Emirates Refreshments Company (ERC) has carried out a short-neck conversion on its polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottling line. ERC, brand owners of Jeema Mineral Water and carbonated soft drink O Cola, upgraded its production line with Sidel’s PET packaging solutions.
“We had worked with Sidel for the past 17 years and we have always been satisfied with their solutions. By upgrading our PET production line with Sidel’s innovative solutions, we were able to make substantial cost savings that translated into 25 per cent annually,” said Munther Khlifat, ERC plant manager.
The beverage sector is expected to continue growing in the UAE across various categories.
In 2015, the consumption of water, the most consumed beverage item, stood at around 1.13 billion liters and is forecast to increase by a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.2 per cent to reach 1.48 billion liters by 2019.
The solutions introduced for ERC included a blower, a filler and a combi, along with packaging and line improvement services.
The solutions aim to increase efficiency, reduce energy consumption, save raw materials, and cut production costs by lightweighting the company’s packaging through moving to a Sidel StarLite base and short neck.
“By changing the design of the PET bottle and shortening the bottle neck to adopt a Short Neck 29/25 closure, we were able to produce attractive new designs that weigh considerably less – 27.5 g compared to 32 g for 1.5L bottles; and 11.6 g compared to 17 g for 500 ml bottles,” says ERC plant manager Muhammed Elgharib.
In addition, ERC introduced Sidel ECO lamps to the PET line for more precise and efficient heating.
This reduced the line’s electricity consumption and contributed to the cost savings achieved.
It also improved the PET line’s performance in terms of sustainability.
