Compactness, automation and high efficiency of both the casting process and piece transfer to final drying/firing. These are the advantages of the new Sacmi ADI - the casting cell designed to manufacture large sinks and console washbasins - recently supplied to a Duravit, a world-leading manufacturer of high quality, beautifully designed sanitaryware.
The cell was assembled at the beginning of May. It then passed all the start-up and testing stages before coming on line at the parent company's Hornberg facility, the firm's technological and manufacturing hub where all new products are tested before being released on the market. The supplied configuration consists of two ADI modules managed by one robot. Working in parallel, the casting modules can produce washbasins as large as 140 cm in two different formats (at present Duravit-made products range from the 80 cm format to the 120 cm one).
A key feature of the Sacmi ADI is that it can manage up to 3 casting modules with a single robot. In the configuration supplied to Duravit the ADI is equipped with a full set of peripheral devices such as gripper, fork and piece tilting unit. After casting, the robot transfers the mould section holding the piece and de-moulds it onto a support where finishing tasks are performed. The piece is subsequently overturned and sent to the Sacmi FPV pre-dryer. Thanks to significant abatement of residual moisture content, the latter ensures the piece is strong enough to be loaded onto the drier car in little more than an hour. Mould changeover tasks have also been made easier and more efficient as work can be performed on one module while the other remains in operation.
Acceleration of the process , combined with compactness and less need for support facilities (use of the pre-dryer means pieces no longer need to “settle” for hours in the plant before being sent on to the final stages) make for a highly distinctive configuration. The ADI joins the numerous Sacmi solutions already installed at the Hornberg facility (e.g. the recently supplied AVI casting cells) and the group’s other plants across Europe and Worldwide.