The Mozart Distillerie needed a labeller that deliberately produces creases. What for most beverage producers is a no-no was one of the paramount requirements of the Salzburg distillery. The label, made of aluminium-coated paper foil, is required to fit snugly around the spherical container – and to look as if it had been applied by hand.
Hitherto, Mozart Distillerie had been using what was a 30-year-old labeller from a customised-machine manufacturer, which plant manager Friedrich Guggenberger had progressively individualised over the course of time with numerous design enhancements of his own. But the output no longer sufficed – and Mozart Distillerie was looking for a partner to jointly develop a new machine.
Because Krones’ corporate roots originate in labelling, the firm accepted the challenge – and combined the long years of practical experience and visions contributed by Guggenberger and his team with the technical expertise of Krones’ own labelling specialists.
The results are a combination of features for precise container positioning, several inspection systems, and a multiplicity of technological customisation improvements.
For labelling, Krones deployed a combination of one cold-glue and one wrap-around Contiroll labelling station, and pressure-sensitive body labels are applied to a sloping area. For affixing the foil, Krones developed a patented combination of a servomotor that turns the bottles, and linear motors that in twelve press-on operations use sponges to carefully press the foil onto the containers.
In order to ensure that the closure cap is correctly positioned as well, Krones has specially developed a guide rail that uses the sloping label area as an orientation reference point.
The new line is currently dressing around 5000 bottles per hour, with an option to increase the output to 9000 bph. It embodies two antithetical characteristics: the technology is fully automated, while the results reflect Mozart Distillerie’s craft philosophy.
