Variable infra-red system helps Pilkington cook up coated glasses
15 Jan 2000
Specialist glass manufacturer Pilkington has turned to new technology to develop a spectrum of products. It has installed a medium-wave infra-red oven at its technology centre in Ormskirk, Lancashire, to develop coated glass products.
The oven, manufactured by Merseyside firm Heraeus Noblelight, is 2.4m long and split into six independently-controllable zones, each of which contains six 3kW medium-wave emitters. Three of these operate on simple on/off switches, while the others are controlled by a thyristor, which allows their output to be varied; the speed of samples through the oven can also be varied. This allows Pilkington to create complex drying profiles to ensure that the paints used to coat the glass are dried and cured to the optimum level.
