Silverson Machines offers the widest capacity range from a single manufacturer – with mixers able to process volumes as small as 1ml up to huge batches of 30,000 litres. Despite this extensive range, for some applications there is no other alternative than to create a unique, one-of-a-kind, customised piece of equipment to suit customer requirements. For other applications, modifications to one of the ‘core’ product line mixers can help customers to achieve their desired result. As all Silverson mixing equipment is designed and manufactured in-house, Silverson is able to be more flexible and can customise equipment depending on the application.
Recently, Silverson has supplied two very different customised machines for companies in different industries, for the dispersion of pigments. The first, a High Shear In-Line mixer purchased by a pharmaceutical company for tablet coatings. The other, a GX in-tank Batch mixer purchased by a company manufacturing cast iron and ceramic kitchenware.
The pharmaceutical company manufacturing tablet coatings has purchased a special trolley-mounted 275UHS In-Line mixer with a control terminal, specially designed rotor and dry running sensor. The mixer will be used to create an iron oxide suspension for tablet coatings.
The company had a trial machine at their factory to test whether the mixer could produce a high-quality pigment suspension using iron oxide. They manufacture tablets, film coated tablets and capsules for oral administration. It was of high priority to the company that they were able to clean the mixer quickly and thoroughly between batches of Iron Oxide and so it was decided that they trial a UHS In-Line model so it could be Cleaned-In-Place. During the trials, everything went well and good results were obtained, but there were a few further requirements the company wanted in order to perfect their mixing process and Silverson was able to deliver these.
As mentioned, all mixing equipment is designed and manufactured by Silverson, so when the company wanted a specialised Square Hole High Shear Screen with slots on either side so that it could be removed without touching it by hand, Silverson was able to create this bespoke workhead for them. Silverson was also able to source and install a control terminal and trolley mount the mixer for them so that they had everything they wanted for the process. The customised mixer with all the additions was easily installed and the resulting tablet coatings were exactly as the customer wanted, and they were able to clean easily between batches.
The company also wanted to avoid dry running of the mixer and so a dry-running sensor was added to the set up. This sensor will prevent the mixer from starting, or will stop the mixer from running, if product is absent. Once installed the company now had their ideal mixing set up made possible through Silversons’ flexibility to customise their machinery.
The second customised mixer was supplied to another company for the dispersion of pigments to be used for colouring ceramic and enamel kitchen tools. This company are now having success using their GX in-tank Batch mixer with a customised stator along with an electric stand and control panel since switching from an agitator.
The company contacted Silverson as they wanted to add colour to the kitchen utensils they manufacture, which up until now has mostly been sold in black or grey variations. To try to improve sales, their latest R&D idea was to brighten up the equipment with colour to make it more attractive to customers. To do this, they wanted to incorporate pigments, but with their existing agitator set up this was proving difficult. They’d had limited success and poor quality results dispersing the pigments using a Crank disc agitator and so they decided to contact Silverson to see what could be done to help improve the mixing process. After tests were carried out on the formulation using a Silverson High Shear mixer, it was decided that a customised stator would be beneficial for the best end product. The decision to have a special customised stator would also increase the longevity of the mixer, as the wear on a standard General Purpose Disintegrator Head was potentially an issue because of the abrasive nature of the pigments they were using. A special stator with relief holes was designed and manufactured for the company. Along with increasing the longevity of the mixer, the customised stator also made it more effective for this application.
Silverson has the flexibility, know-how and capability to design and build a mixer to fit your exact requirements. If you’d like to find out more, or to discuss your requirements, get in touch with Silverson Machines.
For information on the ‘core’ product range and mixer options, you can find details in the Silverson brochure and on the Silverson website.
