New DiscCalc Mobile App Simplifies Process of Feed Disc Selection for Plastrac Blenders

EDGMONT, PA--(Marketwired - Mar 22, 2015) - Plastrac, the Edgmont, PA-based maker of gravimetric and volumetric blending equipment for injection and extrusion processes, recognized that a lot of critical decisions are made on the shop floor, one of them being selection of a feed disc to handle all or vast majority of a user's applications. To make that process easy and intuitive, Plastrac has developed a new mobile phone app called DiscCalc, designed to help users choose a single disc by weighing key parameters and factoring in the extremes. It works with virgin or regrind resin, normal size pellets or micro pellets, and with just about any type of additive -- a single disc will cover all colors.

"It's all about minimizing and even eliminating downtime," notes Eric Bullivant, Vice President of Plastrac. "We all have a mobile phone and this is a great way to provide instant tech support to customers when they are most in need of help selecting feed discs. It will also help us ensure customers' blending is optimized through discs that are best-matched to process."

The app calls for a number of key process parameters, then delivers a chart of available discs, color coded by GREEN (recommended models), YELLOW (models that are still workable but may be close to the limit), and RED (not recommended because these discs based on supplied parameters will cause the blender to function outside its designed operating range).

For gravity-fed GF injection molding applications, users just need to plug in Shot Weight, Recovery Time, Percent of Shot Weight, and Percent of Additive (Color and/or Regrind). For GA or GFE applications, users need to enter Total Feedrate, Percent of Total, and Percent of Additive (Color and/or Regrind).

The DiscCalc app is available for free for any smart phone or tablet, either iOS (Apple Apps Store) or Android (Google Play) platforms. It will be demonstrated at Plastrac's exhibit at the National Plastics Exposition (Booth W232) in Orlando, FL March 23-25.

Plastrac is a leading international designer and manufacturer of disc-based gravimetric and volumetric blending equipment, as well as materials loaders, for all plastics processing. Its Auto-Disc™ systems make the processing of plastics and additives easier and more cost efficient. For more information, contact: Plastrac, P.O. Box 1067, 3928 Miller Road, Edgmont, PA 19028, 610-356-3000, Fax: 610-356-7022, www.plastrac.com, sales@plastrac.com.