New woven sack production system enables material savings

Stronger sack bottom, material savings, low maintenance are some of the benefits of a new method where woven polypropylene sacks are welded with a sealing band instead of sewn at the bottom. This method brings significant advantages for both producers and users, while at the same time helping protect the environment.  

With the IC*STAR sack concept, developed by Starlinger and STATEC BINDER, broken needles, stitch holes and traces of oil on the sack fabric are now obsolete. Closure of sacks by welding is the solution of the future for standard woven sacks, according to Hermann Adrigan, Sales Director of Starlinger & Co. GmbH. Compared to sewing, the IC*STAR process offers considerable material savings in sack production, consequently requiring less raw material – polypropylene, in this case.

Sack producers profit from lower costs, and the reduced carbon footprint is good for the environment. Material is saved by the elimination of the seam allowance required for a sewn closure, as well as by the use of lighter fabric made possible by the greater sack bottom strength. Moreover, this type of closure makes IC*STAR sacks completely tight – an important advantage especially for packaging fine powdered goods which tend to sift through stitch holes and form dust, presenting a health hazard in some cases.

The oil-free production process makes IC*STAR sacks ideal for packaging foodstuff Welded sacks are produced on the Starlinger sack conversion line multiKON KX. This conversion line is equipped with the sealTEC bottom closure module, jointly developed by Starlinger and STATEC BINDER. Instead of a sewing unit, the IC*STAR concept features a welding device which, in a continuous process, welds a coated sealing band onto the sack bottom by means of hot air – no glue is required.

The mouth of the sack remains open and can be closed, after filling on the filling line, either by welding with another sealing band or by sewing. The sealTEC module requires less maintenance than a sewing machine and needs considerably fewer replacements of spares and wearing parts. Both coated and uncoated IC*STAR sacks can be produced by this new method in an efficient and material-saving process.

A specialist in packaging and palletizing machines, STATEC BINDER GmbH is a globally operating manufacturer of flexible solutions for the bagging and palletizing of bulk goods. The product portfolio ranges from bagging systems for polyethylene, poplypropylene and paper sacks to high-level palletizing systems and robot palletizers.