“ When we moved into the new facility, we didn’ t bring any of the old hydraulic machines with us. By then we were completely converted to the repeatability, reliability and cleanliness of all-electric,” Adrian recalled.
Keeping pace with contact lens demand
Sovrin’ s investment in FANUC’ s all-electric technology continues into the present day; its latest acquisitions are two S250iA machines for the ophthalmic sector.
“ We’ ve been supplying blisters to one of the world’ s leading contact lens manufacturers for over 15 years. In 2023, we invested in two new moulding cells in response to increased demand,” explained James.
The high volume, just-in-time manufacturing strategy that is needed for this product called for a very fast cycling injection moulding solution, and the S250iA ROBOSHOT machines haven’ t disappointed.
“ They are producing a 32-impression product on a 5.5 second cycle, delivering precisely the repeatability and reliability that we have come to expect from FANUC,” noted Adrian.
Sovrin also specified some optional extras on the machines, including a wide guard and a high speed clamp. Explaining why these features are important, Adrian said:“ In our industry, larger tools with smaller shot sizes are the norm and a lot of mould cooling water is needed. The wide guard accommodates this, and the high speed clamp enables us to achieve the target cycle time for this product.”
FANUC has done some very clever stuff on the software side that minimises energy consumption behind the scenes.
infusion pump components and loss of resistance syringes. For all of these applications, fast cycling and tight tolerances are essential to meet rigorous quality standards and ensure continuity of supply. FANUC’ s CNC servo drives are the key to the ROBOSHOT’ s ability to maintain precise control at high speeds. These drives – developed in-house – ensure best-in-class accuracy, reliability motion, position and pressure control.
feature captures energy that is generated and feeds it back into the machine’ s power supply for reuse. This process, known as regenerative control, significantly reduces overall energy consumption.
“ Energy consumption is a big challenge in cleanroom environments. Air conditioning is expensive, so the less heat generated by the injection moulding machine, the better. FANUC has done some very clever stuff on the software side that minimises energy consumption behind the scenes. This is just one of the many reasons why we’ re so loyal to the ROBOSHOT brand,” said Adrian.
Complex components, cleanroom conditions
Contact lens blisters and dry powder inhalers are just two of the safety-critical products that Sovrin injection moulds for its pharmaceutical and medical device customers. Others include surgical instruments, auto injectors for administering pre-filled syringes,
All products are manufactured under ISO Class 7 or 8 cleanroom conditions – a sterile environment that is strictly controlled in terms of temperature, humidity and air circulation. Whilst injection moulding can be energy intensive in this environment due to the amount of cooling that is required, the ROBOSHOT’ s Power Regeneration
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Issue 77 PECM 41