PSI-Polymer Systems Inc. Offers Die Change Solutions For Foam Extrusion and Other Applications Conover, NC (August 15, 2014)

PSI-Polymer Systems prides itself on creating innovative, cutting edge solutions for everyday problems processors face. One such problem that consistently frustrates extruders is downtime associated with die changing. When changing the die, it can take up to 8 hours to install the new one, but in many cases it only takes two minutes for the extruded material’s cell structure to become compromised. Once this happens, the material has to be purged out of the system and cleaned out, creating unwanted maintenance and downtime.

PSI Polymer Systems has developed the solution. They have modified their screen changers to attach two dies to them instead of just one so that when one die is down, the other can continue running normally. This ability allows the extruder to continue running even as the other die is being swapped out, eliminating downtime from die changing entirely.

Additionally, they have designed dies with wheel attachments that shift easily from one to the other, allowing for much greater flexibility. It also prevents the possibility of misalignment with the downstream equipment when installing the new die, another issue that could shut your whole process down. Effectively, PSI’s solutions turn the 2 hour die change process into a matter of minutes.

In yet another recent profile extrusion application for foam products, PSI supplied a line diverter (‘Y’ block) to reduce downtime for shifting from 1 die to another die.  In this application each die features shutoff and individual temperature control capability, so they can control the sensitive melt temperatures from shutdown to startup.  There are 2 cooling lines (air-cooled) that shift from one to another with the PSI line diverter.  Without this, the processor would have to shut down, change out the die assembly, and risk material degradation.

 “We believe we have developed die changing solutions that are useful in foamed sheet extrusion and almost any profile extrusion application,” said Glenn Woodcock, President of PSI-Polymer Systems.  “Die changing creates downtime for any processor. This innovation by PSI is already helping a lot of our customers in the industry do their jobs better and more efficiently.”