The reason is simple: a growing awareness of the impact energy production and consumption have on the environment and on climate change means that the most energy-intensive businesses will have to take the lead in implementing a series of solutions to drive through the required changes in society and the economy. But what’s the situation in Italy, and where is manufacturing headed overall in terms of industrial energy saving?

Let's start with some data gathered by the Confindustria Study Center: in 2022 industrial companies decreased gas consumption by 13.2% compared to the three-year average of 2019-2021. Electricity consumption also fell, by 5.6% (compared to 2021), resulting in a much larger reduction than that achieved by the Italian economic system as a whole (-1%).

What’s more, an analysis of electricity consumption in Italy shows that industry is by far the biggest user. As the Digital Energy Efficiency Report 2022 (published by the Energy & Strategy Observatory of Milan Politecnico) points out, 44.1% of national expenditure is absorbed by the industrial sector, with 39% of Italian electricity consumption attributed to manufacturing alone (2020 data).

The report highlights that in 2021 spending on industrial energy efficiency reached 2.2 billion euros, with 90% of investment involving hardware upgrades.

Things are, then, changing: but there’s still a long way to go. This article examines which steps can be taken today (and in which direction), mainly with a view to maximizing the efficiency of surface finishing processes, which are among the most energy-intensive.

Read also:

●    Industrial Energy Efficiency: the key is in the finish


Energy saving challenges in the manufacturing industry

Let's begin with the challenges to be faced: the first concerns the high levels of capital investment needed to upgrade equipment and implement energy-efficient technologies. We then need to factor in the complexity of the production processes and the variety of equipment used, which can make it hard to identify the most effective consumption control/reduction solutions

Then there’s the issue of cultural and organisational change: implementing energy saving measures may require major modifications to operations and employees’ tasks; workers may express reluctance or even resistance to new measures. Last but not least, note the increasingly stringent regulations and standards, compliance with which often requires further cost and effort in addition to those already analysed.
 

The Cefla Finishing portfolio of solutions, designed to help companies achieve their industrial energy saving goals, consists of three branches: automation and control, low-temperature drying systems and energy recovery systems. Let's look at these in more detail.

Optimising processes and consequently reducing energy consumption means implementing a series of automated operations that, on the one hand, minimise waste and, on the other, increase control over the efficiency of existing procedures.

In this context, small and medium-sized companies can reap the biggest rewards from the introduction of automated solutions like Prima Evo, an oscillating one- or two-arm spray coater, ideal for making the switch from manual to automatic spraying.

As said, drying processes are a major contributor to high energy consumption in manufacturing companies. That’s why we need to start here if we want to substantially shrink the environmental footprint.

By adopting UV LED gelling and drying ovens made by Cefla Finishing, for example, it’s possible to reduce energy consumption by around 50%; this is because the LEDs that replace the traditional UV lamps are much more efficient. Furthermore, since these lamps are cold, substrate heating is limited, drastically reducing the number of rejects and the need for reprocessing; that means both energy savings and a reduction in the environmental impact of processing. Other sustainability enhancers include the absence of mercury - a pollutant not present in LED technology - and the fact that the production process involves zero ozone emissions.

Last but not least, let’s look at the Power Back energy recovery systems that Cefla has implemented on its iBotic robotic spraying lines. Conceptually, the working principle is similar to the one that allows electric car motors to recover energy during braking, with the vehicle's wheels transferring kinetic energy to on-board systems. Similarly, the Cefla Finishing Power Back system enhances control of arm movement, ensuring less electrical ‘expenditure’ and, above all, retrieving energy during the machine deceleration phase.

Several tangible, measurable advantages can be obtained by implementing industrial energy saving strategies: manufacturers will naturally imagine the possibility of increasing margins while simultaneously becoming more competitive compared to those who have yet to take the same development path. Yet we should remember that reducing consumption also means reducing the carbon footprint: an excellent way of bolstering your reputation with partners, customers and end consumers.

Of course, the obstacle of the initial investment remains and this can be costly, especially for an SME. Luckily, today we can count on a range of incentives for investment in innovative technologies: tax relief, grants and subsidised financing linked to ESG goals now allow almost any organization to cope with an expense which, in any case, guarantees an extremely fast ROI.

Want to know how quickly in the specific case of your company? Contact a Cefla expert and visit the Cefla Finishing Lab to experience, first-hand, all the solutions and technologies that help reduce energy consumption in your finishing processes.

THE MOST INNOVATIVE FINISHING SOLUTIONS
Discover how highly advanced finishing solutions can elevate your competitiveness.

Cefla has a broad portfolio of coating solutions that include both flatbed lines - with automatic spray, roller or curtain coating systems - and vertical lines (floor-mounted or overhead lines) with automatic spray coating systems.

Spray coating lets you apply coating to all the areas of complex, typically three-dimensional parts. Roller coating and curtain coating are optimal for essentially flat surfaces and optimise consumption of the coating itself.

As illustrated in the preceding paragraph, different technologies can be used. With spraying, one or more spray guns apply the coating mist on the surface to be treated. Increasingly, companies need to guarantee uniformity of application, boost their plant productivity and reduce coating consumption. The systems produced by Cefla Finishing identify the position and shape of the parts to be coated and can therefore apply a more uniform coating layer in less time, increasing production while optimising coating consumption.

Application systems may consist of a single axis that moves the guns back and forth as the parts to be coated are fed continuously under the spray guns; alternatively, they may involve multiple interpolated axes perpendicular to each other (Cartesian or gantry robots) that allow the guns to follow the shape of the piece and, for example, perform continuous edge coating. Where parts have markedly curved surfaces or are particularly thick, Cefla systems can incorporate articulated robots capable of recognising and coating even complex shapes without programming.

For steel coating purposes, single-component and bi-component products are generally used.

In the former, the applied coating layer is cured via evaporation of the solvent and the binding together of the coating molecules, making it a physical drying process.

For the latter (i.e. bi-component products), curing is a chemical-physical process requiring a catalyst which combines and chemically bonds the coating molecules once the solvent has evaporated.

To speed up curing and reduce drying times - which can vary from a few minutes to several hours - hot air and, in some cases, infrared lamps are used with both single-component and bi-component products. Energy input during drying eliminates the solvent in less time and provides the coating with the energy needed to activate the catalyst.

Some products can be cross-linked by using ultraviolet rays to activate chemical curing. Where these products have 100% solid residue, there is no solvent evaporation phase and drying can be completed extremely quickly, in a matter of seconds.

Did you know that coating isn’t the only steel finishing solution? Recent years have seen innovative technologies reshape the industry and create new market opportunities. Metal finishing technologies include, in fact,alternatives such as industrial digital printing or vacuum coating, alongside tried and tested techniques like spray coating, roller coating or powder coating.

A good example of how new industrial steel coating techniques are already being used successfully is CROMATICA, part of the COATEEL range by the Marcegaglia Group’s pre-painted steel products division; this system aims to extend the use of steel products to new sectors, such as architecture and design. CROMATICA lets manufacturers print customised patterns and images on surfaces made of steel and other materials, with a near-infinite range of colours, hues, degrees of opacity and processes. This one-of-a-kind application was developed through investment in research, innovation, experimentation and the partnership with Cefla Finishing.

More specifically, the plant designed by Cefla Finishing has allowed CROMATICA to become fully operational, rendering its output fully customisable in terms of both ‘look’ (colours, textures, images and patterns) and ‘feel’: the result of a range of extremely hard-wearing finishes that create multiple tactile effects. This means the final product can meet a vast range of creative and technical needs in various fields of application: from residential and commercial buildings to infrastructure, transport and automotive. Read the Case Study and learn more about CROMATICA

The application developed by the Marcegaglia Group is just one of a limitless number of possibilities that stem from the use of innovative steel coating techniques. Contact us and a Cefla expert will illustrate all our latest-generation products and services.

More and more, terracotta flower vases are being replaced by plastic vases.

At first glance they might seem like simple objects, but they nevertheless require production processes that are anything but simple. Market operators engaged in the finishing of plastic objects know this only too well.

This article refers to manufacturing contexts, to those companies that make or finish the vases. It also refers to the many companies involved in processing three-dimensional objects that work within a wide range of sectors.

The best vase coating solution

Stage 3: drying

Which industries benefit the most from installing a digital printing machine?

It should come as no surprise that industrial digital printing technology is currently in the spotlight across multiple manufacturing sectors. Entrepreneurs all over the world are discovering its potential in their specific fields: and those who have yet to adopt it risk being left behind. 
Wood, plastic, packaging, metal, ceramic, fibre cement: digital printing can be used on a vast range of materials to create new outlets and open up new frontiers, all thanks to the flexibility and customisation provided by industrial digital printing machines.  
For example, this solution is particularly appreciated by furniture makers, door and window manufacturers and companies that provide wall linings and floorings, yet also producers of plastic, aluminium and fibre cement skirting boards, profiles and sidings/claddings.

Industrial digital printing machine: a major advantage in the furniture sector

For furniture manufacturers in particular, an industrial digital printing machine lets them:

• Program production of panels, furniture components, doors and floors in an extremely competitive, flexible manner.
• Reduce stock of both finished and pre-finished products, and equipment.
• Quickly produce edges that perfectly reproduce the patterns of the panels to which they will be applied.
• Produce skirting boards/profiles with outstanding flexibility, reproducing the patterns present on the floors to which they will be coupled.
• Produce sidings or claddings and decorate them, allowing you to make, ever-more economically, modular solutions on building sites, products that are highly appealing and suitable alternatives to other types of coverings.

Such opportunities translate into three clear advantages of digital printing in the manufacturing sector. To be specific, installing an industrial digital printing machine in the company lets you:

1. Obtain flexible, increasingly competitive production cycles.
2. Respond quickly to aesthetic/fashion trends thanks to the fast set-up of the various lines.
3. Produce aesthetically appealing, economically sustainable products.

Selecting the most suitable industrial digital printing machine

Individual companies have their own specific needs and requirements. This depends not just on the markets where they operate, but also their own entrepreneurial and strategic decisions. This is why it’s essential to choose an industrial digital printing machine with characteristics that are consistent with your aims.
The best choice? Go for a highly configurable product and set it up to match your business goals. 
And that’s exactly what you can do in the Cefla Finishing Lab, an ‘innovation incubator’ that creates a customised vision... and the solution to match. In the Imola facility - as in Charlotte, USA, and Tianjin, China - customers and industrial partners can personally run dozens of tests on new products. They can test the latest technologies and verify the performance of the proposed machines via in-the-field trials, allowing them to identify the configurations that best suit their needs.

This Cefla Finishing service means that, even before purchasing an industrial digital printing machine, potential buyers can:

• Assess their own needs
• Define the available budget
• Compare the different technologies
• Evaluate the technical characteristics of the machines

J-Print SP and the other Cefla digital printing solutions 

Cefla Finishing customers looking to focus on advanced digital printing can count on several solutions, the most representative of them perhaps being J-Print SP.

This series of single-pass printers integrates seamlessly with all Cefla Finishing machines and systems for the coating/decoration of various materials, from wood and its derivatives to ceramic, fibre cement, plastic and glass.

Equipped with industrial print heads, J-PRINT SP can deliver UV-curable inks and is designed for integration into either fully digital or hybrid single-pass printing environments. The modular print bars can be configured up to virtually unlimited print widths. The adopted technology lets J-PRINT SP operate at speeds of 50 linear meters per minute and more.

Why choose Cefla Finishing?

There are, therefore, several reasons for turning to Cefla Finishing when looking for an industrial digital printing machine. Cutting-edge, constantly-evolving solutions, decades of experience serving a global clientele and plenty of scope for product customisation are, in fact, crucial success factors when it comes to assessing and deciding on a strategic partner.

But that’s not all: Cefla Finishing provides an additional service component that makes the range unique.
Cefla is, in fact, ready to:

• supply a complete line, from preparation of the bare substrate to the decorated, finished product.
• fine-tune the complete technological process, from reception of the original samples to be reproduced to worker training.
• provide customers with close support so they can acquire the expertise and experience needed to prepare the definitive print files.

Choosing Cefla Finishing, therefore, doesn’t just mean purchasing a cutting-edge solution. It also means gaining an understanding of the most advanced skills on the market and having the opportunity to put then into practice for your business. 

Talk to one of our experts to find out how we can help you achieve your goals