Pipes from K-Aqua, marking from REA JET
Kessel Wassertechnologie GmbH, a company based in central Hessen and part of the Kessel Group, produces up to 14,000 m of K-Aqua brand plastic pipes per extrusion line every day.
Almost 99% of these are sold to customers in the Middle East for cold and hot water supply. A profitable business - but all goods have to be comprehensively marked for export. Specialists from REA JET were brought in to implement this.
The plastic pipes are manufactured strictly in accordance with DIN EN ISO standard 15874, which requires accurate marking with ISO number, manufacturer's name, outside diameter, wall thickness, dimension class, material designation, permissible operating pressure, production location and date.
Fast and precise
The experts at REA JET recommended the REA JET HR thermal inkjet printer for this demanding task. It marks the pipes directly after extrusion in a contract-free, adhesive and high resolution manner. Thanks to cartridge technology from HP, it is maintenance-free, economical in consumption and ready to start immediately even after a long period of downtime. The consistently precise results at a writing speed of up to 762 m/min are also impressive. By dispensing with solvent-based inks and solvents, the system is also a clean, environmentally friendly alternative to many inkjet small character printers (CIJ).
Up to 3,500 plastic pipes per machine are produced and marked every day in K-Aqua's production hall. The single-layer and multi-layer composite pipes with glass fiber reinforcement are available in different colors and, if required, with additional functions such as UV protection if they are laid on plaster. Here, too, the flexible REA JET HR can score points with a wide range of colored, well-adhering inks.
The customer is king
K-Aqua produces exclusively to order, so the focus is always on the individual customer order. In order to meet the high demands, great flexibility is required. Not only the production, but also the labeling data has to be constantly varied, reports Technical Director Philipp Nickel.
At K-Aqua, control is therefore carried out via the input terminal directly on the line. The company particularly appreciates the speed with which print data can be easily uploaded and adapted on the computer without any changeover. The resulting flexibility and pragmatism represent significant added value. Thanks to full Unicode support, texts to be printed can even be printed in almost any language in the world if required.
Future-proof solution
Modern interfaces enable easy integration into the production line and fast data exchange with the production environment. The graphical user interface ensures that the print content is displayed realistically (WYSIWYG). With the connection to the REA JET TITAN Platform, the single operating concept for all REA JET Technologies, all doors are open to K-Aqua for the future with a view to Industry 4.0: If required, it is possible to switch to operation via touch display, smartphone, tablet or any browser at any time.
Location advantage Germany
To further increase the durability of the marking, the static charge on the pipes is reduced by wiping them with a brush before marking. This tip came from the REA JET customer advisor. Technical Director Philipp Nickel appreciates the all-round service as well as the problem-free integration of the printer. Both companies are also linked by their location in Germany and the Made in Germany label, which boosts exports.
REA Coding and Marking Systems also develops and produces its own coding and marking systems at the company headquarters in Mühltal, Hesse. Thanks to in-house development and production, individual applications can also be realized. Flexible adaptation to a wide range of requirements is facilitated by the modular structure of the technologies. This means that every customer receives the right, individually tailored coding and marking solution.
Successful team
Excellent quality is the key to K-Aqua's success: the polypropylene pipes have a particularly long service life, so they have to be exchanged less frequently, are easy to clean, hard-wearing, withstand extreme temperatures and are suitable for drinking water. Consistent customer focus, high quality and production in Germany are paying off: Because business is booming, K-Aqua will soon be purchasing additional extrusion systems and will remain loyal to the REA JET HR print system.
