Industry 5.0
FOAM PRODUCTION CONTROL SYSTEM
WHAT SEEMED LIKE A DREAM YESTERDAY IS REALITY TODAY!
With over 18 years of experience in manufacturing foam production machinery, ALEMO has developed a cutting-edge foam extrusion line equipped with an advanced control system. This system constantly records all key production data, including raw material dosing, recipe blends, gas dosing, extrusion parameters, downstream cooling, and sheet collection, on a single integrated platform. All data is securely stored in encrypted databases with multi-level access tiers, ensuring that only authorized personnel can view or manage it.
Designed to be Industry 5.0 ready, the extrusion line has been enhanced with an AI-based operator assistant, currently under development, which will help optimize production, minimize waste, and further reduce CO₂ emissions through smarter process control.
ALEMO FOAMTRACK (TM) (3rd Level of the Automation Pyramid)
The ALEMO supervision and data acquisition system was developed as a primary database for storing all foaming data, offering foam manufacturers the opportunity to:
- Collect all foaming process data
- Historical product database
- Recipe management
- Product tracking system - ability to trace exact process parameters and recipes for any defective or high-quality products, for every single product/roll
- Parameter visualization and reports for each roll or product batch
The control system is equipped with several intelligent functions
(4th level of the automation pyramid):
AUTOMATIC PREHEATING FUNCTION
This function allows for the programming of a gradual heating curve for the heaters to prevent overheating, extend their lifespan, and set the most time-efficient and uniform preheating for the entire machine.
Preheating can be programmed to start only from the head and subsequently with the other parts to save energy.
AUTOMATIC START-UP FUNCTION
The extruder automatically follows a series of pre-selected melt heating and mixing phases until production process parameters are reached. The heating of the extruder head is also programmed to automatically bring the melt to the pre-selected temperature.
At that point, the operator can start the machine with a programmable automatic program to reach extrusion process conditions in the shortest possible time with minimum raw material waste.
AUTOMATIC STOP FUNCTION
This function allows for the correct execution of safe shutdown phases or putting the extruder into stand-by mode (to prevent any dangerous situations during die changes when the extruder is in stand-by).
PRODUCT/RECIPE CHANGE
This is an intelligent automatic product change process that ensures a smooth transition between recipes and reduces scrap production.
AUTOMATIC FILTER CHANGE FUNCTION
The extruder control system automatically performs filter replacement at the optimal time, without foam breakage.
NETWORK FUNCTION
This function was developed for large companies with several foam extruders located in different sites or countries. It allows for the sharing or exchange of production and process data for all product recipes stored on a specific extruder.
In this way, the know-how of one production site / extrusion line can be shared with all users on the network.
The best recipes and optimal process parameters for each type of product can be exchanged between plants equipped with ALEMO extruders.
