Blown film towers may have been scarce, but there was no shortage of new technology aimed at helping to make extrusion processors more profitable.

There won't be many blown-film lines running, but there is still much in the way of innovation going on in extrusion and compounding.

This NPE show won’t have a lot of extruders on the floor, either running or static. Instead, look for videos and announcements of new technology. You will also find lots of ingenious peripheral devices to improve output and quality and save resin. Some will do all three, and cost less into the bargain.

Do you have runaway resin?

A new system designed by D.R.

It’s all about higher speeds and higher outputs at this year’s “K” show in Germany.

Under-blowing of air in internal bubble cooling (IBC) systems for blown film can cause the bubble to suck in or actually collapse.

Secondary bubble-sizing cages are used on about 10% of blown film lines that have extra-tall towers or long, thin bubbles or ones that make products like heavy-duty sacks, for which centering the bubble before the collapsing frame is critical.

Eight years after nine-layer blown films were first introduced, only a handful of processors have mastered the challenges of making them. Machine suppliers are now setting up lab lines that could make entry easier.

NPE will show higher outputs of practically everything, as advances in grooved feeds, servo drives, screw torque, mixing screws, dies, and downstream cooling, cutting, and handling make everything run faster.