BÜRKERT

Appearing once again at HMI, the world’s leading trade fair for industrial technology, is the fluid experts at Bürkert. The family owned company from Baden-Württemberg’s Hohenlohe region will be demonstrating its command of the different fundamental physical principles, and will literally start up a futuristic competence machine, from 24th-28th April.

The advantages of improved automation have already been put to use by most large scale food processing plants to minimise production costs and boost productivity. However, some medium and smaller scale businesses, although appreciative of the benefits, remain reticent about the process of implementation and how the latest technology will combine with an existing installation.

Enabling its precision liquid flowmeter, FLOWave, developments by Bürkert are to be incorporated into process skids providing a lightweight, cost effective, solution for hygienic applications. The development of process skids is a competitive enterprise but there are several aspects of the design that cannot be compromised, especially if they are destined for pharmaceutical applications.

They first came into commercial use in the 1970s, and ever since Coriolis flowmeters have been developed and refined to meet a growing number of applications across a wide range of industries. However, where fluid density is not required, there is an alternative that offers all of the accuracy of Coriolis as well as addressing many of its substantial drawbacks.

Pneumatic conveying brings a number of advantages, for many industries, not forgetting the lack of moving parts and system flexibility. However, it is essential that such systems are properly controlled in order to maintain efficiency and the quality of the product in transit. Delivering effective process control systems requires an understanding of both the technology and the industry itself.

For those involved in designing, operating and maintaining the world of fluid control systems, there are many challenges. Not least of these is finding the most suitable valve for an application; the choice seems almost endless but help is at hand for those who prefer to select all of their components from one source.

Requiring considerable experience and expertise, designing and building process control panels is not as straight forward as you may think, especially when they are destined for hazardous areas. These potentially explosive atmospheres, or zoned areas, are more common than you’d think, with applications spread across a number of industries from obvious ones like oil and gas to less well recognised areas such as food and drink or rail.

A price freeze for January 2017 has been applied by Bürkert, throwing a spanner in the works for the normal trend of price increases this year. While many other manufacturers have already communicated price rises between 5% and 11%, Bürkert aims to maintain current price levels for its customers.

Cutting the traditional lead time of six to eight weeks for an electromagnetic flowmeter, Bürkert has got it down to just ten working days. Although a relatively low volume product, ‘magmeters’, as they are commonly known, are used in many applications but replacement parts are often made to order which can delay projects or reduce productivity for a considerable time. Faster delivery should benefit end users and process equipment manufacturers alike.

Bigger demands are being put on the food and beverage industry from increasing competitiveness and higher levels of regulatory compliance, however improving automation levels and plant integration can address these concerns. On the other hand with every installation being different, creating an automation solution that is specifically matched to the application requires considerable expertise.

The components used to manage manufacturing and cleaning processes in hygienic applications are depended on a lot, especially the process controls in industries such as the food and beverage sector. Choosing the right steam control valve can bring a number of benefits including precision, reliability, minimal maintenance and durability in challenging environments.

Two stainless steel valve actuators have been launched by Bürkert, created specifically for tough hygienic operating environments. The Types 2060 and 2063 are designed to control angle seat valves and diaphragm valves respectively and incorporate Bürkert’s tried and tested valve control technology. They also complete the product line-up for systems using centralised automation.

Industries with highly automated processes, such as food and beverage and pharmaceuticals face many challenges, especially in terms of maintaining a safe environment. As increased legislation continues to require higher standards, Bürkert Fluid Control Systems has developed a series of safety valve solutions that can be retro-fitted to existing control systems or incorporated into designs.

Unique to the food and beverage industry, process control systems can be used to deliver higher levels of efficiency and reliability. Mark Lilley, Field Segment Manager at Hygienic - Food and Beverage for Bürkert Fluid Control Systems, looks at the benefits of a bespoke control system, the features it should include and how to achieve the most effective solution.

Testing and analysis for clinical diagnosis are two critical requirements, now a collaborative project has combined the two with efficiency and cost effectiveness also, by designing a new modular microfluidic solution. Integrating Bürkert Fluid Control Systems with Biosystems resulted in the design of a new dosing unit that significantly reduces running costs for analysis instrumentation.

In-Vitro Diagnostics (IVD) form a vital part of modern healthcare, enabling earlier and more accurate diagnoses, leading to more targeted treatments and better patient care. The equipment ranges from the simple self-tests to sophisticated technologies used in clinical laboratories, but it all has the common requirements for accuracy and reliability.

Since its launch in 2008, Bürkert's ELEMENT range of positioners and process controllers has revolutionised the design and operation of many automated processes, especially hygienic applications and those that benefit from a decentralised control structure. With a process of continuous improvement, Bürkert has recently improved the functionality of the Type 869x positioners and controllers.

Bürkert Fluid Control Systems has recently launched its latest addition to the micro fluidics range, the Type 6712 WhisperValve, which is a plunger type design with media separation, that measures only 7mm wide and has a switching time of less than 5 milliseconds. Designed for medical applications such as dialysis, drug delivery systems and in-vitro diagnostic work as well as precision inkjet printing, this latest development from Bürkert also has a very low switch noise of less than 36dB.