DEVELOPMENTS IN BAGGING AND FILLING TECHNOLOGY.

The author looks at some of the latest systems available for bagging and filling powders, granules and liquids. Looking to the sacks themselves, paper and plastic are still sharing most of the market. Plastic does have a very useful role, particularly for fertilizers which are usually stored outside. But the tendency to 'sweat' coupled with sealing problems - sewing stops the bag from being waterproof while heat sealing can affect the product - still prevents its universal adoption. Air is used to convey material into the sack. Three operational styles are available: manual; semi-sutomatic; and automatic.