Pouch making: news review

New machines from Waterline

Waterline has launched a pre made pouch making machine, the Ritebag 600-II-Z, which is said to produce 500 pouches/min on two independent lanes.

The new machine, with a width of 650mm and a mechanical speed of 280 cycles/min, uses the same mother reel as that in form-fill-seal machines and does not require additional facilities such as trimming and slitting. It can be equipped with Waterline’s synchronization system for the production of three side seal pouches from two printed reels.

This year, Waterline also plans to launch a new version of the Riteplus-SL for converting side gusset bags into single lip side gusset bags with the application of top slider or zipper. This machine, combined with the new Ritepet 600-I, a machine for the production of side gusset bags, is said to be ideal for companies focused on the petfood market.

Waterline is also developing, with availability end of 2008, the Riteplus-SP, a high speed machine for the application of spouts on stand-up pouches and three side seal pouches.

High speed pouch maker saves on time

Totani has released a high speed pouch making machine - the [D Model] that is said to offer a maximum speed of 240 cycles/min for three side sealed pouches.

The new model comes in three different lengths of the main unit: 3,060mm, 3,560mm and 4,300mm. All versions can mount stand-up and zipper facilities.

“In addition to speeding up, we have also nearly doubled the durability of the new machine,” says Mike Greely, senior vp and sales manager, Totani America.

The [D Model] has compact electric boxes resulting in a smaller footprint area, offering “better access from the drive side”, says the company. The new model comes with a larger servo motor for vertical motion offering higher press sealing.

“We have also renewed the Servo Thomson Die Cutter and have achieved higher production speed and easier job change for a wide range of value added shaped pouches,” Mike Greely says.

Conference highlights latest pouch making technology

Machine layout should be one of the first considerations when selecting a pouch making machine, said Nordmeccanica's Vincenzo Cerciello at The Packaging Group’s Retort Pouch 2007 conference held in Düsseldorf, Germany, last month.

He explained that high speed lamination required synergies between the machine, the webs and adhesive technology. “The adhesive must be dry bond, 100 per cent solid and solvent based, with the ability to resist temperatures created at one pass. An ideal layout would allow multi ply in one pass, providing best quality and higher output,” he said.

The Retort Pouch conference showcased more than 20 presentations providing an overview of the pouch making process.

In another presentation, Haim Tadmor, from Rohm & Haas, explained the role of adhesives in the production of retort pouches. He showed how insufficient curing time could produce splits in the adhesive and how the curing of polyurethane adhesives is dependent on the type of co-reactant and ambient conditions, from roll winding temperature, to storage temperature and relative humidity in the production area. He also showed how incorrect mixing of rations of co-reactants and adhesive batches, reaction speeds and incorrect surface structure of the CPP film could all contribute to a faulty product.

In a presentation entitled 'How Inks Create the First Impression', Matthias Henker, from Flint Group, explained how, as a brand ambassador, inks draw consumers, encouraging them to try new products. “Inks create recognition and security, enabling consumers to recognize their trusted brands,” he said.

He emphasized that testing was key to effective use of inks and that close monitoring of ink usage produced the best results.

“Ink adhesion to typical substrates must be fully tested and the binder system must be monitored for stability against heat and humidity. Consideration must also be given to low migration potential and the stability of pigments,” he said.

Global reports on pouch industry

Allied Development has released three reports discussing the global markets, opportunities, and technologies for ‘Retort Pouches’, ‘Stick Pouches’ and ‘Stand-up pouches’.

The report on the retort pouch industry includes market projections to 2011, and analysis of 10 different segmentations of the market. It examines technical issues including what's new with retort grade adhesives and inks, sterilization equipment, and retort pouch materials.

The 180 page report on the stick pouch industry, the first of its kind, reviews the market for the period 2006 to 2010. It analyzes the current growth in this industry and considers whether this growth will be maintained.

Reviewing the markets from 2005 to 2009, the report on stand-up looks at the factors that will drive the growth in that sector of the industry.