Abe CraftCan 15 User manual

This document is the property of Norland International Inc. (d.b.a. American Beer Equipment) and may contain information
which is confidential, proprietary, pri ileged, and exempt from disclosure. Unless written consent is pro ided by the Legal
Department, any copying or distribution of this communication is strictly prohibited.
CraftCan 15/35 User
Guide
Ver 1.
3
© Copyrig
ht 2016 American Beer Equipment
2001 S.W. 6th St. L
incoln, NE 68522
402-475-BEER

American Beer Equipment 2001 SW 6
th
St.
Lincoln, NE 68522
1
Thank You!
Congratulations on purchasing your American Beer Equipment CraftCan system. The CraftCan is one of the most ad anced
medium-speed canning lines a ailable. The employees of A.B.E. ha e worked ery hard to bring you a machine which will
pro ide many years of reliable operation with a minimum amount of maintenance.
Your CraftCan system has undergone a comprehensi e quality assurance and inspection process prior to final packaging
and shipment to you. Any residues you see on the surfaces of the CraftCan are a result of this testing process and are to
be considered normal. Your be erage tubes may ha e CIP chemical residue in them from when they were cleaned before
shipping.
Please read this entire manual prior to installing and operating your CraftCan System to ensure you understand the
functions of the system. If you ha e any questions, please do not hesitate to contact:
American Beer Equipment
402-475-BEER (2337)
Thank you for your business! Now let’s go can!

American Beer Equipment 2001 SW 6
th
St.
Lincoln, NE 68522
2
Contents
1. Safety Precautions .......................................................................................................................................................... 4
a) Uncrating the CraftCan ................................................................................................................................................... 4
b) System Placement ........................................................................................................................................................... 4
2. Initial Startup Procedures ............................................................................................................................................... 5
3. CIP Procedures ................................................................................................................................................................ 5
4. Canning Procedures ........................................................................................................................................................ 6
a. Filling ............................................................................................................................................................................... 6
b. Seaming........................................................................................................................................................................... 9
a. Double Seam Setup Procedures ................................................................................................................................... 10
d. Seaming Adjustment Guide .............................................................................................................................................. 13
5. Cleaning ............................................................................................................................................................................. 16
6. Dissol ed Oxygen .......................................................................................................................................................... 17
Troubleshooting .................................................................................................................................................................... 17
7. Tips ................................................................................................................................................................................ 18
a. Filling ............................................................................................................................................................................. 18
a. Too Much Foam .................................................................................................................................................... 18
i. Too Little Foam ..................................................................................................................................................... 18
i. Seaming......................................................................................................................................................................... 19
8. Maintenance ................................................................................................................................................................. 20
a. Seamer .......................................................................................................................................................................... 20
i. Roller bearing grease ............................................................................................................................................ 20
ii. Cylinders ................................................................................................................................................................ 20
iii. Bearings ................................................................................................................................................................. 20
b. Filler .............................................................................................................................................................................. 20
c. Other ............................................................................................................................................................................. 20
9. Troubleshooting ............................................................................................................................................................ 21
a) Filler .............................................................................................................................................................................. 21
i. Fill Times ............................................................................................................................................................... 21
ii. Beer Lines .............................................................................................................................................................. 22
iii. Nozzle Leaks .......................................................................................................................................................... 22

American Beer Equipment 2001 SW 6
th
St.
Lincoln, NE 68522
3
b) Seamer .......................................................................................................................................................................... 23
i. Wrinkling ............................................................................................................................................................... 23
ii. Shuttle to Seamer ................................................................................................................................................. 23
c) Lid-Escapement ............................................................................................................................................................. 23
d) Lid-Tap ................................................................................................................................................................... 25
e) Other ..................................................................................................................................................................... 25
f). Mac Val es Manifold Videos .................................................................................................................................... 25
10. Height Changeo er .................................................................................................................................................... 27
a. Nozzle Cylinder Height .................................................................................................................................................. 27
b. Lid-Escapement Height ................................................................................................................................................. 28
c. Seamer (s) ..................................................................................................................................................................... 29
11. SAVED SETUP (RECIPES) ............................................................................................................................................ 31
12. Appendix ......................................................................................................................................................................... 33
a. Time Settings ................................................................................................................................................................ 33
b. Main Connections ......................................................................................................................................................... 34
c. Troubleshooting Double Seam Guide ........................................................................................................................... 35
d. Double Seam Specifications .......................................................................................................................................... 36
e. Screen Images ............................................................................................................................................................... 45
f. Clock Adjustment .......................................................................................................................................................... 51
g. Checklists....................................................................................................................................................................... 54

American Beer Equipment 2001 SW 6
th
St.
Lincoln, NE 68522
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1. Safety Precautions
a. Please read the entire Operator’s / Technical manual before starting the installation.
b. Improper installation, adjustment, alteration, ser ice, maintenance or use can cause personal injury or
property damage. Consult a qualified installer or ser ice agency for information or assistance. The
qualified installer or agency must use factory-authorized kits or accessories when ser icing this product.
c. Follow all safety codes. Read these instructions thoroughly and follow all warnings. Consult local
building codes and / or National Electrical Code (NEC) for special installation requirements.
d. This unit is equipped with an electrical panel. This panel should remain closed, except when being
ser iced by qualified indi iduals.
e. This unit is equipped with Polycarbonate guarding. Guarding should remain on the system when
operated to pre ent injury.
f. As there are high oltage connections inside the system, limit access to qualified personnel only.
g. This unit is under microprocessor control which can lead to unexpected mo ement of components.
Always turn off the external power and disconnect air supply to the unit when ser icing or inspecting
the electrical controls, and other areas on the unit.
h. Do not place any part of your body inside of the CraftCan filler or seamer while the machine is running.
Doing so may be harmful.
Warning
Before installing or ser icing system, always turn off main power to system. There may be more than one (1) disconnect
switch. Electrical Shock can cause personal injury or death.
a) Uncrating the CraftCan
a) Uncrate the CraftCan and inspect the system for shipping damage. If damage is disco ered, contact
your shipping carrier prior to start up. The system was thoroughly inspected prior to packaging. If
damage to the system is found, it is the carrier’s responsibility to correct the damage.
b) Inspect the system for any loose or disconnected wires, tubing or fittings. Tighten as required. It is
not unusual for some fittings to loosen due to the ibration that occurs during shipment. It is our
practice not to o ertighten the fittings during the manufacturing process. We ha e found it better
for the life of the fittings to tighten moderately at the factory rather than to o ertighten.
b) System Placement
a) The system should be located so there is unrestricted access to all sides.
b) The system should be installed in a location and manner that will pre ent damage to personnel,
merchandise and/or the surrounding area in the e ent of an o erflow, leak or discharge from the
machine or connecting lines. We recommend locating the system close to a floor drain.
c) The system should be secure from unauthorized or untrained personnel.
d) The system must not be exposed to freezing temperatures.
e) Good manufacturing practices and adherence to local regulations for food and be erage operations
should be followed.

American Beer Equipment 2001 SW 6
th
St.
Lincoln, NE 68522
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2. Initial Startup Procedures
a. It is up to the purchaser to ha e a licensed electrician properly connect the CraftCan to power.
b. Once connected, the CraftCan can be powered by turning the red on/off handle to “I” on the electrical
box
i. The HMI will power to the ABE home screen
ii. You can now familiarize yourself with the arious screens
c. The main air can be connected to the back of the machine with a male 1/2" quick connect.
d. The CO2 pressure regulator at the machine for CO2 Pulse should be set at 60 PSI. Main line air pressure
regulator should be set at 100 PSI and operates at 100 psi +/- 10 psi. The machine will stop if the
pressure falls out of either range because ABE wants to make sure you ha e the best possible canning
experience possible. Insufficient air demands will not allow for an optimal experience.
3. CIP Procedures
a. The CraftCan System has the ability for CIP. The tubing is rated for up to 165 degrees Fahrenheit. To
start CIP, place cans below the nozzles, and hit “CIP” on the “Main” screen (Figure 1). The nozzle cylinder
will extend and the nozzles will open. The CIP time duration can be altered as needed. It is in seconds.
i. NOTE: If your nozzles extend downward, and then come right back up, please check that your
CIP time has not yet reached zero. If it has, please enter a new CIP time alue.
b. It is up to the brewery to ensure proper CIP procedures. Not performing proper CIP procedures may lead
to an unsafe consumable. A typical CIP process may look similar to the following:
i. Powdered Brewer’s Wash
ii. Flush canning lines with water
iii. Caustic Acid # 5
i . Flush canning line out with water
. Saniclean (temp not as important)
1. Can soak machine in SaniClean

American Beer Equipment 2001 SW 6
th
St.
Lincoln, NE 68522
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4. Canning Procedures
a. illing
i. Please follow the attached “Beer Pre-Start” and “Operator Setup Sheet” before canning each
time (page 51).
ii. A summarized ersion of the abo e is as follows. Connect:
a. ½” main air line at filler on backside
b. ¼” C02 line at filler on backside
c. 1-½” sanitary line (Beer)
iii. When you are ready to start canning, go to “Input & Outputs” on the HMI screen (Figure 1)
a. Click “Enable Testing” (Must always be depressed first for any action to take
place)
b. Cycle “Can Push” and “Push to Seam” to make sure the cylinders are running
smoothly. If they are not, see if beer has dried on the shafts. Hot water and FDA
appro ed silicon spray will produce a smooth cylinder operation.
c. Use the CIP button to cycle the Nozzles until beer exits, and there is minimal
foam
d. Make sure sanitizer or other chemicals ha e exited the system
i . Next, go to the “Main” Screen
Figure . Main Screen

American Beer Equipment 2001 SW 6
th
St.
Lincoln, NE 68522
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Depress:
a. PAUSE
b. BELT
c. SEAM
d. RUN-MODE (There is a 5 second delay after pressing run-mode)
e. PAUSE (To open Gate)
i. When “Run Mode” is depressed, cans will begin the filling and seaming process.
ii. A typical cycle occurs as follows:
1. Inlet gate opens
2. Cans are counted in (displayed on Main Screen, Figure 1)
3. Once “Cans Per Fill Cycle” equals “Cans In”, in-let gate closes
4. Fill nozzles with probes come down into can
5. The Co2 purge cycle turns on with a time duration equal to the time setting “Purge
on Time”
6. Once “Purge on Time” has completed, the fill cycle will start and finish filling once
the probe debounce time and extend fill time has been exceeded. Once the probe
debounce has been exceeded, the nozzles will start to rise out of the can and also
the nozzles will go into extend fill mode.
iii. NOTE: The air pressure must be abo e the minimum alue specified to
operate your machine. The air pressure monitor, on your front panel, Figure
1, displays this alue. If your pressure drops below the minimum, your
machine will stop filling and seaming. The integrity of your seams may be
compromised if the pressure drops below the recommended. Your machine
will wait for your compressor to catch up before canning may resume.
i . Note: The “PAUSE” button is on the main screen to pre ent cans from
entering the filler. You may press this button at any time to pre ent more
cans from entering the filler
. Note: You may also pre ent can mo ement, at any time, by pressing the
“CONVEYOR” button.
B. Your machine comes fully tested with reliable time settings. If you wish, you may
alter the time settings. There is a security code to do so.
a. Note: Altering time settings can negati ely affect your canning line
performance if the alue de iates from the setting pro ided to you from the
factory.
C. The CraftCan has the ability to change fill times on the fly. To do so, you may
increase or decrease your fill le els by going to the Timing Screen and hitting the
“All Fill Extend” button (Figure 3. Indi idual Nozzle Tunings). This will allow you to
numerically increase or decrease the amount of product which enters the can.
D. Adjustment of the probe debounce time and nozzle offset (Figure 3).
a. Probe debounce will control how long the probe must sense beer before the
nozzle starts rising out of the can and the extend fill time starts. If the time
setting is too low, the nozzle will rise out too quickly before the can is full (a

American Beer Equipment 2001 SW 6
th
St.
Lincoln, NE 68522
8
bubble could set the probe off). If the nozzle time is too long, the nozzle will
remain open for longer than needed and stay in the can.
b. Nozzle offset compensates for nozzles which fill faster or slower than the
a erage nozzle. If an indi idual nozzle is too quick or slow, alter the nozzle’s
time setting accordingly.
E. C0
2
Pulse can be turned off or on ia the time setting screen.
a. Typically, a small jet (around .020 seconds) pro ides the correct amount of extra
CO
2
, 3/4
th
of the way up the can to promote an extra layer of foam. This foam
will allow lids to lie atop the foamy head and pre ent dissol ed oxygen pickup
(DO
2
).
Figure 2. Time Settings Screen on HMI

American Beer Equipment 2001 SW 6
th
St.
Lincoln, NE 68522
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Figure 3. Individual Nozzle Tunings
b. Seaming
It is up to the brewery, and employees, to determine what a proper seam is and to maintain the seam on e ery can.
Without a proper seam a can may leak. Therefore, making sure the can seam falls within the manufacturer’s double
seam specifications is of utmost importance. Follow the procedures below to make sure your can is in spec after
installing a new roller operation die. If your seams were pre iously in spec, but are now on the outside range, please
refer to the Double Seam Setup Procedures.
Proper maintenance of your rollers will prolong repeatable and accurate seaming. Please refer to the Maintenance
Section for more information.