The recirculation system can be ordered with new overwrappers or individually retrofitted to existing ones. “For years, Ossid overwrappers helped improve the sustainability of a packaging line by minimizing consumption of shrink film,” says Ernie Newell, vice president and general manager of Ossid. “The new water recirculation system contributes to greater sustainability by significantly reducing the water footprint of the packaging line.” Newell explains that Ossid case-ready tray overwrappers are cooled by circulating about 1.5 gallons of water a minute through the machine. At that rate, each overwrapper consumes about 720 gallons of cooling water per eight-hour shift. During a 52 week period, for example, the total water consumption would be slightly more than 375,000 gallons. Plants running multiple overwrappers during multiple shifts can easily save the cost of millions of gallons of water entering and leaving the plant. Following an 18 month research and development effort, Ossid developed a low-cost water recirculation system that when added to an overwrapper cools the machine with as little as one gallon of water per day. The new recirculation system automatically replenishes evaporated water as needed and requires minimal maintenance. Newell estimates the system will pay for itself in less than a year.
