Located in southern Germany, sortimat is a manufacturer of industrial handling machines for a range of different applications. The company produces systems that pack, stack and palletise small parts, such as tubes or blister packs, into bigger units. Because these systems work very precisely and quickly, they are often used in medical technology applications. Customers are either pharmaceutical companies or production line manufacturers working specifically in the pharmaceutical industry. The handling systems are produced in series production, but additional customer-specific requirements have to be met.

To develop decentralised installation solutions, sortimat Handling Systems works hand-in-hand with Murrelektronik, choosing to use a Cube system on its machines. A space saving Cube20 fieldbus module was chosen for the cabinet and used in combination with a Cube67 fieldbus system on the machine. This allowed sortimat Handling Systems to replace conventional single wire connections in its machines.

There were several deciding factors that made sortimat’s electrical engineers choose a Cube67 decentralised installation solution. The most important was the limited space in and on the machines. Here Cube67 modules offer the advantage of being multifunctional. The M8 or M12 ports can be configured as either inputs or outputs, depending on the installation requirements. Murrelektronik explains that this saves space and lowers costs, especially when compared to an installation with two dedicated input and output modules. Also, by using a Cube67 valve module, valve clusters can be quickly integrated into the system, without requiring additional fieldbus connections. In addition, the single-cable-technology of the Cube67 system transfers both data and power, reducing the space required in the cable ducts and simplifiying installation.

The sortimat Handling Systems used for trays and pallets are interchangeable with different gripping tools that have a short set-up time during change out. Cube67's Machine Option Management (MOM) makes sure the machine starts operating immediately after a tool change. MOM enables hardware and software configuration based on a standardised maximum configuration. While the system is operating, only those components that are activated are used for the specific application. This prevents unscheduled downtime. The comprehensive diagnostic options that are built into Cube67 via the control (indicator at the HMI) as well as in the field (LED at the affected port) allow for quick troubleshooting.

Another plus for using a Cube system, according to Murrelektronik, is the wide variety of modules available. No matter the requirements, a standard component can be easily found and a solution implemented. The Cube solution installed at sortimat Handling Systems has enabled the company to respond easily to changing market requirements.