Adjusted quickly – precisely mounted

Numerous rotary and linear bearings from the igus product range are not the only ones installed in KHS GmbH's labelling machines. The company igus also supplies complete, ready-to-install modules such as, for example, adjustment systems and guide rol

60,000 bottles per hour or 1,000 bottles per minute and just under 17 every second: this is the output of a typical beverage filling and packing plant of the KHS. The company, which is headquartered in Dortmund, is one of the market leaders worldwide, who develop, design and build such systems - turnkey on request. KHS employs approximately 5,000 people, generated sales of around € 1.18 billion in 2016 and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Salzgitter Group.

The distribution of sales in the Labelling Division shows the impressive international presence of the company: More than 80 percent are generated outside Europe.

Core competence - Labelling technology

Labelling technology has traditionally been one of the core competencies of KHS. From the point of view of the customer, the label – just like the bottle design – is becoming more and more important because the competition in the beverage market is large and the consumers decide within a few seconds for one or the other product. Cornelius Adolf, Product Manager for KHS labelling technology: "With the label, beverage manufacturers can generate attention and stand out positively. This has a direct sales promotion effect."

High-speed: 300 labels in 20 seconds

KHS offers bottlers labelling stations for different technologies (hot glue, cold glue, rolled or self-adhesive). One of the latest developments in the modular system "Innoket Neo" is the roll-fed station, which replaced the predecessor Innoket 360S at the end of 2016. Roll-fed means: The wrap-around labels are unwound from a roll, cut to the correct length in the cutting unit and glued by a roller. Then they are applied to the bottle. The bottle rotates during delivery of the label, which is directly brushed down. A typical feature of this technology is the "autosplicer", which glues the two label rolls seamlessly and thus ensures uninterrupted operation of the machine.