Extrusion International 2-2026

34 Extrusion International 2/2026 sentation of operational processes – and thus also of material logistics – has been achieved, enabling em- ployees to respond quickly and effectively and avoid waste from the outset. ‘This is urgently needed due to the enormous variety of products in terms of colours, number of single pipes in the nished cable bundle, lengths and other factors.’ Of course, there is still some waste, simply due to the start-up and shutdown of the extrusion process and the very frequent colour changes. ‘But now we are in a better position to analyse the waste in detail,’ explains Tobias Hallmann, Head of Global Industrial Engineering. ‘Today, we know exactly how many me- tres of waste are produced under which circumstances and during which colour changes, and we can respond with appropriate optimisations.’ In the past, such in- formation was recorded manually in the MES (Manu- facturing Execution System). This is now done more accurately and in real time. Today, data is recorded automatically and is also automatically available in the company-wide ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) sys- tem. We have achieved signi cant reductions in waste here. ‘We believe, and this has been con rmed to us repeatedly by suppliers and customers, that we oper- ate the most modern production facility for microducts and bundle pipes,’ says Torsten Ratzmann, who is con- vinced of the success of the investment. The award for Factory of the Year in the category ‘Outstanding Trans- formation: Digitalisation & Automation’ con rms this special achievement. Central material supply from 24 silos The safety and quality of the raw material – only polyethylene is used in microduct production – led to the decision to install the entire material storage facility indoors. Currently, 24 silos, each with a vol - ume of 50 m³, are filled directly from trucks. Space is already available for a further twelve silos as an ex- pansion option. The silos are connected to three fully automatic Metrolink coupling stations from motan, which supply the extrusion lines via a central vacuum system. As a special solution at egeplast, the three Metrolink distribution systems were permanently connected to a ‘reverse’ coupling station in order to combine the 24 (36) material sources with 13 (17) conveyors on the extruder. In addition to the special materials, which run as a mixture via the Gravicolor GC1000 dosing system from motan, or customer-sup- plied containers with regranulate, which can also be integrated. Typically, a few material feeding stations supply many processing machines, but here it is the other way around. At egeplast, up to 49 extraction points will be automatically and fail-safely connected to the extruders with 17 conveyors in the final con- figuration. The flexibility of the motan system and the control technology enables this unusual configura- tion without major technical effort. To ensure the quality and installability of the glass bres in the microducts, as well as optimal material utilisation, it is necessary to adhere to low diameter tolerances of typically 0.01 to 0.03 millimetres. Precise dosing technology with motan Minicolor and Gravi- color devices, as well as online measuring and control technology with BTW weigh hoppers from motan ex- trusion engineering on each extrusion line, reliably CABLE MANUFACTURING Specially secured wall penetrations for material lines in re protection walls (Source: motan) Material lines run from the Metrolink stations to the intermediate containers on the second level above the extruders (Source: motan)