Chile's Largest Brewer Upgrades Bottling Equipment
By Alec Italiano, contributing writer
CCU Chile purchases Sidel Matrix hotfill system to bottle Gatorade
Chile’s largest brewer, CCU Chile, has upgraded its equipment to accommodate the packaging of Gatorade products. The brewer, which works with companies like Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB In-Bev), Pepsico, and the Dr Pepper Snapple Group, purchased a hotfill production line specifically for Gatorade sports drinks, in addition to adding options for bottling pulp-based products in the future with the Sidel Matrix Hot Filler.
Packaging pulp-based products requires an Integrated Slurry Dosing (ISD), which the Sidel Matrix hotfill system provides. With the ISD option, the system uses contactless valves during the two-phase bottling process to ensure that no particles enter the bottle. The first phase fills the slurry/pulp/particles into the bottle, while the second phase adds the liquid juice. The concentration is adjustable from 20 milliliters to 300 milliliters, depending on product recipe. In addition to its ISD capability, the system’s production rate can vary from 6,000 to 60,000 bottles per hour. Gabriele Gatti, product manager for Sidel Industrial Operations, says the new system was released to meet market demands of more hygienic filling regarding packaging healthier, juice-based drinks with fine pulp particles, in addition to allowing for more flexible filling.
During the filing process, the bottle does not come in contact with the filler valve and all parts of the production line are made from stainless steel, allowing for a longer life cycle. The unique hot filling process also prevents cross contamination due to the presence of heat throughout the packaging process. No matter what the beverage’s acidic level, the Sidel Matrix completes the job in polyethylene terephthalate (PET) containers ranging in size from 200 milliliters to two liters. This makes for an ideal system when bottling teas, isotonic beverages, juices, and nectars. The system is also equipped with individual flow meters for the electronic filling valve that helps handle products with pulps as little as 1millimeter by 10 millimeters with the option of a plunger valve, which regulates flow while lowering pressure to accommodate fine particles.
Finally, the Sidel Matrix system offers the filling environment the benefit of tailoring the level of hygiene required for each specific bottled product. In reduced enclosure plants with air filtration units, filling area volume is reduced by 72 percent. This means fewer chemicals to clean the filling area and less filtrated air to treat the area, ultimately reducing costs and allowing for a more sustainable process.
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