FDBusiness.com

Pacepacker Services has built a containerised sack packing and robotic palletising line for Suffolk-based aggregates supplier Earsham Gravels

According to Pacepacker, the custom installation, thought to be the first of its kind, has doubled capacity and given Earsham Gravels a “portable turnkey line that can be easily transported between quarries”.

Pacepacker built a portable turnkey cell incorporating its innovative Total Bag Control (TBC) sack closing system, its C21 sack placer a bag kicker, a bulk hopper and a weigher.  Within the container, the sack placer opens the empty sacks and presents them to the aggregate specification weigher, for filling from the bulk hopper. The TBC system then takes hold of full sacks with a pair of motorised grip arms and motors toward the sealer.

“As the bag top is held at all times prior to sealing, the system stabilises the bag throughout the closing process,” said Paul Wilkinson, Pacepacker’s business development manager. “To ensure the TBC can cope with harsh conditions, all parts that come into contact with the aggregates are made from stainless steel, and the feeder uses heavy duty rubber belting.”

Earsham Gravel said that automating the line has ramped up bagging speeds from five or six sacks per minute to nine or 10 sacks per minute.

“This means we’ve now got the capacity to bag up to about 140 tonnes per 10 hour day, compared with 70 or 80 tonnes previously,” added Jim Bennett, managing director of Earsham Gravels. “We also have the flexibility to further expand capacity by feeding another line into the robot.”