GEA VIPOLL monoblock filler wins 2 awards

The Australian Packaging and Processing Machinery Association (APPMA) named the best packaging innovations and products of the year during its AUSPACK conference held 27 March 2019.

Among the winners was GEA VIPOLL receiving the Award of Excellence for its ALL IN ONE monoblock filler in two categories: GEA's Australian partner Foodmach had submitted the filler for the competition and received the “Best New Product Award” and the “Best Imported Equipment Award” for the ALL ON ONE which fills cans, glass and PET bottles.

APPMA Chairman Mark Dingley said during the ceremony, “Our event was a showcase of sustainability. The innovations and dedication highlighted at this Gala Award Ceremony show that the entire Australian packaging and processing industry has a viable, sustainable long-term future.”

Two awards from this year's APPMA competition in Australia went to GEA VIPOLL's ALL IN ONE, which partner Foodmach installed for Lion's Malt Shovel Craft Brewery for the first time. From left: Paul Woods, Capital Projects Director at Lion, Service & Product Manager Dr Rym Kachouri at Foodmach, Senior Sales Manager Jakob Šalamun at GEA VIPOLL (Photo courtesy: Foodmach)

A joint presence in the Australian market

The multifunctional system provides an unprecedented level of flexibility to beverage manufacturers with medium capacities: ican be used to fill glass, cans and PET containers, handle a wide range of formats and seal them with diverse cap types, fill carbonated or still drinks, in cold and hot processes.

Partner Foodmach develops and produces secondary packaging equipment and automation systems for food, beverage and industrial companies, and, together with GEA VIPOLL, provides innovative filling technology in Australia. In 2018, the company integrated the ALL IN ONE for the first time into a line for Lion's Malt Shovel Craft Brewery. As one of Australia's largest food and beverage companies, Lion markets numerous premium brands in the dairy, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverage categories.

A flexible solution: The compact ALL IN ONE fills up to 20,000 containers per hour. Larger capacities are possible depending on the filling medium. Image: GEA

A flexible and sustainable filling solution

In Melbourne, Australia, the ALL IN ONE won over the APPMA by demonstrating its ability to produce big results in small spaces, and to save time during filling and format changeovers. “We are naturally very pleased with this success in Australia, which honors both the good cooperation with Foodmach and Lion and our development work”, says Jakob Šalamun from GEA VIPOLL. “The ALL IN ONE provides a solution to the massive challenge that beverage manufacturers are currently facing. The desire for efficiency and flexibility is clearly a key driver of innovation. Our customers, for example Lion, want to conserve resources and take environmental responsibility for their packaging processes.”

At a glance, the ALL IN ONE:

• Fills glass, PET and cans, and can handle different formats.
• Accommodates both carbonated and still beverages, as well as hot and cold filling.
• Switches format and product on the filling block in less than 20 minutes.
• Provides a rinser equipped with universal grippers, and a filler that uses an electro-pneumatic filler valve.
• Can integrate different cappers, e.g. combined capping turrets with capping heads for crown corks and can lids or for aluminum and plastic screw caps.
• Unlike traditional systems, ensures minimal product loss through its unique capping method.
• Is designed with a sequence of functions that are so seamless that only the smallest amount of oxygen enters the product during the filling process.
• Is easily managed using an HMI touchscreen and an interface for data transfer to a SCADA system.