VK 12018 100.6+100.6 HP Channel Baling Press

This is the fastest fixed-speed VK 12018 HSM builds: twin 100.6 HP motors, a 9.4 second idle cycle and a published 837 cubic metres an hour. It is specified for plants that run the baler more or less continuously, where the cost of the press standing idle behind a full belt is measured in shift hours rather than minutes.

The press itself is common to the whole VK 12018 range — 1,200 kN at 99.2 N/cm², a 970 x 1,800 mm feed aperture, an 1,100 x 1,100 mm bale of 700 to 1,100 kg held by five wires, and bale lengths adjustable up to 2,000 mm. What this variant adds is 150 kW of installed drive power and a rating of 41.85 tonnes an hour on material at 50 kg/m³.

One detail worth knowing before you plan the foundation: HSM lists this machine at 36,000 kg, two tonnes lighter than the 45+45 kW and 55+55 kW versions, which use a heavier hydraulic arrangement. The frame dimensions are unchanged at 12,413 x 4,159 x 3,622 mm.

Key Features

• 1,200 kN at 99.2 N/cm² into an 1,100 x 1,100 mm chamber — the largest bale HSM makes in this class.
• Five-wire automatic tying, which is what it takes to hold a 1,100 kg bale of springy material together.
• 970 x 1,800 mm feed aperture. At 1.8 metres long it takes bulk material straight off a wide belt.
• Gimballed press cylinder that lets the ram find the chamber instead of loading the rod sideways, which is the single biggest wear factor on a press this size.
• Siemens programmable controller with touch panel, so material recipes and fault diagnosis live on one screen.
• Castle-lock safety system on access points.
• Bale length adjustable to 2,000 mm, double what HSM's smaller channel presses offer.
• Optional wear-resistant steel for residual waste, and an optional frequency-regulated drive that HSM says reduces energy consumption by around 40%.
• Fully automatic operation. Material goes in the aperture, the ram cycles on a light barrier, the bale is tied and ejected without an operator at the machine.
• Wire tying as standard, so bales hold their shape under the springback of film and OCC.
• Continuous feeding from a conveyor belt, an air feed or a shredder discharge — this is a machine designed to sit at the end of a line, not to be hand-loaded.

Specifications

What's in the Box

A VK 12018 is a plant installation. HSM publishes no scope-of-delivery list, and the press arrives to be rigged, positioned, levelled, connected to a three-phase supply and commissioned by an HSM engineer. Feed conveyors, sorting cabins, platforms, guarding, dust extraction and bale handling are separate items designed around your building.

Baling wire is not included. The machine applies five wire ties per bale automatically; the wire specification for your press is confirmed at commissioning. On a machine producing tonne bales continuously, wire is a significant consumable line.

Who Should Buy This — and Who Should Not

Buy the 100.6+100.6 HP VK 12018 if the baler is the constraint on a high-volume plant running long hours. 41.85 t/h at 50 kg/m³ is the highest fixed-speed rating HSM publishes for this press, and a 9.4 second cycle keeps a fast, wide sorting belt clear.

Buy the 73.8+73.8 HP version instead if you can live with 34.6 t/h. That is 83% of this machine's throughput for 73% of the installed power, and on most tariffs the running cost difference over a decade is larger than the price difference on the invoice.

Consider a frequency-regulated 55+55 kW machine instead if energy cost dominates your operating budget. HSM publishes that configuration at an 8.8 second cycle and 887 m³/h — faster than this fixed-speed machine — with around 40% lower consumption. It is genuinely worth quoting both.

Do not buy this variant if your feed cannot keep it busy. A press cycling on an empty chamber still draws standing load and still wears its guides. The 45+45 kW machine makes an identical bale and, on a single-shift operation, will never be the thing you are waiting for.