Gebo Cermex AQFlex contactless product conveying

Gebo Cermex’s AQFlex is a product handling technology that offers agility and contactless product conveying and accumulation in a compact space.

The technology accommodates any product, whatever the application, whatever the market, in all container materials, formats and shapes, full or empty, while also enabling automatic changeovers via an intuitive and user-friendly human machine interface.

Care of product integrity is enabled by the single-lane, contact-free product handling and accumulation system that is able to process even fragile, unstable or premium containers.

The product can operate at any speed, from 1000 to 100,000 containers/h, delivering energy savings of up to 60%, without compromising high efficiency (99.5% even at high speeds) or sustainability, according to the company.

All the conveying functions of the technology, including contactless accumulation and multilane machine infeed, are regrouped into this single, universal, handling solution. As all conveying and accumulation is carried out as a single-file process, the usual peripheral conveying functions associated with mass accumulation — such as deceleration, de-grouping, combining and laning — are eliminated.

The company claims its compact design provides up to 40% space savings compared to traditional solutions and, as a result of its compact footprint, the product is easily integrated into existing production lines. It has a clear and open design that gives full accessibility at floor level for enhanced ergonomics and easy cleaning. Having only a few added mechanical parts compared to a conveyor, maintenance of the product is comparable to that of a standard conveyor — without the need for any lubrication.