trends in automation

Intelligent module optimises

compressed air consumption

The energy efficiency module MSE6-E2M monitors and regulates the com-

pressed air supply in new and existing systems – fully automatically. Similar

to the start-stop system in a car, the intelligent MSE6-E2M detects a standby

mode and automatically shuts off the supply of compressed air. Compressed

air consumption is thus reduced to zero during system downtimes and breaks.

In addition, the MSE6-E2M makes it possible to measure leaks as it reports

back if the pressure drops too quickly during downtimes. Moreover, it continu-

ously delivers process-relevant data such as flow, pressure and consumption,

which it sends to the machine controller via Profibus.

Result of successful cooperation:

the first generation of the energy efficiency

module MSE6-E2M is currently in continuous operation at Unilever. The market-

ready module is around 50 per cent more compact.

ce cream is refreshing and with its

proteins and carbohydrates is consid-

ered a source of energy. However, it

also takes a lot of energy to mix ingre-

dients like milk, dairy chocolate, sugar

and vanilla beans into the finished prod-

uct. Electricity and compressed air play an

important role in the thermal and kinetic

processes for everything from mixing and

extruding the ingredients, deep-freezing

to -25°C, dipping into various chocolate

coatings through to final packaging. Ener-

gy efficiency is therefore right at the top

of Unilever’s list of priorities. As part of

the Unilever Sustainable Living Plan, this

global corporation has succeeded in sav-

ing more than 150 million euros in energy

costs from efficiency improvements in

production alone since 2008.

In the area of pneumatics too, the use

of innovative developments offers the

potential to save energy and thereby lower

costs. In the Unilever plant in Heppenheim,

Germany the energy efficiency module

MSE6-E2M has just recently been deployed

to reduce the compressed air consump-

tion of a plant manufacturing Magnum

ice creams. Unilever and Festo worked

together closely to get this prototype of

the energy efficiency module ready for se-

ries production. This process also showed

that it is not just in the field of energy

consumption that less is more.

Sustainability along the entire line

The Heppenheim factory is one of the

main Unilever production locations for ice

cream. These include products of the

well-known Wall’s line including Magnum,

Feast, Viennetta and Carte d’Or. High

production quantities form the basis for

supplying other parts of the European

market. Just one of the five Magnum pro-

duction lines in Heppenheim produces

more than 20,000 ice creams on a stick

per hour. This requires a lot of energy. In

order to reduce the compressed air con-

sumption of the pneumatic components,

the ability to visualise and measure the

compressed air consumption was of huge

importance to Unilever. Previously, the

consumption on the individual production

lines had not been determined. “Until then

we were just unaware,” says Alexander

Hemmerich, Automation Engineer at the

Unilever Plant, Heppenheim. “Air is not

visible, so it is not immediately obvious if

consumption is too high.” As part of the

Unilever Sustainable Living Plan there had

already been successes in other areas of

the plant. Energy-intensive geared motors

were replaced with more efficient ones,

achieving energy savings of up to 60 per

cent. Numerous 18 kW ventilators in the

cooling tunnels, which previously ran

2.2015

trends in automation

Synergies

–