With BERNSTEIN against the pandemic

A machine with its finger on the pulse. Besides a Corona vaccine, FFP masks are currently probably the most sought-after product in connection with the pandemic. Demand for the respirators is higher than ever before. European manufacturers can no longer meet this enormous market volume for mask production. This is where the company Schott & Meissner comes into play. The professional for machine and plant construction has developed a machine for its customers that can produce up to 72,000 respirators a day. BERNSTEIN ensures the necessary safety on the machine itself with its SRF safety sensors.

"The raw materials are fed into the machine via a machine frame. In parallel, nose clips or nose clamps are inserted. The welding of the materials to form the basic shape of the mask is done by ultrasonic roll welding," Matthias Pflüger (Schott & Meissner) explains how it works. While the company from Blaufelden in Baden-Württemberg thus helps to increase safety against infection with the virus, BERNSTEIN takes care of safety on the machine itself. The SRF (Safety RFID) safety sensor is used for this purpose. The SRF monitors movable guards, such as flaps, doors or protective grids. This particularly small sensor protects employees from injury by switching off machines and systems or not even putting them into operation until the separating protective device is properly closed.

"There are 16 SRF safety sensors per machine, which ensure that the production of respirators runs smoothly. They are used at the maintenance flaps on the lower part of the machine and to monitor the safety doors behind which the masks are produced," explains Sebastian König, who is in charge of the project for BERNSTEIN on site. In this case, the SRF sensors are connected to a Siemens F control system, which evaluates whether all doors are closed. This information is then made available to the operator. "We see ourselves as a solution provider and offer our customers scalable electronic security solutions," Sebastian König continues. "If required, we supply individual safety components, as here for the production of the FFP masks, which customers can integrate into their system. " But also the
BERNSTEIN offers a complete package consisting of safety sensors (SRF), electronic emergency stop (SEU) and easy-to-program safety relays (SCR-P). During the development of this SMART Safety System, special emphasis was placed on the patented DCD diagnostic system, which provides comprehensive data of each connected device.

The collaboration between the two companies began in 2020, when those responsible at Schott & Meissner had already decided on safety technology from BERNSTEIN as part of the design of further machines. "The SRF meets our requirements for functionality and cost-effectiveness 100 percent. It was easy to connect the SRF sensors to our existing control system. Now we get all the information for safe commissioning of the machine at a glance. ", Matthias Pflüger justifies the cooperation.

Customers who want to buy a machine for the production of FFP2 masks already exist. In this way, the companies involved are making their contribution to limiting the global pandemic with their respective know-how.