Apr 25 2007
Only about one year after regaining independence, Buss AG in Pratteln (Switzerland) near Basel recently booked its biggest order ever. Worth more than 10 million EUR in total, the scope of supply covers seven complete lines for high-grade cable compounds. Decisive for the customer – a multinational cable manufacturer – was the combined Buss quantec® and MKS kneader technology, particularly well proven for cable compounds that are critically sensitive to heat and shear force, as well as the outstanding know-how and market knowledge of Buss in this sector. The order was brought to fruition by years of close customer contact and intensive project work, resulting in a bond of trust that enabled contract closure within a few months. Despite the exceptionally large order volume, all seven compounding lines will be delivered during the course of this year and commissioned in turn by March 2008.
The new Buss compounding lines will expand the future plant operator’s valueadded chain for manufacturing polyolefin cable compounds, previously outsourced, thereby simplifying supply logistics and reducing costs.
These seven compounding lines, installed in three plants, will enable the production of all commercial cable compounds. Such comprehensive coverage in a single order
has never before been attained by Buss. The following products can be manufactured with these lines:
- PVC compounds,
- Halogen-free flame-resistant cable compounds,
- Cross-linkable polyethylene compounds,
- Black Masterbatch,
- Black polyethylen jacketing compounds.
The compounding lines can be operated so flexibly that cable compound combinations such as cross-linkable and semiconducting are also possible.
As well as the kneading lines with raw materials dosing, degassing, melt filtration and granulation, the scope of supply also includes comprehensive bulk solids handling logistics for the three compounding plants, the latter in partnership with a reputed European manufacturer of bulk solids handling systems. In addition to the hardware, Buss is also supplying the plant operator with an extensive know-how package. This covers Buss system and process know-how as well as specialized recipe know-how, supplied by a partner company, that enables maximum possible utilization of locally available raw materials. An agreement has also been signed with the customer for close technical cooperation in the near future.