At 5,100 metres (16,800 feet) above sea level, a spring wells up from a glacier in the Himalayas, to be captured by Tibet Glacier Mineral Water Co. Ltd., who intend to bottle and market it as one of the most pure bottled waters available. The actual bottling operation is located at a "mere" 4,300 meters (14,000 feet) above sea level, near the Tibetan capital of Lhasa.

For this purpose, the company built a greenfield facility, housing a complete KRONES bottling line, which went into operation in July, 2006. The line is capable of speeds up to 24,000 bottles per hour with square 330-ml PET bottles and is also capable or running round or square 600-ml PET bottles as well. The bottles are blow-moulded, filled, and dressed in OPP wrap-around labels from Krones. The Contiform S14 stretch blow-molding machine used for this purpose is sure to be the highest-placed PET blow-molder in the entire world.

The Challenges of Altitude
Since the location is so high up, a series of special measures were needed to assure reliable bottle production, filling and labelling.

With its long years of experience in installing lines at different heights above sea level, KRONES made some appropriate modifications to the line's design. Firstly, the ratings for all drives had to be at least 20 percent higher than for drives operating under "standard conditions." Since Tibet Glacier Mineral Water Co. Ltd. wants to sell the water in lower-altitude regions as well, right down to sea level, the bottles have to stand up to a pressure differential of about 0.4 bar (corresponding to a height differential of about 13,000 feet). This was an important consideration in designing the bottle. In addition, KRONES gave a good deal of thought to how any tendencies to bottle deformation could be countered. The PET bottles are accordingly filled as close to the top as possible, since the liquid is more resistant to compression than headspace air.

The stretch blow-moulding machine's air consumption is significantly higher as well. At sea level, it would be 581 m3/h; at 14,000 feet, by contrast, it reaches 999 m3/h. For this reason, the high-performance compressor, also supplied by KRONES, is rated at 170 per cent, while the chiller for the Contiform provides 25 percent extra output.

The other machine configurations conform to the KRONES standard. But, of course, the project team did a lot of thinking in an attempt to anticipate numerous imponderables, whose significance and influence would only emerge in actual operation, such as that the technical guarantee for the touchscreen control panels is valid only for elevations of up to 10,000 feet and temperatures of up to 50 degrees Celsius. Given the low ambient temperatures reached in Tibet, though, even higher locations shouldn't be a problem.

But the question remained: would the Contiroll's vacuum cylinders function normally? KRONES ran simulation tests to eliminate any remaining risks, and to ensure that the line would function properly.

And there were, by the way, some purely human problems that made installing this line up on the roof of the world into a whole new experience. The first KRONES fitter to arrive on the scene promptly succumbed to mountain sickness and had to retreat to lower climes. Additional service staff were dispatched, so the lost installation time was swiftly made up.

The "5100 Glacier Mineral Water" product, named after the spring's location 5,100 meters above sea level, is going to be sold not only in Tibet, but more particularly on the export market, especially in the USA, where its exotic qualities are predicted to cause a sensation.

KRONES AG, headquartered in Neutraubling, Germany, plans, develops, manufactures and installs machines and complete lines for bottling, canning and packaging operations. Its experience and its innovative vigour, plus its synergetic optimisation of mechanical engineering, system expertise, process technology, microbiology and information technology have made the company the world's leading vendor of complete-system job packages. Its clients are to be found mainly among breweries and beverage producers, as well as in the food, chemical, pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries.
Besides KRONES AG (M-DAX) the group includes the subsidiaries Sander Hansen (pasteurizers) and Kosme (machines for the lower output range) plus over 40 companies abroad. Employing more than 9,000 people worldwide, consolidated sales in 2005 totalled a good 1.695 billion euros. www.krones.com