Harpak-ULMA unveils latest washdown VFFS platform

Harpak-ULMA has introduced the ULMA VTC 840 WD Washdown Vertical Packaging System, a next-generation vertical form-fill-seal (VFFS) platform engineered to help food manufacturers reduce the hidden costs of hygienic packaging—the utility bills, downtime, and operational complexity that traditional sanitary baggers quietly drive up.

Built for demanding protein, poultry, cheese, frozen food, and other high-sanitation applications, the VTC 840 WD combines full 360° washdown capability with intelligent automation, ergonomic design, and measurable sustainability gains in a single platform. Where conventional sanitary baggers often force trade-offs between cleanability, uptime, usability, and efficiency, the VTC 840 WD was designed from a clean sheet to improve performance across all four.

Rather than optimizing sanitation alone, the VTC 840 WD was engineered as a unified hygienic packaging platform that simultaneously advances cleanability, sustainability, operator usability, and production efficiency. "Processors have been told for years that better sanitation means more downtime and higher utility bills. We rejected that trade-off," said Mike Marchand, Senior Product Manager at Harpak-ULMA Packaging. "The VTC 840 WD was a clean-sheet redesign so plants no longer have to choose between a machine they can clean aggressively and one that runs lean."

At the core of the platform is a full IP66-certified washdown architecture that withstands aggressive high-pressure sanitation from every angle. Redesigned mechanical and pneumatic systems reduce both electrical and compressed-air consumption, while a dramatically simplified film path lowers the number of reel rollers from 30 to just five.

Key innovations include:

• Full-machine 360° IP66 washdown capability
• Nearly 20% lower electrical consumption
• More than 30% lower compressed-air consumption
• Simplified film path reducing reel rollers from 30 to 5
• Smart recipe-driven automation with assisted machine setup
• Automatic adjustment of key machine parameters
• Real-time OEE and utility-consumption monitoring
• Ergonomic enhancements that simplify operation and accelerate changeovers

The VTC 840 WD also addresses one of today's biggest manufacturing challenges: workforce availability and consistency. Barcode-driven recipe automation, automatic machine adjustments, intelligent film tracking, and zone-specific alarm visualization reduce operator dependency while improving setup repeatability and production consistency.

Following its global debut at Interpack 2026, the VTC 840 WD is now available for order throughout North America. The system will make its North American trade show debut at PACK EXPO International 2026 in Chicago, where attendees can experience live demonstrations at the Harpak-ULMA booth.