The Sweden-based company said its new piGRIP allows manufacturers to choose the ideal lip and bellow combinations that maximise efficiency and cuts energy usage.
The “unique” suction cup can handle products at “unprecedented speeds while realising energy savings”. It offers 20-50 per cent more lifting force than similar-sized cups, which cut energy consumption, said the firm.
“The powerful grip is made possible because of the variety of lip options available, which lets producers choose the ideal hardness or softness for optimum sealing”, Piab marketing and communications co-ordinator Gildas Cabal told FoodProductionDaily.com at the Emballage trade show in Paris.
Flexible lips provide extra sealing capability for handling porous materials such as corrugated cardboard, while foam lips are better suited for hard-to-handle products such as rigid food packaging.
High speeds and customisation
The high-strength TPE-made bellow facilitates increased throughput speeds because of its ability to compress quickly, added Cabal.
“The easier it is to compress the cup, the lower the vacuum needed to create the necessary grip,” he said. “Working with a lower vacuum to achieve the same efficiency means you save energy.”
The cup can be customised thanks to the availability of a wide range of independent lip, bellows and fittings ranging from 25mm to 77mm.
“Whereas traditional grippers can only be used for select applications, the piGRIP can be tailored to individual gripping, lifting and height requirements to handle a variety of products and fit with a number of packing machines, including robotic arms , rotary cartoners, labelling machines and carton erectors,” said Piab.
The company said the suction product can be used on new systems as well as retrofitted onto existing machines.
It is made from 100 per cent recyclable materials and has food contact approval from the US Food and Drug Administration, said Piab.
“The new revolutionary piGRIP brings a step change in vacuum technology by being the first complete modular suction cup on the market,” said ED McGovern, vice president of sales and business development in North America.