Automation of the production of PVC pipes. Business plan for the production of polymer pipes. Investment and sale

The article will discuss the specifics of the manufacture of plastic pipes, necessary equipment and raw materials. A separate paragraph will describe the production technology.

At the moment, the country is experiencing an expansion in the production of plastic pipes. This is due to the ease of manufacture and the high demand for this type of product. Plastic pipes are in demand when laying sewerage, water and gas supply systems, heating, and installing underfloor heating systems.

This is due to their operational properties, in particular:

Reliability, no signs of corrosion or decay appear on the pipes during operation;
Complete harmlessness to humans, no effect on the quality and taste of water;
Ease;
Lime deposits do not accumulate;
Durability, service life exceeds 50 years.

Plastic pipe extruder

As a basis for the manufacture of plastic products, you can use: polymers of various pressures, polybutylene, polypropylene and similar raw materials.

A machine for the production of plastic pipes is an extruder that pushes the product through molten plastic through a forming hole.

Extruders are divided into three subspecies:

Auger. The machine, according to the principle of operation, is similar to the work of a meat grinder or juicer. Most often, screw extruders are used for the manufacture of plastic pipes.
Screwless. This type extruder is used in the manufacture of pipes from a mixture of material. The disk is the main working element of the machine.
Combined. In this machine, the screw part is combined with the disk.

Necessary equipment

Let's move on to the list of equipment for the production of plastic pipes. As mentioned earlier, an extruder is needed to establish the process. But this is not all that is required.

Necessary equipment:

Raw material redirection system;
Mixer;
Stacking storage;
cutting machine;
Conveyor belt;
Cooling and calibration baths;
Vacuum moulder;
Pulling device.

Usually, granular polymers are purchased for production. Especially carefully you need to monitor their shelf life and quality. Polypropylene and polyethylene perform especially well. They have the most long term suitability, so these materials are considered the most profitable.

Polypropylene copolymer is also in high demand for the production of pipes. This is due to the low price per kilogram. And the most budgetary raw material is low-pressure polyethylene.

An important nuance: it is most preferable when opening this type of business to always purchase from one factory, because when the raw materials used change, other equipment for the production of pipes will be needed. And this state of affairs will be associated with various kinds of losses.

Production technology

As it has already become clear, the method of manufacturing plastic pipes is based on the extrusion method. This is a closed cyclical process. We will study its nuances in detail, polyethylene products will serve as an example.

According to the production technology of plastic pipes, the raw material is polyethylene PE-80 and PE-100, which includes special additives. With their help, the material is given the properties necessary for subsequent operation.

The production of plastic pipes itself consists of 9 successive stages. It is very important to monitor the quality of the process at each of them.

Production stages:

First of all, raw materials (granular polyethylene) are fed into the extruder's loading tank located above the material cylinder.
From the tank, the pellets are redirected to the material cylinder for subsequent melting.
The screw directs the melted granules into the extrusion pipe head, in which the product blank is formed.
Annular heaters placed on the outer side of the material cylinder start heating it.
In the extrusion pipe head, the molten raw material takes the form of a billet.
The vacuum calibrator ensures the correct outer diameter of the product, the wall thickness is adjusted by changing the rotation speed of the mechanism of the pulling device.
The workpiece is gradually cooled, plunging into the installed baths.
The cutting device cuts the pipe blank into parts of the required length, which is controlled according to the meter counter.
Based on the wishes of the customer, the final pipe is either wrapped in a coil or delivered as pieces.

Quality control

After the pipes are manufactured, they should be sent to the quality control department, where the geometric dimensions of the products will be checked.

In particular, the following parameters are measured:

ovality;
The diameter of the outer side of the products;
The length of the cut pieces;
Pipe thickness.

Laboratory staff acting according to the instructions normative documents, samples will be selected from the received batch for verification. If the studied parameters are normal, then a quality conformity document is attached to the batch. Then they are sent to the customer.

The quality of manufactured products should be given special attention. Consistent and extremely accurate functioning of all elements is required technological process. Only in this way will it be possible to supply the consumer with high-quality products in accordance with the order. If things go differently, then the business will not be successful, and its owner will suffer losses.

To summarize all of the above, it becomes clear that the process of manufacturing plastic pipes is distinguished by thoughtfulness and automation. It does not require significant costs of both resources and time. Among other things, during the manufacture there is practically no waste, there is no Negative influence on the environment. And the production line will be able to fit in a relatively small room, in terms of area it will take less than 100 square meters.

To consider the topic of the manufacture of polypropylene pipes and fittings for water supply and heating pipelines, it is necessary with a preliminary detailed description of the materials used for production.

Polypropylene pipes and fittings have a lot of advantages that distinguish them from their steel counterparts:

they are much lighter;
not susceptible to corrosion;
do not grow inside during use;
do not create vibration and rumbling, as well as other noises;
do not burst when the water in the system freezes;
do not conduct electricity;
do not need painting;
very easy to work with.

Pipes and fittings made of polypropylene can work for decades. It's ecological net production, which is successfully used for pipelines of any complexity. Therefore, their production and manufacture is widely established throughout the world.

The use of fittings with chrome and brass inserts allows combine these blanks with steel pipes.

The construction of these materials is very tight, and this application brings tangible economic benefits.

A little about polypropylene

Polypropylene is the initial product of the polymerization of propylene and ethylene in specific quantities. The resulting material is named random copolymer PPRC.

In the domestic market today there is no worthy analogue to foreign polymers. We use Finnish RA 130E BOREALIS and Hungarian TIPPLEN CS4-8000 TVK for the manufacture of polypropylene pipes.

The essence of the pipe manufacturing process is simple, and it is not very laborious. Speaking about it, the following features should be highlighted:

low energy costs in manufacturing;
ecological safety;
for the production, installation and use of one set of a line for the production of polypropylene pipes and fittings, a lot of space is not needed (this is approximately 100 m 2);

The set of polypropylene pipe extrusion line is a complete cycle of extrusion, calibration, cooling, drawing, etc.

Raw material for work

Lines for the production of plastic pipes, in addition to the extruder, also have the following equipment:

raw material supply system.
A machine that cuts blanks.
Tank for calibrations and cooling.
Pulling mechanism.
Mixer.
Conveyor tape.
Vacuum forming.
Accumulating mechanism that performs the stacking of blanks.

Raw material selection

When choosing raw materials, they opt for a granular polymer, but you need to carefully look at its shelf life.

And polypropylene and polyethylene are practically not limited by these indicators, which makes it more convenient to use.

From an economic point of view, an advantageous copolymer and HDPE.

IMPORTANT! When opening own production for the manufacture of polypropylene pipes and fittings, it is advised to cooperate with one supplier. Because the change of raw materials requires the change of equipment for the production of polypropylene products.

Manufacturing process

The main equipment that processes raw materials and turns them into a polypropylene pipe or fitting is called an extruder. And the production itself takes place in the following sequence:

Raw materials for the manufacture of pipes and fittings are fed into a special chamber. It is in small granules or comes in the form of chips. Also, secondary raw material that has undergone preliminary processing (grinding) is often taken into work. Secondary raw materials are mixed with the main.
Using electric or gas heating, the poured mass is melted. Temperature indicators in this case range from 230 to 250 degrees. But at the same time, it does not turn into a liquid, but only becomes viscous. So that this viscous heated mass does not stick to the walls of the apparatus, they are coated with Teflon.
Next, the extruder extrudes the blanks from the thick mixture according to the set size. Usually the length of the workpiece is two and a half meters. The equipment performs all these actions very quickly and completely offline. Human intervention is only required to set the right parameters for the job. Most good equipment for the production of polypropylene pipes and fittings is capable of producing up to 200 kg of products per hour of work.
The next step is the cooling of the blanks. To do this, they are placed in a container for cooling. The cooling process takes a couple of minutes. Then he perfectly holds the given dimensions. In the cooling tank, the plastic undergoes a shaping process, during which the material is thoroughly rounded and takes on the desired shape.
At the end of the technological process of production, a marking is applied to the products, which displays the parameters of the operation of the products, here the batch number and the date of production of the product are put down. Then the blanks are packaged, packaged and sent to warehouses or to consumers.

Often they are produced at the same enterprises as pipes.

Only for the production of polypropylene fittings it is necessary to install additional equipment (machine).

It does not occupy a large amount of space, but it makes it possible to increase the range of products. For companies, this becomes an important factor especially in a highly competitive environment.

The main problems and difficulties of production

Release Construction Materials almost all countries of the world. This also applies to polypropylene pipes and other plastic products, the manufacture of which is excellently established in Russia.

The main problem of the industry lies in the fact that domestic investors are not very active in financing the purchase of new modern equipment.

Many enterprises have to use old technologies that are losing their relevance at the moment.

One-time capital expenditures could be the key to obtaining high profit in future. But, they don't. Therefore, they cannot create worthy competition to foreign analogues.

There are no external differences, if we compare our and foreign polypropylene products. But, practical use shows different results.

Domestic blanks do not tolerate wear as much, are not as durable, and often have surprises in the form of marriage, which cause a breakthrough.

For the above reasons, consumers often prefer more expensive, but high-quality products from German and Turkish manufacturers.

And in the end, it should be added that the production of polypropylene pipes has been turned into an automated production that does not require huge energy and labor costs. Also, this production has almost no waste and does not harm the environment.

Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipes are widely used today in various sectors of the economy, to a greater extent, of course, in construction. This type of pipes has replaced metal pipes and is increasingly pushing them out of the market. It is not surprising that today an increasing number of people are investing in the development of this cause. The main cost item is the plastic pipe production line, but high productivity and low cost consumables quickly pay back the investment.

Plastic pipes are suitable for: plumbing, sewerage and heating

The high demand for plastic pipes is due to a number of distinctive characteristics:

they are not subject to corrosion;
light - 5-7 times lighter than metal analogues;
not affected by high and low temperatures;
limescale is not deposited on them;
long service life - up to 50 years;
they do not affect the taste of water.

Such qualitative advantages make it possible to use pipes in heating and sewer systems, in water supply and gas pipeline systems.

Manufacturing technology of plastic pipes

The production process of PVC pipes is quite simple; it requires raw materials - granular polymers and a line PVC production pipes. One of the best materials is polypropylene copolymer. With the help of an extruder, the granules are melted under the influence of high temperature. The polymer mass is extruded using a screw extruder forming head. The principle of operation of such a mechanism resembles a meat grinder. This First stage molding, which is replaced by the process of pulling the workpiece and its further cooling. In special baths, the workpiece undergoes the final molding process under the influence of high pressure using a calibrating device. Forming dimensions are set automatically before the start of the process. The final stage in the manufacture of plastic pipes is their cutting and laying.

The mechanisms that make up the production machine

The assembled line is a set of units and units, with a total length of 18 to 60 meters. All elements are interconnected and sequentially perform technological processes. Manual labor is used at the stages of loading raw materials and receiving finished products, as well as for debugging automated systems of a line for the production of plastic PVC pipes.

Production line composition:

pulling device

bunker for raw materials;
pipe head;
baths;
cutting unit;
other additional devices and devices.

The bunker is a container with a dispenser in which the feedstock is placed. Often the hopper is replaced with a funnel, and the raw materials are weighed separately, manually.

The extruder consists of a vertical gearbox with a thrust bearing, an electric motor, a plasticizing cylinder, a barrier screw, an electrical cabinet with automated system management. Characteristics:

dimensions - 1900 * 1400 * 900;
weight - 950 kg;
productivity - 30 - 75 kg / h;
power - 30 kW.

PVC pipe extruder

The pipe head includes two zones of thermal control and is intended for the initial formation of the diameter of the future product - from 16 to 63 mm. For it, you will additionally need matrices of the appropriate caliber.

Baths for cooling - one vacuum-water, the second water. Bathtubs are made of of stainless steel filled with water, equipped with water and vacuum pumps. The length of each bath is 4 m.

The pulling device of the plastic pipe production line is a single frame with a movable and fixed crosshead. This unit is equipped with a meter counter and a cutting device. The cut is carried out by a roller according to the diameter of the pipe. The pulling mechanism is driven by pneumatics, it is possible to control the pulling speed - from 1 m/min to 5 m/min.

If the production involves the manufacture of soft products from polyethylene, then the line is supplemented by a winder. A coil is installed, its diameter is adjusted as needed, and the winding process is carried out with the help of a pneumatic cylinder.

Production of corrugated pipes

The corrugated pipe has a relief surface, which in the longitudinal section resembles a comb. This type of plastic pipes is widely used in construction for engineering systems - sewer, plumbing, electrical, ventilation. The advantages of this type of products are the versatility of use, lightness and compactness during transportation, plasticity, low cost. The manufacturing process is similar to conventional plastic pipe technology and is carried out using a corrugated pipe production line. This line is supplemented with a special device - a corrugator, which sets general character production. The corrugator is located near the extruder head and consists of two half-moulds with a channel for the flow of cooling water; in the working area, both half-moulds merge, forming a closed space.

The workpiece from the extruder enters the working space, where, under air pressure, it is pressed against the surfaces and hardens, while a certain shape is set - corrugation. Next, the pipe is ready for winding. Unlike the PVC pipe production line, there are no baths here, cooling takes place in the corrugator. The main characteristics of the line:

dimensions - 9 * 1.9 * 2.5 m;
power - 65 kW;
weight - 2.5 tons;
speed - 1 - 12 m / min;
productivity - 60 - 80 kg / h;
diameter of the finished product - 16 -63 mm;
cost - 2,800,000 rubles.

Profitability of plastic pipes production

The calculation of the profitability of production will be considered on the example of the manufacture of pipes of the PVC brand 50 * 1.8 mm, weighing one meter - 0.6 kg.

The technical capability of the line is the production of 80 kg/h, which will be 133 m/h. Provided that the equipment is fully loaded, 95,760 m3 will be produced per month. This will require 34 tons of raw materials, the price per 1 kg will be 44 rubles (SG-5 brand, China), which for the monthly rate will be 1,496,000 rubles. The wages of four workers, two per shift, will amount to 70,000 rubles. You can sell products at a price of 50 rubles per 1 m - with the full sale of monthly output, the revenue will be - 2,300,000 rubles - net profit - 750 thousand rubles. This amount will be reduced by the amount of the rent of the premises, utility bills, transport and organizational expenses - about 200 thousand. There remains 550 thousand rubles, which will cover capital investments on a monthly basis. With a starting capital of 4,500,000 rubles for the purchase of a line for the production of plastic pipes, the payback period will be 12-18 months. To do this, it will be necessary to ensure the full implementation finished products, but it is better to work on pre-orders, then there will be no excess production.

Video: Production of polypropylene pipes

PVC pipes are pioneers among polymer pipes, which began their journey more than half a century ago in the countries of America and Europe. In the domestic market, PVC pipes gained their popularity extremely slowly. This is due to both the conservatism of the consumer and the lack of a full-fledged regulatory framework that allows the widespread use of PVC pipes in housing and communal services.

Slowly but surely, pipes made of polymers of this group are constantly expanding their sector in the market of pipe products due to the improvement of the quality characteristics of pipelines. This is achieved through the emergence of not only innovative technologies production of PVC pipes, but also new ways of installing pipeline networks.

The raw material for the production of PVC pipes is granular PVC polymer.

To create a full range of required properties, a number of additives are used in the manufacture of these products:

catalysts that accelerate the course of the polymerization reaction;
inhibitors used to slow down unwanted processes;
stabilizers that impart stability to the resulting polymer;
plasticizers that provide the polymer with the necessary plasticity parameters;
antistatic additives help eliminate static charges;
pigments make it possible to obtain the desired color of the manufactured pipe.

Other components can be added to the standard composition to give the product certain properties. Additives, as a rule, have foreign production.

Equipment for the production of PVC pipes

The extrusion line for the production of PVC pipes provides a continuous cycle, consisting of the stages of extrusion (forcing the material through the forming hole), calibration and cooling in baths, drawing, cutting the pipe to a given length and laying the finished product.

The extrusion line includes:

an extruder consisting of an extrusion head and a granular feed system;
bathtubs designed for calibrating and cooling pipes;
pulling device;
a mechanism for cutting the resulting pipe into measured lengths - disk cutters or guillotine shears;
stacker or automatic winder for small diameter pipes.

The extrusion head can have a constructive solution in the form of a single block with a flange for fixing to the material cylinder. It consists of the following elements: body, matrix, divider, mandrel holder.

The matrix is centered relative to the position of the mandrel with the help of adjusting bolts. The uniformity of the pipe wall thickness along the diameter depends on the centering accuracy.

The German company "Krauss Maffei" specializes in the production of high-performance extrusion lines for the production of pressure and non-pressure PVC pipes. The largest PVC pipe plant in RussiaZAO Chemkor uses several such lines. The quality of the products manufactured by the plant has increased due to the introduction of a gravimetric dosing system for raw polymer.

Extrusion technology for the production of PVC pipes

The process of production of pipes from polymers is relatively simple, environmentally friendly, requires little labor and electrical energy. The area required for the installation and operation of a complete plastic pipe production line is only about 100m 2 .

The manufacture of PVC pipes begins with the filling of granular polymer into the bunker
extruder. In the extruder, a screw made of high-quality nitrided steel rotating inside the material cylinder mixes the incoming granulate. During rotation, the material is heated to a predetermined temperature.

The molten polymer is fed into the extrusion head, where the following elements act as shaping elements of cylindrical surfaces:

mandrel - it is responsible for the formation of the inner diameter,
matrix involved in the formation of the outer diameter.

At the outlet of the extrusion head, a plasticized billet is obtained in the form of a pipe. To give the pipe billet the required values of the outer and inner diameters, while ensuring a wall thickness uniform in diameter, it is calibrated in a vacuum calibrator (bath).

The calibrator is a stainless steel tank three meters long, at the ends of which rubber cuffs are installed to ensure tightness.

The outside diameter calibration device is located at the front of the bath and is a stainless steel cylinder with a central hole the same diameter as the pipe. Through the diaphragm of the calibrating device, the pipe enters the cooling bath, which is also maintained under vacuum.

For uniform stretching of the pipe, caterpillar or belt-type pulling devices are used. Pipe cutting is carried out with circular saws or guillotine shears. At the end of the line, devices are placed for stacking products on a special rack or for winding a small diameter pipe. These devices can operate in both manual and automatic modes.

The production of sewer PVC pipes, which belong to the category of non-pressure pipes, can be focused on the manufacture of pipes with a single-layer wall (monolithic pipes) or with a three-layer one. The outer layers of the three-layer pipe are made from virgin PVC-U. The interlayer has a porous structure and is made from either our own recycled UPVC or a third party recycled polymer.

The production of corrugated PVC pipes is most often carried out by the method of twin screw extrusion of double-layer pipes. The inner surface is smooth cylindrical, the outer surface is corrugated wavy. Both walls are produced simultaneously by the hot method and form a single monolithic structure. The cavities formed between the outer and inner walls facilitate the construction of the pipe. The outer corrugated wall contributes to the achievement of the required ring stiffness.

Process Innovation

One of the innovations in the production of PVC pipes is the production of biaxially oriented pipes. This product has high performance impact strength and others mechanical characteristics with a simultaneous reduction in wall thickness, pipe weight, and, consequently, its cost.

Currently, two methods of biaxial orientation of PVC pipes are used:

The two-stage batch method consists in the extrusion of the product and its subsequent biaxial orientation in two different installations. This production is quite energy-intensive and labor-intensive, but it makes it possible to obtain products of very high quality.
In the second method, extrusion with orientation in both directions is carried out on the same line. This production requires high qualification, it is unprofitable in small-scale production.

Insofar as PVC manufacturing pipes is not too complicated and labor-intensive process, and the demand for such products is constantly increasing, this direction is promising for those wishing to organize own business. The payback time of invested funds depends on the degree of workload of the equipment. With a 50% loading of the extrusion line, the costs pay off in about a year.

Pipe products made of polyvinyl chloride have found wide application in many areas. modern life. The reason for its demand is the excellent quality of products. How are PVC pipes produced, and what raw materials and equipment are used for this?

They are used when laying pipelines designed to move almost any medium - gases, liquids and chemicals. Polyvinyl chloride pipes and PVC connecting elements are used in the construction of residential facilities and at manufacturing enterprises.

When building houses, plastic products are used in the laying of engineering communications, including the outer sections of highways - these are sewer and water networks, as well as drainage structures.

Such pipes are resistant to aggressive environments, they can be operated in various temperature conditions, they are easy to install. The pipelines laid from them have a long service life.

Materials for the production of PVC pipes

The raw material for the manufacture of PVC pipes is a granular polymer. They are produced by extrusion.

In order to give pipe products some properties, the following are added to the composition of the components:

catalysts- chemicals that accelerate the polymerization process;
inhibitors- cause a delay or slowdown in reactions;
stabilizers– special substances that provide stability to polymers and slow down their aging;
plasticizers- refer to special additives that give polymer materials plasticity and elasticity;
antistatic agents- they are introduced in order to prevent the occurrence of a charge of static electricity;
pigments- give the already made product the desired color.

In addition to the above additives, polymer raw materials sometimes include other components that affect the properties of the final product.

Equipment for the manufacture of PVC pipes

To organize the workflow, you will need equipment for the production of PVC pipes, including:

Bunker where prepared raw materials are poured.
extruder– thanks to this apparatus, the extrusion process is carried out.
Baths. Relate to installations in which products are cooled and calibrated.
Scissors guillotine or disk cutters - they are used to cut pipes.

In addition to this equipment, depending on the type of manufactured products, PVC pipe manufacturers can use additional mechanisms and devices, for example, a hydraulic stacker.

Pipe production technology

The production process of PVC pipes is simple, it is not labor-intensive, it is not energy-consuming and it is safe for environment. All the equipment necessary for organizing the production of products will easily fit on an area of no more than 100 "squares".

extrusion Production Line functions in a continuous and complete cycle, consisting of the following stages:

Extrusion.
Pipe calibration.
Cooling products in bathrooms.
Pipe extraction.
Cutting products to the desired length.
Stacking of finished products.

The manufacturing technology of products at the PVC pipe factory is as follows:

Granulated plastic raw materials are poured into a hopper with a screw-shaped screw and heating elements.
In the process of rotation in the bunker, the raw material is heated to the required temperature.
The polymer, which is in the molten state, is fed into the extrusion head.
To form a product, molds are used that have a certain value of the outer and inner diameters.
After extrusion is completed, a plasticized product blank is obtained.
Then the pipe is fed into a vacuum calibrator (bath) for calibration. The equipment for this process is a three-meter closed container, inside which a vacuum is created using a vacuum pump.
The workpiece, passing through the diaphragm of the calibrator, moves to the next chamber. It is a cooling bath, where there is rarefied air.
For uniform stretching of the product, a pulling device is used, which can be caterpillar or tape type.
Cutting products is carried out using a guillotine or circular saw.
At the final stage of the technological process finished goods fall into an apparatus called a stacker, which stacks manufactured products on special racks.

Scope of PVC pipes

Pipe products manufactured by extrusion can be used for arranging:

pipelines supplying household gas;
water supply systems;
structures for the disposal of wastewater and precipitation;
technological lines intended for the transportation of chemicals;
highways used for industrial purposes.

Polyvinyl chloride pipes can perform a protective function when installing electrical wiring and communication cables.

Depending on the purpose, PVC pipe products can be non-pressure and pressure. In the first case, the pipes serve to move the liquid through them by gravity, and in the second case, the content is supplied under pressure. At present, the production of non-pressure PVC sewer pipes has become widespread.

Features of the installation process

Work on laying pipes made of PVC is simple and does not require the purchase of special equipment.

Installation is carried out in two ways:

By connecting to a socket using rubber seals and silicone grease.
Bonding products using special adhesives. The resulting connection is reliable, since the polymer molecules penetrate from one to another connected product.

When organizing the production of PVC pipes, the costs of purchasing equipment and other activities are usually paid off within one year.

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