Overview of rigid containers- ranges and styles, filling equipment, considerations when filling rigid containers and Flexible filling review- types of flexible packaging, types of filling equipment, considerations when selecting flexible packaging, considerations when selecting filling equipment

1. PPC 2011
Filling Solutions for Flexible Packaging
Steve Gosling

2. Introduction
Quick overview of rigid containers
 Range and styles
 Filling equipment
 Considerations when filling rigid containers
Flexible filling review
 Types of flexible packages
 Types of filling equipment
 Considerations when selecting flexible packaging
 Considerations when selecting filling equipment

3. Assorted Rigid Containers
1200 liter plastic tote
Assorted drums

4. Assorted Rigid Containers
Cubitainer
Jug in Box
20liter pail
Tight Head Pail

5. Typical Rigid Filling Equipment
Multi-head filler Single head drum filler

6. Quick Overview of Rigid Filling Equipment
Single and multi-head depending on package size and
filling speeds required
Speed of filling is somewhat limited by the amount of splashing and foaming that may
occur
Typically multi head fillers are used to increase speed (slower flow rates)
Techniques that are used to overcome the problems with filling rigid containers
 Anti-foam additives
 Nozzle designs
 Filling equipment modifications
 Multiple filling heads

7. Flexible Packaging
Cheertainer 3 liter to 25 liter
Cheer Pack 70ml to 1000ml
IBC 55 gallon to 330 gallon

8. Automatic Single Head Filling Line

9. Semi Automatic Single Head Filler

10. Filling Equipment Controls

11. Control System
The filling equipment is supplied with a very simple control
system
 Pump on/off
 Safety start
 E Stop
 CIP
 Sample
 Encoder/counter for setting the fill volume
 Fault code display

12. Filling Metering Systems
Turbine
 Mostly used on non-viscous products
 Used for wines, water, milk and oils
 Will not handle viscous and particulate
Electromagnetic Flow meter
 Most common and simplest design
 Wide range of products
 Not as accurate on small fills less than 5 liters
Mass Flow
 Will handle almost all products
 Very expensive
 Very accurate
Weigh Scale
 Used on high viscosity products
 Not as accurate
 Slower
 Can be used inline with the other systems for verification

13. Flow Meters
Mass Flow
Turbine

14. Typical Filling Valve
Filling nozzle
Cap pick up
Cap in gland prior to filling
Semi automatic filling head

15. The Filling Valve Operation
Steps
1..The filling head automatically removes the cap
from the gland
2…The filling nozzle seals off on the top of the
fitment or gland
3..The nozzle will first draw a vacuum ensuring that
there is no air in the bag prior to filling
4..The large orifice nozzle will then open and accurately flow the product into the bag
5..Once filled, the cap will be replaced and pushed to the final shipping position

16. Semi Automatic Filler

17. Selecting Flexible Packaging
 What type of dispensing is required?
 Select at tap or bung
 What is the expected shelf life?
 Does the product require a barrier film structure?
 Is the product light sensitive?
 Is the product hazardous?
 What is expected from the carton design
 Shipping
 Environment

18. Cheertainer® Fitments

19. Filler Production Data
Filler 20L 10L 5L Labor Price
Manual 2/min.,
210,000/yr.
3/min.,
315,000/yr.
4/min.,
420,000/yr.
1 person $18-$20,000 USD
+ Freight
Semi-auto 3/min.,
315,000/yr.
4/min.,
420,000/yr.
5 min.,
525,000/yr.
1 person $30-$35,000 USD
+ Freight
Twin-semi 6/min.,
630,000/yr.
8/min.,
840,000 yr.
10/min.,
1,050,000/yr.
2 people $70-80,000 USD
+ Freight
Fully-auto 6/min.,
630,000/yr.
8/min.,
840,000/yr.
10/min.,
1,050,000/yr.
1 person $140-$155,000
USD +
Freight
Notes: (1) Annual bag production is based on one 7-hour shift per day, 250 days per year taking into account 10 holidays. (2) Prices shown are
based on British £ currency rates as of March 2008.

20. Filling Equipment Considerations
 What type/range of products are to be filled?
 What flow meter will work the best for the application ?
 Filling range 3-1200 liters
 What taps, caps and bungs need to be handled?
 What is the annual volume?
 What floor space is available?

21. Filling Equipment Considerations
Carton Erector System
 Size range
 Closure required
 Local supply/service
Hot melt system
 Local supply/service
Ink jet system
Carton labels
Carton closure
Palletizing

22. Cheertainer Automatic Filler

23. Single Head Automatic Filling line

24. Three Up Automatic Filling Line

25. Conclusions of BIB Filling Equipment
 Accurate, repeatable fill based on volume or weight
 Safer fill due to seal of nozzle on fitment
 No foaming or overflow because there is no air in the bag
 Less labor - no manual cap application or equipment
 Fast setup and change over from one size to another
 CIP and SIP system using one fill head reduces product waste
 Requires much less floor space than other traditional nozzle fillers
 Wide range of taps and fitments for dispensing

26. Why consider a flexible packaging solution?
Lower costs
Faster filling speeds per single head
No air on the product at fill or dispense
No glugging during the dispense
Sustainable
 Fewer in-bound trucks
 Less warehouse storage
 Takes up less volume in the landfill site
 Carton is 100% recyclable

27. THANK YOU