Paul Edmondson, Managing Director, Maguire Europe, explains two of the reasons why plastics processors are switching from desiccant dryers to the Ultra® vacuum dryer from Maguire: speed and energy efficiency.

Speed is a critical advantage in start-ups and product changeovers. A case in point is that of Jasplastiks.r.o., the largest injection molder in Slovakia, with more than 100 presses producing automotive components and television panels. In recent years the company began purchasing Ultra dryers and now operates 20 of them, including the Ultra 150 and Ultra 300 models. Jasplastik uses the machines to dry polyamide, polycarbonate, ABS, and PC/ABS resins. It reports that the dryers need only 30 minutes to reach proper drying temperature and dry the materials in cycles of only 10 to 20 minutes.

In general, the drying cycle of an Ultra dryer is only one-sixth as long as that of a typical desiccant dryer. 

Another advantage of Ultra dryers cited by Jasplastik is energy savings. Although the Ultra dryer uses about the same amount of energy as a comparable desiccant dryer to bring resin up to drying temperature, it uses much less energy to actually dry the material. 

While the Ultra dryer would run at 19 watts per pound in the drying cycle, a late-model, energy-efficient desiccant dryer would typically run at 60 watts per pound of material, and a new desiccant dryer with only standard energy performance could run at 100 watts per pound. As for a 10- or 15-year old desiccant dryer that a new Ultra dryer would replace, the energy use might run as high as 150 watts per pound.On the basis of energy savings alone, a new Ultra dryer could pay for itself in a matter of months.

Founded in 2001 Jasplastik has two injection molding facilities, the main one being in Galanta, Slovakia; a new and growing facility is located in nearby Nitra. The company is a Tier One molder for the Jaguar Land Rover and a sub-supplier to Audi, General Motors, Porsche, Volkswagen, and other automotive OEMs. They produce television panels for LG, Samsung, and Sony.

Visit www.jasplastik.com/en