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Japan Tobacco International (JTI), third-largest tobacco company of the world, produced at location Trier, among others international top-cigarettesbrands such as Winston or Camel. The vacuum station of the company consisting of six water ring pumps however was not sufficiently dimensioned anymore for the upcoming production expansion. Therefore a further vacuum station should be manufactured. Core: two VML 95-compressors of Aerzener Maschinenfabrik.

The challenge

Both compressors have to ensure a vacuum pressure of 320 mbar (abs.) via a piping ring line of a length of around three kilometres at 24-hours-operation. With around 14.000 m³/h in full load operation the machines are responsible for a safe vacuum operation on more than 30 production machines. Annual production: 55 billion cigarettes.

Aerzen’s solution

Within five months – from projection up to commissioning – Aerzener Maschinenfabrik realized the expansion in cooperation with JTI. A large number of factors and production-safety measures are to be considered:

• Contaminations of the ring line had to be kept from the compressors in a filter system connected upstream.

• Both machines were additionally secured with vacuum valves so that with small production load an inadmissibly deep vacuum is not produced.

• As the production is located in a housing area, the compressor room had to be equipped with silencers in order to keep the sound pressure level lower than 80 dB (A).

• The control of the new vacuum station is operated via a Siemens S7-control. The programming and connection to the already existing control of JTI had to be agreed exactly.

• The high heating temperature of around 200 °C should be used for a later heat recovery. A corresponding exhaust air heat system was installed.

• The room ventilation system is to be designed and calculated acc. to the performance data of the VML-95-compressors.

The commissioning of the unit as well as checking of all parameters relevant to control technology and operation – which could be, by the way, effected at weekend only – run smoothly and since then the unit has been running safely and troublefree.

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