The Process
Learn about the process of making superior quality Concrete Roof Tiles with ABECE Equipment. The most productive solutions with excellent return on investment and of course green and safe!
1. Batching and Mixing Concrete
Sand, cement and water are mixed together to form concrete in a Concrete Batching and Mixing System. Pigments can be added to make colored through tiles.
Consistent and homogeneous concrete mix is crucial for making roof tiles.
With ABECE machinery you get the most productive solutions that maximize your return on investment!
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Up to 25% higher output/productivity, more tiles with less people
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Save more than 700.000 EUR per year on energy, raw materials and maintenance
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Make the highest quality tiles
(Typical modern state of the art ABECE Large Plant compared with an average existing high speed plant)
2. Extrusion
Concrete roof tiles are made on moulds through extrusion technology in an Extrusion Machine.
ABECE extruders will make the worlds most compacted tiles saving cement and producing tiles with a smooth and level surface finish.
3. Cutting
The extruded concrete is cut into tiles. This is best done in our outstanding Twin Servo knife system, saving concrete and money but also providing the best tile aesthetics with extreme precision, always giving correct tile length.
4. Wet side top coating
To enhance the surface of the tiles they can be top coated, either by acrylic paint, slurry mix or granulates. When using our systems, downstream equipment is not contaminated causing production losses.
6. Curing
As in all industries with concrete as the main element, wet concrete needs to be cured. With the self-sustained ABECE GreenBox Curing system, this is done without adding heat, i.e. saving cost and reducing carbon footprint.
7. Tile and Mould separation
After the tiles have cured on their moulds, they are ready to be separated in the automatic Depalletter. This genial machine will easily and safely separate tile from mould, causing no wear on your moulds and no damages on your tiles.
8a. Mould cleaning
Keeping moulds clean will increase their lifetime and warrant that tiles are made to highest quality. We offer the most effective automated cleaning equipment for all sides of the moulds, removing dirt build up on the nose, underside, top side or tail. Saving time and cost.
10. Top coat drying
When coating the tiles on the dry side, they need to dry before being packed. The RotoDryer system is space optimized and provides time for the coat to dry. High efficiency is created through smart engineering and automation, and we even have the possibility to blend colors and increase drying time when necessary.
11. Stacking technology
Prior to packing, small stacks of tiles needs to be formed. Doing this at high speeds with kept line pace and output is a challenge, but not for ABECE. Our Collapsing unit, either out from the TwinLoader or out from the RotoDryer are the most productive solutions available, stacking tiles without scuffing the valuable surface of the tiles.
12. Strapping
Strapping small packs and large packs at high speeds, is difficult over time. We have developed the most reliable strapping systems with the best availability and redundancy. The Strapack heads are specially designed for our harsh industry. Stacks are automatically handled by Fanuc robotic arms, providing highest output and lowest maintenance, with maximized flexibility and Zero changeover time. Of course, built and installed to highest safety measurements for Zero Harm!
5. Racking
Before tiles are cured they need to be gently and safely handled into curing racks. ABECE Automatic racking systems are the signum for the smoothest handling, highest possible availability and outstanding productivity, bringing scrap done to Zero. No one in the world beats us here, 100% guaranteed!
13. Palletizing and load secure
When tiles are strapped in large packs they need to be palletized. This is done with ease, fully automatic and with flexibility by Fanuc robotic arms. Our purposely designed grippers will put on slipsheets if desired. The pallet travels on the strongly built yard conveyor to a load secure system of your choice, spin wrapping, stretch wrapping or shrink wrapping. All equipment built and installed to highest safety measurements for Zero Harm!
All ABECE equipment are built and installed to highest safety measurements for Zero Harm!
After separating, moulds are cycled back to the extruder on the low energy consuming conveyor system. These conveyors are designed to carry the moulds with ease and the ABECE non-touch turntable will never grind your moulds edges down. The ABECE conveyor circuit control is a key in successful plant automation, delivering maximized OEE.
8. Mould return – cleaning and oiling
9. Dry side top coat
After separation, tiles are conveyed downstream to a dry side top coating system receiving a second topcoat. Options like solid color, clear sealer, antique spray and our unique splash finish are available. Purposely designed to eliminate contamination on downstream equipment.
8b. Mould oiling
“Stickers” is an expression in this industry and is a non-wanted event, which is avoided by applying a release agent on the moulds before extruding concrete. We offer you the Original Mould Oil Brush Applicator, SUMAL. The applicator disposes the release oil in droplets – nozzle free and no fumes created, less oil consumed, and non-stickers are guaranteed.
Automation control and HMI system
To run an efficient roof tile plant with hundreds of parallel processes happening simultaneously every second, you need an intelligent control system helping you to control the actions. The brain behind everything in a roof tile plant is the Siemens S7 TIA portal PLC which we have refined over last 30 years to control every motor, pneumatic valve or moving part in the PLC and visualize all actions in the HMI and on the large production screens. It is also controlling all safety zones and emergency stops to keep the crew safe and the working environment at Zero Harm. This is the optimal tool for production control and process management, increasing OEE and reducing cost for maintenance and unnecessary downtime.
Safety system
Most important in any industrial production facility is the safety of people. This is done through means of pull-wires, emergency push buttons, hard fencing, laser beams or cameras, monitoring each safety zone. If a situation occurs, an emergency stop shall always be at an arm length distance. All equipment we supply and install always follow the CE machine directive and we proudly hand over every machine safely installed. Zero Harm is not a vision but a mission for ABECE.