PET Aseptic Filling Machine Project:
Management, Design, Tender and Commissioning

Client: A well-known, respected global dairy company

As-found situational analysis:

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Client had approved capital to procure & install a PET aseptic blow-fill line & associated equipment: bottle sleever, conveyors, case packer, vision system and case conveyor. With Civil works in progress and process design completed, the client required management of the procurement phase, including:

• Tendering of Mechanical piping and Electrical installation;

• Management of 3rd party civil contractor;

• Procurement of all associated equipment, valves and instruments;

Following a change in business direction, the final location of the complete filling line was relocated to another site. This required:

• Re-design of process services;

• Re-tender the mechanical & electrical installations;

• Re-submit the proposed capital expenditure following detailed design;

• Manage the installation – equipment, civil, mechanical, electrical; and

• Commissioning of all equipment, valves, instruments & lines and executing associated documentation.

Opportunity:

Avoid common pitfalls during installation and commissioning; reducing contractor lost time and ensuring heightened coordination between 3rd party civil & mechanical contractors. Planning of commissioning activities ahead of time, as each piece of associated equipment will have vendor commissioning requirements to consider.

Items to consider:

Phase 1 (2018): Upgrade facility to house new process equipment – civil, structural and panel works to ensure GMP finish to aseptic process area.

Fig. 1 - Civil & drainage works

Fig. 2 - Aseptic filler installationn & positioning

Phase 2 (2018/2019): Piping and equipment layout to be determined; services to be checked for adequacy of supply and sizing; process piping improvements. Commissioning requirements and timeline considerations.

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Fig. 3 - Steam sleever

Fig. 4 - Tank & valve cluster

Outcome:

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From March 2018 our personnel were on-site for the duration of the on-site works and directly responsible for the subcontracted works to ensure their installation work was according to specification and subsequently functional.

In addition to the civil, piping & electrical installation works, this included various requirements related to transferring the project to a different site: new Aseptic Tank (specify, procure & install), relocated base silo, modifications to the valve matrix and all associated piping and access.

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Being a brown-field site, the coordination of interruptions was the most difficult aspect – ensuring that interruptions were minimised and scheduled well in advance to allow preparation of production personnel, including: Service tie-ins (steam , water, compressed air, electrical, product), line commissioning & trials and silo installation works.

Fig. 5 - Commissioned Aseptic PET Filling Machine