World premiere for the Schütz laser barrel: comprehensive corrosion protection through new manufacturing technology

The barrel jacket is manufactured using a special laser welding process, in which the sheet metal is welded together by impact. The result is an absolutely high-quality, smooth, and clean weld seam. (Photo: Schütz)

The new laser barrel from Schütz combines high-quality material with state-of-the-art manufacturing technology, setting a completely new standard. (Photo: Schütz)

Schütz has a high degree of vertical integration within its own company. Not only are the packaging materials developed and manufactured internally, but also the production equipment. This provides an ideal basis for the high quality of the products as well as numerous innovations across various segments. The extensive steel drum portfolio also benefits from the company's decades of experience in steel processing. Customers benefit from this know-how – not least thanks to Schütz's own steel service centers with two locations in Germany as well as in Asia and the USA. A revolutionary manufacturing process has now led to the latest development in the steel drum sector, which celebrated its world premiere at this year's interpack: The fully galvanized Schütz laser drum scores with comprehensive corrosion protection as well as high process and supply security, combined with increased delivery flexibility for customers.

With the new laser drum, Schütz combines high-quality materials with state-of-the-art manufacturing technology, setting a completely new standard. The innovation: The global player uses double-sided hot-dip galvanized steel sheet directly from the coil to produce the steel drums! The raw material is dipped into a zinc melt bath even before coil winding and receives a uniformly high-quality and evenly distributed zinc coating through galvanization. The drum shell is manufactured using a special laser welding process, where the sheet metal is welded by impact. The result is a high-quality, smooth, and clean weld seam.

The laser drum was tested as a prototype in a development project and was first brought to series maturity by Schütz with appropriate investments. It is protected against corrosion immediately inside and outside after lid and bottom assembly and is ready for immediate shipment. For demanding and sensitive filling products, which are often filled into conventionally galvanized or internally painted drums, this new drum type is a genuine alternative. The additional optimization of manufacturing quality and corrosion protection, combined with the avoidance of internal and external painting, benefits customers above all.

Schütz produces the laser drum in various versions: as a bung drum with a volume of 216.5 liters, as a lid drum with a volume of 213 liters, and alternatively as a necked-in version suitable for ISO containers with 210 liters. In addition, the product innovation for particularly demanding filling goods is also available as a combination drum with a plastic inner container, which impresses with enhanced corrosion protection, high-quality processing, and an improved environmental footprint. Schütz also offers the lid drum with a plastic liner that lines the drum like a second skin, enabling the transport of sensitive liquid and solid filling goods. Complete removal of the filling products and the possibility to use stirrers and suction pumps are important application advantages. The simple separation of material fractions from steel and plastic reduces disposal costs and allows for easy reconditioning of the steel drum. All product variants are now available, and with the latest logo screen printing technology, Schütz offers customized branding upon customer request – including high recognition value.

Effective production process simultaneously reduces contamination risk

Overall, the laser drum impresses with its high-quality and clean manufacturing standards. Since the material used is already corrosion-protected and particularly pure, quality risks are minimized right from the start of production. Conventional drums previously had to be treated in downstream painting lines and ovens for the necessary protection. In doing so, paint drips, inclusions, crater formations, or residual traces could never be completely eliminated. This not only affects the appearance but also poses contamination risks and leads to subsequent manufacturing processes.

With the immediate corrosion protection now in place, all post-treatments are eliminated. Additionally, internal transport processes associated with these treatments are avoided. This highly efficient manufacturing process saves time, costs, and energy. Thanks to resource conservation, it has a positive impact on the environmental balance sheet. Furthermore, Schütz can stock large quantities of already hot-dip galvanized coils for the production of laser drums. This increases delivery flexibility and supply security compared to drums galvanized after production, which require significantly more storage space – another advantage for customers.