Glass Production
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Glass and what it is made of
Glass is a natural product. Its most important raw materials are quartz sand, lime and sodium carbonate. To manufacture its glass products, Vetropack however uses primarily recycled glass - depending on the colour, up to 80%. |
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The melting process
The recycled glass, with the addition of new raw materials, is melted down at a temperature of 1’580°C. The most important source of energy for this process, depending on the glass works, is either natural gas or heavy oil. |
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Moulding the glass container
Glowing-hot drops of lass, cut off from the continuously flowing mass of molten glass, are channeled through a gutter into the preliminary, or parison, mould. In the final mould, the preformed glass is given its definitive shape by adding air pressure. |
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Annealing
The moulded bottle - still glowing red-hot - is then slowly and uniformly cooled off in the annealing oven, with adjustments made for any material imbalances. With a surface finishing process, the containers are given some additional protection from scratches, and their resistance to breaking is also improve. |
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Quality control checks
After leaving the annealing furnace, all the glass containers are checked - optically, mechanically and electronically - for defects. If the quality is not up to standard, the run is returned to the melting furnace, no questions asked, and melted down once more. |
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Transport packaging
After the quality control checks are completed, the glass containers are then loaded onto pallets in an automated process and then shrink-wrapped. These hygienically packed units are then transported to the warehouse or to the loading docks for immediate shipment. |
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