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Bulk Processing Case Studies

 | Bulk Processing Case Studies

Fiberglass is no match for GK’s VIBRA-DRUM®

 by General Kinematics,

Fiberglass is no match for GK’s VIBRA-DRUM®

In Paris March 11th – 13th? Visit GK at JEC 2014 to learn more about GK and the fiberglass industry!

Before
Before
After
After

 

Challenge

Chopped fiberglass has been a challenge in the composites industry for years. After fiberglass is chopped, its form becomes flattened and shifted. Even when the chopper is sharp and working well, this still occurs and only worsens over time as the blade is dulled. In a typical process the chopped fiberglass then enters a dryer system. Because of the irregular shape created by chopping though, the rice like material will not flow smoothly creating inconsistent flow rates and clumping issues.

 

Approach

General Kinematic’s VIBRA-DRUM®TM has been used in the foundry mining and processing industries for decades. GK Technical Directors began researching and testing possible solutions for this unique issue.

 

Solution

Inserting the compactly designed VIBRA-DRUM®TM before the chopped fiberglass enters the dryer, leaves the rice-like material more uniformly shaped, thus increasing flow rate and material usability. Bonus features include the ability to see and sample the fiberglass while the machine is still running. The VIBRA-DRUM®TM can also be adjusted for retention time of material without ever shutting down.

 

Results

General Kinematics has provided this solution to over a dozen fiberglass operating systems and raised the bar in product process expectation. Previous chopped fiberglass has been marked as unacceptable after seeing the results of the VIBRA-DRUM®.

 

 

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About General Kinematics
General Kinematics Corporation, incorporated in 1960, was established to market, design, and custom fabricate innovative vibratory materials handling and processing equipment. Today the company is one of the world’s largest suppliers of vibratory processing equipment, holding more than 200 worldwide patents, and is acknowledged as a major contributor to the technical advancement of vibrating equipment design and application. Today, over 50,000 General Kinematics units have been installed in virtually all of the world’s industrialized countries. For more information about General Kinematics products and services, visit the company’s website at www.generalkinematics.com.
General Kinematics Corporation, incorporated in 1960, was established to market, design, and custom fabricate innovative vibratory equipment for the foundry, recycling, mining, and processing industries. Today the company continues as one of the world’s largest suppliers of vibratory processing equipment and has evolved into an industry-leading EPC firm. Headquartered in Crystal Lake, IL, General Kinematics has seven global locations providing engineering and support to a world-wide customer base. GK is a third generation, family-owned company and is ISO 9001 certified.