Tankless Hot Melt Adhesive Systems
Thinking of going ‘tankless’ with your hot-melt system? Read this first!
One of the most recent developments to be making waves in the world of glue application is that of ‘tankless’ application systems. We won’t go into deep detail as to how tankless supply systems work, but we would like to raise a few questions that we’d recommend you consider before moving to a tankless system.
The manufacturers and suppliers of tankless systems claim that their systems require less time from initial activation (switching on) to starting the application process. In our experience this is not an issue with more traditional tank-fed systems, which are kept at operating temperatures for many hours (sometimes weeks) in efficient production environments. ITW Dynatec hot melt tanks incorporate features such as on board schedulers and standby modes which mean that the adhesive can be ready and at optimum temperature when you wish to use it. A tankless system will also require a separate automatic feeder which in itself puts further demand on your electrical supply.
Another potential issue with tankless feed systems is downtime. Tankless systems rely on an automated feeder to supply the heating chamber. If the feeder becomes faulty or is interrupted in any way then a tankless system runs out of glue! More glue cannot be added manually. With a ‘Melt On Demand’ hopper (pictured right) from ITW Dynatec there is no danger of this occurring as the hopper can always be refilled by hand.
A further problem with tankless systems is that they are not proven to be as flexible. Tankless systems have to operate within strict parameters and we all know that in production environments things change. A tank free system is very limited in terms of the adhesive you can use. If in future your requirements change you may well find the tankless system is redundant and you have to revert back to a standard hot melt hopper.
Taking all of the above into consideration it seems hard to justify investing in a system which limits your application and offers no significant benefit over the proven ‘Melt On Demand’ hopper.
One of the most recent developments to be making waves in the world of glue application is that of ‘tankless’ application systems. We won’t go into deep detail as to how tankless supply systems work, but we would like to raise a few questions that we’d recommend you consider before moving to a tankless system.
The manufacturers and suppliers of tankless systems claim that their systems require less time from initial activation (switching on) to starting the application process. In our experience this is not an issue with more traditional tank-fed systems, which are kept at operating temperatures for many hours (sometimes weeks) in efficient production environments. ITW Dynatec hot melt tanks incorporate features such as on board schedulers and standby modes which mean that the adhesive can be ready and at optimum temperature when you wish to use it. A tankless system will also require a separate automatic feeder which in itself puts further demand on your electrical supply.
Another potential issue with tankless feed systems is downtime. Tankless systems rely on an automated feeder to supply the heating chamber. If the feeder becomes faulty or is interrupted in any way then a tankless system runs out of glue! More glue cannot be added manually. With a ‘Melt On Demand’ hopper (pictured right) from ITW Dynatec there is no danger of this occurring as the hopper can always be refilled by hand.
A further problem with tankless systems is that they are not proven to be as flexible. Tankless systems have to operate within strict parameters and we all know that in production environments things change. A tank free system is very limited in terms of the adhesive you can use. If in future your requirements change you may well find the tankless system is redundant and you have to revert back to a standard hot melt hopper.
Taking all of the above into consideration it seems hard to justify investing in a system which limits your application and offers no significant benefit over the proven ‘Melt On Demand’ hopper.