Beverage packaging equipment supplier Sidel (Le Havre / France; www.sidel.com) has introduced the “bottle switch” quick format changeover system which it claims reduces mould changeover times on bottle blow moulding machines to less than one minute.

The system involves a simple, semi-automatic solution that places the required blowing station directly in front of the operator. Easier unlocking of the mould support units enables automatic opening and the operator changes the moulds with tool-free removal and installation of the mould support units. The company says that the system is easy to use and results in a 50% decrease in machine downtime. On a "Sidel SBO 20 Universal2", for example, full format changeover is now 18 minutes “bottle to bottle” for a single operator instead of 33 minutes for two operators using the previous system. This changeover includes replacing the shells, body and mould base and the stretching thrusts.