When it comes to fish processing machines, BAADER is the global market leader. The company is also the third largest supplier of poultry processing technology worldwide. The Group employs nearly 1200 people at approximately 70 sites in a network covering all continents. BAADER focuses on total solutions that deliver premium product quality in all phases of processing.

Ambitious development goals
The demand for salmon is rising steadily and BAADER had already been looking for ways to boost the productivity of its salmon gutting machines for some time. The development goals were ambitious: to virtually double the throughput from between 12 and 16 to 25 fish per minute, to make even complex motion sequences controllable, to improve hygiene by increasing corrosion protection and to reduce maintenance and cleaning to a minimum – and to reconcile all of that with the dimensions of the proven BAADER 142. These requirements could only be met by replacing the existing motors with more powerful servo models: for example, our TPM⁺ enable the height of the tools inside the new BAADER 144 to be dynamically adjusted according to the natural shape of the salmon. The sucking and scraping tools are simultaneously moved through the machine as the fish are fed into the system.

The eleventh servo actuator is the main drive. It moves the chain that pulls the salmon through the machine. A SIMOTION automation system controls the drives and synchronizes their motions. The platen on which these drives are mounted separates the actuators and the wiring from the machine’s process side by means of an absolutely tight shaft gland. The TPM⁺ are provided with a stainless steel output as well as a special three-component paint for protection against corrosion. The BAADER 144 thus also makes an extremely reliable impression on the rare occasions when the non-process section of the machine needs cleaning.

The TPM⁺ dynamic actuators impress not only with their dynamic control characteristics but above all with their extreme compactness, low torsional backlash and high tilting rigidity. Whereas with other drive concepts, up to 15 millimeters of backlash at no load are the norm for the lever kinematics, these servo actuators have practically no backlash, so that the tools are moved with exceptional precision. Less space is required as a result of this and the process as a whole is more efficient.

Several efficiency gains have also been achieved: the servo actuator can be designed one or two sizes smaller compared to conventional standard servo motors with right-angle gearboxes or timing belt side drives without compromising the power output. It is thus possible to manage with smaller and less expensive servo controllers and the energy balance is better. The bottom line: lower overall costs and superior performance. What’s more, the servo drive technology is more easily accessible and very simple to replace (plug & play).