Case Study – OnGas

We were faced with a new challenge for a client in New Zealand called OnGas. We were engaged by them back in 2015 as they were looking at the feasibility of shot blasting 9kg gas bottles at their proposed bottle swap and refilling facility. The mission was that they needed to blast clean their bottles effectively and in high volume. After OnGas completed their research in searching the overseas market, they came back to Protoblast and we worked with them every step of the way to ensure we were providing a machine that would meet and exceed demand. The Challenges Faced

• The client needed a machine that would blast clean 90 bottles per hour at peak production, whilst mitigating the dangers of these bottles not being purged.
• The blasting process was potentially a very high-risk process as blasting causes sparking.
• The machine needed to be placed in the production line in the filling hall where everything had to be Zone 1 hazardous area rated.

The Outcomes Achieved In working closely with the preferred suppliers from NZ, we were able to create a machine and system that fully complied with these challenges as well as the potentially volatile gas bottles.

• The bottles to be shot blasted are loaded, by a mechanical loading mechanism, into the entry of the blast machine.
• Skew rollers ‘corkscrew’ the bottle down the length of the machine to pass under the two high efficiency blast wheels which blast clean the surface of the bottle.
• The bottle then exits the other end into an unloading cradle, which then releases the bottle back on the conveyor for inspection.
• The blast cabinet is ventilated by fresh air drawn from outside to prevent the induction of gas into the internal chambers when the blasting process causes sparks. The bottle blast machine is capable of blasting up to 90 bottles an hour.

This machine demonstrated the ability of our team at Protoblast; from sales, through to design, manufacturing and installation, to deliver a custom machine to a very specific need. We thrive on understanding our customers’ challenges and delivering customized solutions. This project was one of the highlights of the past year and we are so proud of successfully commissioning a BBQ gas bottle shot blast machine for OnGas. If you have a challenge, please contact us to discuss your needs, we would love to help.