Auxiliary Equipment Vet Thiele Starts On-Line Consulting Venture

Vactec LLC of Kalamazoo MI. has established a new on-line consulting service that offers processors a thorough on-line analysis and improvement recommendations for storage, conveying, central drying and blending systems. Vactec On-Line has been developed for processors who are looking for solutions when access to production areas may be limited due to ongoing concerns over the Coronavirus pandemic.

Vactec  planned to introduce the service this month at Plastics Technology’s Molding 2020 Conference, where Chuck Thiele, Vactec’s president, had been scheduled to give a presentation on Evaluating and Improving performance on Central Vacuum Systems.  That conference has since been rescheduled to October 13-15 in Rosemont, Ill.

“Today’s travel and plant visitation situation seems to make the online consulting even more viable. Normally we would just get on a plane or drive to our clients, but with COVID 19, it’s not that easy, for us or our customers” Thiele said in launching the service. “Now, with the evaluation process and check lists we have developed, we can troubleshoot and assist our customers quickly and efficiently, without the time and expense of on-site consulting.” he continued.

Some of the problems that Thiele says Vactec On Line addresses include:

• Plugged conveying lines;
• Poor material flow/bridging;
• Vacuum relief problems;
• Additional capacity needs;
• Extending or expanding an existing system;
• Abrasion;
• Angel hair;
• Material selection and “spaghetti bowls;”
• System design;
• Tracing and validation;
• Component functionality

Thiele, who began his plastic conveying and drying career in the 1960s, has been consulting since retiring as president of Motan in 1999. Since then, he has worked as a product and system design consultant for several leading system suppliers, and a problem solving and facilities design consultant for numerous injection molding and extrusion processor.

Thiele says Vactec has created this venture not to sell equipment and/or systems, but to put its 50 plus years of system design and problem-solving experience to work providing solutions and answers that reduce manpower, material and maintenance costs while improving operations and efficiencies. 

Contact Thiele by email or call 269-599-3975.