Saving of over £75K p.a. on replacement filters

A major recycling company in the midlands had a major issue when processing plastic scrap for recycling. They use a type of filter to recirculate air in the reprocessing machine.

Over time as the process reduces the plastic into smaller and smaller pieces the particles get trapped and block the filter, rendering them useless. Unable to clean them effectively they were discarded after 2 uses at great cost to the company.

The recycling company contacted Sonic Solutions hoping they could help. Following the process of enquiring about the contaminant, the material type of the item to be cleaned, and the level of cleanliness required for the next process, a free trial clean took place.

The results from the trial were outstanding and the client was so impressed he quickly sent an entire batch up for us to clean.

The outcome

A HUGE direct cost saving of over £75,300 per annum on replacement filters. On top of these direct cost savings their engineering support manager reported increased productivity totalling over 20% from the recycling lines using the cleaned filter discs compared to the blocked old discs. 

As concluded by SImon, the Engineering Manager at the recycling company “All in all a massive win for us, reducing costs and increasing revenue simultaneously in a very competitive market.”

"We’ve been operating a “done for you” ultrasonic cleaning service for some years now across a number of industries & applications, but I was absolutely gobsmacked to discover how much money (£75,328!) we’re saving one of our plastic recycling clients by slowing down or preventing their need to buy expensive consumables as regularly as they had been, simply by cleaning them ultrasonically and at relatively low cost instead." Andrew Taylor, Managing Director at Sonic Solutions

Exactly how is so much money saved?

Simon’s calculations were based on the following:
1. An average 13 filters a month were cleaned in 2019. Erema laser discs in Simon’s case, but this process also applies to Ettlinger, MAS or other hot melt filters.
2. Our Ultrasonic cleaning process means that each filter now lasts at least twice as long as when cleaned the conventional way of burn and jet wash.
3. Any hot melt filter costs well in excess of £1,000
4. Total cost of cleaning, carriage, packing etc.. costs less than £100 per filter.
Annual savings of at least £75,328

Simon’s conservative calculation of an annual saving of £75,328 was based purely on replacement cost. He also found the following additional benefits...

Additional benefits of Ultrasonic Cleaning...

Productivity Improvement
Conventional burn and jet wash still leaves the filters partially blocked, so throughput is reduced. Simon calculated the ultrasonically cleaned discs allowed 20% more throughput.

Less Downtime
These partially blocked filters result in more frequent stoppages to replace filters. Simon said an ultrasonically cleaned filter could last up to 4 times as long as a burnt filter before needing replacement.

Lower Cost On Parts
Ironically Simon’s initial approach to us was to clean his anilox print rollers. Only later did he ask us to clean his Erema filters. We now clean not just his Erema filters, but also his print rollers, dust filters and heat exchangers.

Better Quality
Partially blocked filters lead to excessive pressure building up which can force contaminating material through the filter resulting in a lower quality product. This affects both price and desirability of the recycled product.

Lower Capital Cost Improvement
Whilst Simon does burn his filters before sending them to us, we can also burn them as well as ultrasonically cleaning them. This means avoiding a capital expense up to £50,000 on a burning (pyrolysis) oven.

Sonic Solutions is the UK's Leading Ultrasonic Cleaning Service, Supplier of Ultrasonic Baths, Equipment & Ultrasonic Chemicals for Industrial use.

Claim your complimentary trial clean…

1. Visit sonicsolutionsltd.com/free-trial
2. Enter some basic details about your application - Everyone’s requirements are unique.
3. Sonic Solutions will arrange pick-up & delivery
4. You get your burnt off/ultrasonically cleaned part(s) sent back to you.
5. That’s it!

Contact 
Sonic Solutions Ltd
Tel: +44(0) 1924 927794 

18/11/2020