Britvic boosts bottle drying efficiency

A new bottle drying system is helping Britvic cut downtime, maximise production output and reduce energy use.

Previously, two identical drying units were located in series on the 36,000 bottles/h line to dry bottles before label adhesion. As well as not drying effectively, they did not have bottle guide rails so bottles fell over causing stoppages and product waste.

These units have been replaced by a single 'LNL' unit from Air Control Industries. The LNL features ACI's 'JetPlate' plenum air delivery system which enables air to be delivered close to the bottles, while at the same time acting as guide rails to promote stability during travel.

The blower unit is on top of the bottle dryer enclosure to permit use of adjustable mounting legs to facilitate installation - even as a retrofit - and for easy all round cleaning. The device handles bottle sizes from 125ml to 750mL, without adjustment.

These benefits are complemented by significant energy savings.