Preiato 
By Chris Weinrich 
By Dave Miller 
By Jay Kriner