Field Reports

Bottled water producer boosts production with a new complete line

Hygienic design and accurate performance were among the top demands for the new equipment.

A bottled water production line that produces Prolom bottled water, sourced from the Planinka health spa and resort.

*Photo courtesy of Sidel*

Planinka is a Serbian joint-stock company founded in 1964 as a health spa. It began bottling Prolom water at its bottling facility in 1990 in response to continuing local demand and the growing global trend for healthier drinks. At the time, there were only sparkling waters available in the former state of Yugoslavia, with no still waters on the domestic market at all.

Prolom spring water ensures optimal rehydration with its natural diuretic and bacteriostatic effects. Additionally, the high alkalinity of Prolom water makes it ideal for establishing the body’s pH balance and, due to its low mineralization, it appeals to consumers that value health and wellbeing.

To increase the capacity of its Prolom mineral water production facility, Planinka worked with Sidel, a provider of production equipment and services for liquids in PET, in establishing a new complete line.

Planinka has worked with Sidel since 2007, when it purchased its first blower, a Universal SBO 6, for its water bottling line at its facility in Prolom Banja. So when the company decided to invest in a complete new production line to meet the demands of its domestic and export markets, it capitalized on the existing relationship established with Sidel.

“As top producers in the beverage business, we are looking for great performance and the lowest possible total cost of ownership (TCO) from all our production lines,” says Dragoslav Ilic, head of Prolom Voda. “The main challenge of this particular project related to space constraints. However, Sidel’s line project team was able to offer the solution to fit all the component machinery needed for the line into the available space in a safe and functional way.”

The complete new line installation operates in addition to the existing PET bottling line. It includes a compact Sidel Matrix Combi, featuring a Sidel Matrix blower SBO 6 and a Sidel Matrix Filler SF100 FM with 36 valves. The Sidel Matrix Combi is based on the most cost effective technology of the latest generation of Sidel Matrix systems. The Combi system integrates the blow-fill-cap functions in a single unit — with neck-handling transfer of bottles enabling potential for lightweight bottles — occupying up to 30 percent less floor space and requiring only one operator, due to its single and simple control interface.

Sidel Matrix SBO blowers create high PET bottle quality and offer the flexibility to choose a size and shape that best fit specific production needs.

The health properties of natural Prolom water are vital to the appeal of the brand so maintaining these through a fully hygienic bottling process is central to the brand’s ongoing success. Additionally, the new 13,200 bph Prolom PET bottling line features the contactless Sidel Matrix Filler SF100 FM, which can handle with high precision the filling of beverages with little or no conductivity. For high accuracy and improved efficiency, it minimizes product losses and its external tank holding the beverage is easy to clean. All parts that come into contact with the water are made from stainless steel AISI (American Iron and Steel Institute) 316L. A tight enclosure, featuring HEPA (high-efficiency particulate air) filters on the roof, keeps the filling environment safe, preventing risk of contamination and further increasing the hygiene.

For more information, visit http://www.sidel.com