SERVING GLASSMAKERS FOR 100 YEARS - Emhart Glassold.emhartglass.com/files/A0172.pdf · as possible...

glass machinery plants & accessories 5/2012 97

INTERVIEW - SPECIAL ANNIVERSARY

CELEBRATING 100 YEARSWhat does this centenary mean to

Emhart Glass?Martin Jetter (President): Obviously,

100 years is a long time! But for me, what is evenmore fascinating is that the IS machine, whichchanged glassmaking so profoundly and perma-nently, is still in use today. Our early years saw the creation of automated

glassmaking as we know it, and the inventions havelasted for 100 years without significant change.They’ve been improved, of course – but the princi-ples and processes are the same.

C

Emhart Glass:

SERVING GLASSMAKERS FOR

100 YEARS

We visited Emhart Glass, one of

the hollow glass market’s most

enduring companies, to learn how

it has grown and evolved over the

last 100 years. We found that the

company that invented the IS

machine is still innovating, in every

area from forming to inspection.

Martin Jetter

1912 20

12

Normally, firms that are foun-ded in the US stay in the US.What was behind Emhart Glass’move to Europe?

MJ: From their tiny workshop in Hartford, our predecessorsexplored the whole world – devel-oping their business, building newproduction units and moving head-quarters. The principle was ‘followthe market’ – something many real-ly successful companies have done.

We have to remember that thelast 100 years have seen two WorldWars and some major economicchanges. Originally, the US was thedominant market for containers –and everything else. But afterWorld War II, US markets were sat-urated and the economy stagnated,while Europe played catch-up withdouble-digit growth. Our first steps were into Sweden,

when we acquired our factory in

Sundsvall in the early 1950s. Thatwas the dawn of production inEurope for the European market,and it ultimately led to the closureof our production site in the UnitedStates at the end of the 1980s. In 1987 we got our first

European President, MichelCornaz. He had already spentdecades developing our business inEurope and Asia, and he is Swiss,so it seemed logical to move head-

98 glass machinery plants & accessories 5/2012


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and the symposia are things weused to do as a company, and wethink they’re worth reviving. Finally, we’ve written and pro-

duced an illustrated hardback histo-ry book, over 100 pages long, thattells our story from 1912 to the pre-sent day.

Could some of these ideasturn into regular events?

MD: Definitely. We’re using thecentenary as a starting point torethink our marketing. As we developed our history

book, it became very clear that a lotof Emhart Glass’ success alwayswas and still is down to listening tocustomers, finding out what theyneed and creating solutions todeliver it. Through symposia, our product

managers and engineers would tellcustomers about our plans and usetheir feedback for refinements andimprovements – and that’s one rea-son why we wanted to restart them.

EMHART GLASS TODAYAs Emhart Glass has develo-

ped and progressed, so has theIS machine. What can you tell usabout the current versions of it?

MJ: The standard IS is a main-stream machine – a solid, proven,mature technology. There are fewdifferences between our machinesand those of our competitors,because there is not much any of uscan do to improve it. We’re verystrong in this segment, but thereisn’t much differentiation. Now, above that standard seg-

ment is the high-tech market, wherewe’re talking about innovative solu-tions. We dominate this segmentcompletely. With our ResearchCentre opened in 2007, no one canmatch our development pace. We started with parallel mould

opening and closing, which wasimplemented on the AIS machine.More recently, we introduced NIS,which is a servo-electric machinewith a larger centre distance thanany other machine. NIS can operate

in five-inch triple-gob or quad-gob,and can even produce beer bottlesin quad-gob and wine bottles intriple-gob – the only machine onthe market that can do so.Now, we have BIS, which is

smaller than NIS but still featuresthe latest technology – servo,improved safety, higher speeds andvery sophisticated cooling techno-logy. With that feature set, BIS istargeted at the high-end market.However, what we’re seeing is thatmany mid-sized glass companiesare differentiating themselves fromthe giant glassmakers by investingin high technology. Advanced techdelivers higher efficiency and lowerproduction costs, allowing smallerplayers to take market share fromthe larger groups. So this is wherewe’re focusing our efforts in termsof high-end machines.

Tell us more about the invest-ment decisions that your custo-mers face.

MJ: For glassmakers, the equa-tion is very clear. They can eithergo for the cheapest investment andsave on capital expenditure, or theycan invest more and go for thecheapest container cost. For bothbusiness strategies we have anattractive product offering. Of course, quality is always an

issue, but here the benchmark is setby the fillers. If glassmakers don’treach those quality levels, the fillerswon’t buy their bottles.

So how can you make glassbottles cheaper?

MJ: One-third of the cost of aglass bottle is energy. One way toreduce that is by making bottleslighter, which is why all glassmak-ers aim for it. It’s also why there isa trend towards technologies suchas narrow-neck press and blowNNPB). Another possibility is to look at

staffing. For example, if you arerunning a quad gob-machine with12 sections, you have 48 cavities.That’s effectively the same as hav-


quarters to Zurich. But the realchange came in 1998, whenSwiss group Bucher Industriesacquired Emhart Glass fromBlack and Decker. Then we real-ly were a Swiss company. We can see the same eastwards

trend today, with the US andEurope having two to three percent growth, while in Asia andChina there is six, eight or even10 per cent. That’s why we’refocused on developing new mar-kets in Asia.

How is Emhart celebratingthis important anniversary?

Marlen Debrot, MarketingCommunication Manager: Firstand foremost, we’re sharing theoccasion with our teams aroundthe world. This autumn, each ofour locations is hosting a specialevent for employees and theirfamilies. The production plantswill also have Open House days,when local businesspeople andpoliticians can have a look roundand learn more about our work.Some plants are inviting schoolstoo. As a global company, weencompass many different cul-tures, so each branch is celebrat-ing in their own way. For customers, glasstec (23-26

October, Düsseldorf) will be agreat platform to learn about ourhistory. They can watch our spe-cially made history movie, whichincludes interviews with many ofour previous presidents, and viewsome historical timelines at ourstand. Next year, we’re hosting a

Glass Packaging Forum, from14-16 May in Lucerne, near ourHQ in Switzerland. Industryleaders and other experts willcome together to discuss the keyissues facing the glass industry,and what the future holds.We’ll also be announcing a

series of technical symposia,focused on our own innovations,following up on announcementsmade at glasstec. Both the forums

ing two double-gob machines, butwith half the staff. However, aquad-gob machine is more expen-sive than two double-gob machines,so you’re investing up front toreduce costs over the long term. Then we have ‘pack-to-melt’, or

the efficiency of the machine inturning melted glass into finishedproduct. If it runs at 95 per centefficiency instead of 85 per cent,that helps your bottom line. At 85per cent, you’re using 10 per centmore energy and wasting 10 percent more glass – and that glassneeds to be re-melted, which con-sumes even more energy.Finally, we have automation,

which reduces costs by increasingquality. For example, if five percent of your bottles have defectsthat are picked up on the inspectionline, you are bearing an additionalfive per cent of costs. If you canreduce those defects throughautomation, you’re improving effi-ciency and reducing cost. With ourClosed Loop technologies, we’reaiming to make the machine as fastas possible and optimise containerproduction, leading to better effi-ciency. At the end of the day, thekey word is always efficiency.

What global markets wouldEmhart Glass like to develop?

MJ: We’re present around theworld, but there are areas wherewe’d like a higher market share. Forexample, until about a year ago, wehad a relatively low market share inChina. Now, through our joint ven-ture with Sanjin, who is a marketleader, we’ve improved our share ofthe Chinese market. We have very high market share

in Europe and the Middle East. InAfrica, we’re mainly present inSouth Africa, where we work withConsol and Nampack, and inNorthern Africa. The rest of Africais a developing market, where wealso aim to be present. We’re also working on develop-

ing the South American market. Wehave several clients in Mexico, and

will be targeting this country in thefuture. In North America, the mar-ket is mainly repairs to existingmachines.

What about InternationalPartners in Glass Research?

MJ: IPGR was founded in 1984to look at ways to improve the glass-making process. Today, the mem-bers are Wiegand Glass, Vetropack,Yamamura, Sisecam, Vidrala, GalloGlass, Bangkok Glass, Amcor,Fevisa and ourselves.We meet at least twice a year to

discuss R&D developments andshare best practice. The glass plantsexchange personnel for training,carry out benchmarking exercisesand share their experiences withdifferent equipment, processes,moulds, coatings and so on. But we are also working on pro-

jects to improve glass productionprocesses, which then can be usedby all IPGR partners.For our part, we can share our

latest developments and get feed-back on what glassmakers reallywant. Lots of IPGR members wantto be the first to use new technolo-

gies, so it’s a win-win proposition. In my opinion, IPGR is a great

way to improve the standing of glassin the world of packaging. Thebiggest threat to glassmakers does-n’t come from other glassmakers. Itcomes from rival packaging materi-als such as aluminium and PET.

THE PRESENT AND FUTUREOF INSPECTIONPlease explain the importance

of glass-container inspection. Jeff Hartung, VP Inspection:

As Martin has explained, identify-ing defects as early as possiblehelps to improve the glassmaker’sefficiencies, while automationallows for fewer staff and reducedcosts. Effective inspection and sta-tistical information helps glassplants reach a ‘steady state’ morequickly – in other words, gettingtheir pack rate back up to produc-tion levels following a job change. But consumer safety is also very

important. For example, defects like‘birdswings’, can result in glass con-taminants in the filled container.Glassmakers and fillers take extreme


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caution and make certain the equip-ment is detecting such defects. Ordefects in the finish of a containercan chip when the container isopened or handled. Obviously, thesedefects can be dangerous, andinspection equipment is designed todo everything possible to detect andprevent such defects from making itto the end user. Different clients use our equip-

ment in different ways. Some focuson ensuring their customers get thebest possible quality by detectingand eliminating the defective con-tainers, while others both eliminatedefects and also use the inspectioninformation to optimize theprocesses and improve their opera-tional effieciencies.

Tell us a little about how itworks.

JH: In basic terms, ourmachines use different types of sen-sor and vision technologies toinspect each container. The resultsof each inspection are then correlat-ed into a data packet associatedwith each container. If the conatin-er inspection data fails to meet the

parameters established by our cus-tomer, then the container is rejectedand recycled. The good containerinspection results are added to thedata packet and reported in statisti-cal format to the bottle makers andquality personnel.These days, inspection equip-

ment can detect all the most com-mon types of defects and ensurethose containers aren’t filled andshipped to consumers. The focusnow is to what accuracy can theequipment inspect? And how wellcan the machine handle the greyzones of cosmetic quality - margin-ally good and marginally bad con-tainers? In other words, the equip-


Jeffrey D. Hartung

ment needs to ensure the marginal-ly bad containers are rejected whilethe marginally good are not. Thisrequires the equipment to classifydefects and have the precision andaccuracy to fine tune the inspectionsensitivity.The number of cameras varies

from machine to machine. In oursidewall machines we are generally

talking about 18 cameras, but six ofthose take two images, so that’s atotal of 24 images per machine –the equivalent of 24 cameras. Typically, each IS machine will

have two, or sometimes threeinspection legs. It all depends onwhether the machine is double- ortriple, or quad-gob and the speed itis cutting and forming. Currently we are working with

technologies that can learn on thejob – for example, they can learn agood container and when theinspected container differs from thegood container we ask if the con-tainer is good or bad? From there alibrary of good containers is built.This helps improve inspection inembossed and decorative areas,pinch grips, and lug areas. In thismodel, the machine rejects the itembecause it’s different from what itknows to be good, as opposed torejecting it because it’s bad. In glass plants, depending on

what industry type of end customerthey are supplying, quality samplesare removed manually from theproduction lines every two or three

resulting information electronicallyto the plant operating system.Operators are not needed to pullsamples, measure containers, tran-scribe numbers, or enter data,which means less human errors andlower labor costs. Statisticalinspection machines have a slowerthroughput but are much moreaccurate. Instead of using go/no-gogauges, you actually work with

hours depending on the plant, takenback to the glass plant’s lab toundergo gauging and measure-ments. Now, the Emhart GlassMiniLab provides a way to auto-mate this process. The inspectionmachine can be instructed tochoose containers on a periodicbasis to be analysed by the MiniLabat the frequency determined by theplant. The MiniLab then reports the


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WRITINGHISTORY

How much work was involvedin the preparation of the bookand movie for Emhart Glass’100th anniversary?MD: From start to finish, it tookabout nine months, includingresearch, interviewing, writing,design and printing.An important part of the projectwas speaking with industry vete-rans and Emhart Glass retireesaround the world, including for-mer executives and Presidents.Talking with them face to facehelped us understand the back-ground to the decisions that hadbeen taken in past decades, aswell as filling in the human sideof our company’s history.Once all the proofreading andchecking had been completed,we finally signed off the printers’proofs on 23 July. A few weekslater, we held the first copies inour hands!The movie covers the sameevents as the history, but in amuch more concise way. It inclu-des lots of fascinating archivefootage, as well as interviewswith several of our formerPresidents, and Martin Jetter. It’sa great way for people who areunfamiliar with our history, suchas recently joined employees, toget up to speed with our pastand our heritage.

numeric values, which is an impor-tant advantage. You can see trendsand correct issues before you are ina No-Go situation and need to put amold on a reject list – saving thelehr of glass for that mold.

So, how near are we to achie-ving the perfect bottle?

JH: Well, defining perfect isdone by our customers and theircustomers. We simply aim to assistthem to achieve this in the mostefficient and cost effective way.Some container specifications areliterally books of parameters andstandards. But a truly perfect bottlewould be difficult to define – but Iguess is defined as perfectly meet-ing the standard.We have certain targets for capa-

bility and accuracy, and we designto those. For cosmetic and margin-al defects, we provide configura-tions that will allow some cus-tomers to inspect more strictlywhile minimizing the loss of goodware.

Does inspection go hand inhand with the development ofglassmaking machinery?

JH: Historically, within theglass plant, the Hot End and ColdEnd have been two distinct opera-tions. Often, developments in eacharea were carried out by differentgroups of individuals and the teamswere separate too. Emhart Glass isunique in that it has both under oneroof – in one company. Now, we are using this advan-

tage and are exploiting our capa-bilities and facilities to see how wecan bridge these two operationalareas. The sooner the Hot End cantake corrective action and preventmoulds from going on the reject listthe less ware is lost in the process.We want to close someinspection/control loops within theHot End, while bringing moreinformation from the Cold End intothe hands of the bottlemaker – butit’s still at the working conceptdevelopment stage.

Sometimes, inspection can beseen as a necessary evil. The heartof a glass plant, where the moneyis made, is in the HE. After all, ourmachines throw away the contain-ers the IS machine makes! But thatculture is changing, as peoplebegin to see that better processcontrol and feedback to the hotend will deliver better productionefficiencies.

And what about inspection atthe Hot End? What does thatinvolve?

JH: Well, ‘inspection’ is proba-bly the wrong word although thatdoes occur with our equipment.You do take images of the contain-er, but the real value exists in thestatistical information, understand-ing statistical outliers within the setand making corrections automati-cally or manually within the form-ing machine controls before gettingto a reject status.The more you can do at the Hot

End, the better, because the feed-back loop is so much shorter. Ittakes 45 minutes to an hour and ahalf, on average, for a container toreach the cold end and be inspectedand get the information back to theHE. So if you can detect problemsin the Hot End, you can save anhour and a half’s worth of glass perevent. Currently, there’s a limit to the

amount of inspection you cancarry out at the Hot End becauseyou can’t handle the bottle, butyou can use infrared and differenttypes of vision technology toacquire images and comparethem. Such a two camera Hot-Endsystem is not capable to observeview the full 360° container andtherefore giving limited inspec-tion results. In addition, however, some

defect types – checks – do not total-ly manifest themselves until theyhave gone through the annealinglehr, so for now anyways one has todo some type of inspection at theCold End.


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Do quality levels differaround the globe?

JH: It’s not so much down togeographical location although thatmay have some influence but is nota universal, but rather the industryand market segment that the con-tainer manufacturer is supplying aswell as the specific requirements ofthe filling company.Quality standards are increasing

in the emerging economies – pres-sures to be more efficient areincreasing also. Markets are evol-ving very fast and making newdemands, which means that compa-nies have to improve and respondquickly to the new standards. In

some cases, companies from thewest are opening production unitsin these developing countries andas a result more stringent standardsbecome part of the game. The local market in China is a

very difficult market to compete inunless you are on the ground inChina. Now, Emhart Glass has ajoint venture with Sanjin to servethe domestic market there.

What could be the next step ininspection?

JH: One of the ‘holy grails’ ofinspection is to inspect withouthandling the container. At present,for some types of inspection, such

Emhart made the first real machine to make bottles completely auto-matically. How were they made before that?MJ: Originally, bottles were made by hand, with manual blowing, whichwas troublesome, laborious and very slow. In 1902, Owens (now Owens-Illinois) invented a machine for making bot-tles that today we would call ‘semi-automated’. It was very expensive anddifficult to operate, and it still required a lot of manual labour. But it was thefirst step towards automatic glass-container making. The next step was the IS machine, invented by Emhart Glass. It hugelyimproved the process, and soon displaced the Owens machines fromglass factories. So while Emhart Glass can’t take all the credit for automa-ting the glass-container industry, we can certainly claim to have inventedthe first fully automated and efficient IS machines.

THE ORIGINS OF

AUTOMATED GLASSMAKING

Hinterbergstrasse 22 - PO Box 2251Ch-6330 Cham 2 - Switzerland

Tel: +41-41-7494200Fax: +41-41-7494271

E-mail: [email protected]

www.emhartglass.com

EMHART GLASS S.A.

as wall thickness and check inspec-tion, the containers still have to bephysically rotated. And the otherimportant step, as I’ve mentioned,is to have more inspection at theHot End, where the containers arebeing manufactured. Vision technology has really

changed glass inspection and thatwas a big step in the industry – frommechanical to visual inspection.Additionally, increasing what isautomated is important too – savingmanpower in the CE helps our cus-tomers decrease their costs. Othertechnologies are getting more andmore accessible and will provide anew “leap” for inspection. Themachines are getting more and morepowerful and at faster speeds. Forglassmakers, our customers, it alladds up to improving efficiencies,reducing costs and achieving thehighest possible quality levels. ■


SERVING GLASSMAKERS FOR 100 YEARS - Emhart Glassold.emhartglass.com/files/A0172.pdf · as possible...

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