National Instrument now offers leasing as a financing option for Filamatic® Liquid Filling Systems. Leasing often is a logical choice for those packagers limited by strict capital budgets, yet still in need of packaging equipment for growth and expansion.

When equipment is purchased for cash, it must be depreciated over time – about 8 years for most packaging equipment. Leasing equipment, on the other hand, is fully expensed during the term of the lease, which is a much shorter period than its depreciation schedule.

Leasing enables you to maintain liquid cash levels and frees up your line of credit for other unexpected investments. The end result is valuable financial flexibility for your business. Pay for equipment as you use it for the processing of your product. You derive profit from your investment that begins at the initial installation date.

Choose among various leases including an Operating Lease, a 10% Purchase Option or a $1.00 Purchase Option and then choose the lease term to suit your needs. Most lease options are 12 to 60 months. Along with base equipment, financing can include freight, installation, start-up supplies and spare parts. Just roll the cost of the accessories into the equipment investment.

$55,000 + Sales Tax @ 7.5% = $59,125 x lease rate (.019388) = $1,146.32 x 12mths = $13,755.84* /yr

If your business is seasonal and you require a Skip Payment Plan, a Variable Payment Plan or a 60/90/120-Day Delayed Payment Plan, terms are available.

National Instrument works with a 3^rd party for leasing services. If you would like to hear more about leasing as an option and how this financial tool can work for you as you plan for your next liquid filling system, contact us at sales@filamatic.com or by phone at 410/764-0900.

* Check the pump post and volume control bushings (found in the bearing sleeve housing assembly) for excessive wear. Any gap between the ID of a bushing and the underlying pump post or bearing sleeve that is more than 0.02” (up/down or side-to-side movement) will affect the filling accuracy of the system. If you find a gap of more than 0.02”, replace the bearing sleeve housing assembly.

* The operation of volume control(s) should be thoroughly evaluated. With all of the filling units removed from the filler, loosen the eccentric post nut on the volume control assembly. Turn the adjustment knob to cycle the volume control through its entire range of motion. If it binds at any point, the lead screw assembly may be rusted. If so, use penetrating oil to free it. As the threads in the lead screw assembly are very fine, use caution and exert only minimal torque to free the assembly. If bent or stripped, the lead screw assembly will need to be replaced.

*Check the drive system for excessive wear. With the power off, gently attempt to rotate the volume control(s) clockwise/counterclockwise to determine the degree of free play present in the drive gears. It should not be excessive, allowing only a few degrees of motion at most. If you experience excessive play, replace the drive gears.

Follow a regular maintenance schedule to identify any potential filling problems and take the necessary steps to correct any discrepancies. A few minutes invested now, can help ensure your Filamatic® Filler continues to operate in tip-top working order.

For more information on our Benchtop Filling Systems, click here

Choose the Right Piston Pump for You.

Purchasing the right piston pump for the right job can be challenging, but, with just a few considerations, the challenge can be all but eliminated.

The first step in researching a piston pump is to understand your filling needs.

First, identify what it is you are trying to fill. Does your product have a viscosity of 0.2 like sulphuric acid or a reading of 50,000 like ketchup? Is the product viscous, semi-viscous or waterlike? Waterlike product is thin and readily free-flowing. Examples of waterlike consistencies are perfumes, alcohol-based products, thin solvents and solutions. A slightly thicker product would be considered semi-viscous. Thicker solutions would be consistent with shampoos, creams and oils. Products flow, but consistency is denser. Viscous products are denser yet, with a thickness similar to petroleum jelly, salad dressings or mascara.

Standard type Filling Units are recommended for general use and consist of components that fasten together with threaded connections. For sanitary use and applications requiring frequent cleaning and product changeover, non-threaded type units offer quick and easy disassembly and assembly. If your filling needs require internal pump components that are autoclaveable or rolling diaphragms manufactured in a Class 1000 Clean Room to ensure cleanliness, DUS Rolling Diaphragms are available. Filamatic’s® DUS Piston with Rolling Diaphragm meets FDA CFR 177.2600 Standards for contact with food and drugs. All piston pump product contact parts are type 316 stainless steel, which is the preferred stainless steel for the pharmaceutical, cosmetic and food industries.

The standard piston pump operates under a simple premise. The basic repetitive action consists of 4 steps –

Step 1 – Downward motion of the piston creates a vacuum in the pump chamber. This action opens the intake valve.

Step 2 – A preset volume of liquid flows from the supply source into the pump chamber.

Step 3 – The upward motion of the piston closes the intake valve and opens the discharge valve.

Step 4 – Liquid is then discharged from the nozzle.

To ensure the smooth operation of the pump, it is important to choose the correct valve for your application. There are three valve choices to consider. Each of the valve configurations is structured to efficiently move a specific liquid viscosity through the pump chamber and then discharge from the nozzle. First, the Weight/Ball Check Valve is a general purpose valve for water thin liquids. This combination consists of a valve weight and valve ball which open and close the intake and discharge lines.

A second option is the Spring/Ball Check Valve most frequently used for semi-viscous liquids. However, in this application, the valve ball works in conjunction with a spring, and helps compress the denser product. And thirdly, the Duck-Bill Valve is a special purpose valve for sheer sensitive liquids, providing near zero wear. This option is recommended for use with suspensions and liquids containing fine sediment or particulate, or where minimal cell damage during the fill is important.

A final consideration in choosing your piston pump is your fill volume. Filamatic piston pumps have a fill range from .05ml to 1100 ml with fill accuracy to 0.5%. These pumps can be used on Filamatic’s Semi Automatic Systems as well as the fully Automatic Filling Systems. And when using servos to drive these Filling Units, the flow rate can be increased and decreased at different times. This adaptation allows all shapes of containers to be filled easily and accurately.

National Instrument provides piston pumps suitable for products that range from 0.2 to 250,000 viscosity. These Piston Pumps fill a full range of viscosities from water, corn oil, ink and salad dressings and are available in standard and sanitary models. If you would like to hear more above the Filamatic line of Filling Units, contact us at customerservice@filamatic.com.or give us a call at 410/764-0900.

Did you Know –

PMMI PREDICTS 7% GROWTH IN U.S. PACKAGING MACHINERY SALES

Third Consecutive Year of Growth for the Industry

The Packaging Machinery Manufacturers Institute (PMMI) predicts a 7% growth in packaging machinery sales in the United States to an estimated $5.91 billion. PMMI's U.S. Purchasing Plans Study represents the collective voice of 453 decision makers responsible for 7,005 packaging lines in 1,213 plants throughout all key segments of the U.S. market.

The predicted increase follows three consecutive years of growth following the economic downturn experienced in 2001.

Key Market Drivers

Need to replace older machines.
More expansion of packaging capacity underway.
Expectation of more product and SKU additions in 2005.
Companies installing more automated packaging machines to reduce labor costs.
Evolution of new packaging an ongoing catalyst for machinery demand.
Both direct and indirect influence of super stores and retail chains on packaging requirements – a continuing issue.
The positive effect of more packaging runs per line.
End-users addressing worker ergonomics, product security and safety issues.

Source: PMMI Press Release – May 2005