PETsolutions vacuum technology: The core of India’s rPET transition

“India is no longer just a market where we sell machines; it is a market where we must build them,” says Andrea Tridello, sales manager at PETsolutions.

While Pegaso Industries operates several specialised business units ranging from Plastic Systems for general plastic application to Blauwer for chilling and Ergomec for bulk handling, the conversation at the Bharat Mandapam centred on the critical role of PETsolutions. The unit manages the total auxiliary ecosystem for injection moulding, working in direct synergy with global leaders like Husky, Sacmi and Sipa.

With India’s 2026 mandate for recycled materials approaching, the PET industry is facing a technical challenge: traditional drying processes are not the most appropriate considering the wide range of variability of the rPET that require a more controlled and dedicated approach.

The four-stage vacuum standard

During our interview, Tridello was candid about the industry's struggle with recycled material. “Everyone wants to use rPET, but no one wants to compromise on the quality of preforms and bottles,” he explains. According to Tridello, the traditional linear heating process, drying resin at 180°C for several hours, is the primary cause of this degradation.

The essence of the technology lies in its four-stage thermodynamic cycle, where vacuum is the central pillar. After initial pre-heating stages, the material enters the Vacuum Core.

“Think of it like boiling water on top of a mountain,” Tridello explains. "In a normal kitchen, water boils at 100°C. But inside our vacuum chamber, the pressure is so low that moisture and contaminants boil and evaporate at lower temperatures. This means we can get the plastic bone-dry and clean without 'cooking' it for hours at high temperatures."

Profitability through physics

For Indian converters and in-house preforms producers, the move to vacuum technology is a matter of operational survival. Traditional rPET drying requires “oil condensers” and high chilled-water consumption to trap contaminants. Because the PETsolutions system removes these thanks to the vacuum phase, it eliminates the need for an oil condenser, resulting in a 25% to 30% reduction in energy consumption.

The interview also touched on the business of time. While standard drying process consumes 6 to 8 hours for material changeover, the PETsolutions system completes the task in less than two hours. “In this market, flexibility is everything,” says Tridello. “If a converter needs to switch from 20% rPET to 50% for a specific brand owner, they can't afford to wait nearly a full shift for the machine to be ready. We reduce that downtime by 65%,” he adds.

Tridello’s final message highlights a shift towards local autonomy. With 19,000 systems installed globally, Pegaso is currently finalising its third global production plant in Mumbai, India, slated for Q3 2026.

“We are not just bringing machines; we are bringing the heritage of Italian engineering to be built by Indian hands,” Tridello concludes. He says the goal is to provide this critical vacuum technology as a turnkey, locally-produced solution to help Indian brands meet their sustainability goals profitably.