Packaging technology supplier Bradman Lake Group (BLG) – represented in Oceania by HBM Packaging Technologies – has partnered with Devon Biscuit in the West Indies to streamline its biscuit packaging process.
Its range of coconut and chocolate bourbon cream sandwich biscuits – called Caribbean Cream – was wrapped on an old intermittent motion, die fold end wrapping machine, in slugs of biscuits stacked on edge. The process was slow and involved the use of three machines, resulting in high levels of scrap product and packaging film.
Bradman Lake responded by supplying a Flowtronic FT130 continuous motion biscuits-on-edge flow wrapping machine, which allowed for a new packaging design that revamped the product's appearance. The result is a pillow-style flowpack that uses transverse heat seals incorporating gusset tucked ends. The machine was designed to fit within the limited floor space of the plant and provide the company with higher wrapping speeds of up to 90 packs per minute, high production efficiencies, and a reduction in waste.
The FT130 wrapper infeed was connected to a specially designed continuous motion, servo-driven, dual-lane, manually loaded cross feed conveyor. This layout allowed up to four operators at each corner to easily load slugs of the biscuits from the biscuit production line.
The machine's other features include a 'no product, no pack' which minimises wastage of empty wraps and a 'no gap, no seal' crimp which minimises stoppages. Once product collation is in process, the product is not released until the final sealing – which minimises jamming on the machine.
