BLN1-600A Chapter 4: Operation 64 of 116
“Percentage” Mode (Most common in extrusion and blow molding)
Extrusion processing often requires recipes in percentage format, especially if regrind is not
involved, i.e. blown or cast film.
In this mode, operators enter in values for each hopper up to 100%. The total of all the
hoppers must equal 100%. If they don’t, an error message appears on the Recipe screen and
prevents the recipe from being accepted. All hoppers are a percentage of the total batch size.
“Parts” Mode (Often used in Compounding Applications)
The “Parts” recipe entry mode lets the operator enter in values based on a parts ratio rather
than a percentage. Each entry can be up to 999.99 and the total of all hoppers does not have
to be 100. After all values are entered, the total parts are calculated. The individual hopper
target is then calculated based on each hopper’s entered parts. These parts represent ratios of
the total batch. For instance: Hop 1=300 parts, Hop 2=100 parts, Hop 3=10 parts, Hop 4=5
parts. This would mean that if the batch was divided into 415 parts, then Hop 1 would make
up 300 of those parts, Hop 2 would make up 100, Hop 3 10 parts, and Hop 4 5 parts.
Figure 37: Example Calculations of a 4-component blend in “Parts” mode
Switching Modes
Recipe Modes can be switched while the blender is making a batch. At any time the operator
can switch the recipe entry mode without affecting the current batch being made. The recipe
mode is part of the “New Recipe” and is separate from the running recipe.
Recipe Setup
Metering Order
The Batch blender allows the operator to set the ingredient metering order when making a
batch. In order to access the metering order menu, enter the Setup menu and press the
“Recipe Format” button (refer to the menu structure on page 39). Once in the “Recipe
Format” menu, view “Metering Order.” This display will indicate the current order in which
the ingredients are metered. A Metering Order of “12345678” means that the blender will
feed hopper 1 first and hopper 8 last.
In order to change the metering order, simply press the “Metering Order” button. In the next
screen, the operator must select a value from 1 to 87654321 and press the green enter key.
Once the desired metering order is displayed, simply press the “X” exit. If the order is
changed, then you will need to touch “Accept New Recipe” icon on the Recipe Screen
before the change takes effect.
