Baking & Snack - April 2004 - 91

improved design for easier sanitation, improved interface with up- and
downstream equipment and modestly
increased speed. Look, too, for related
equipment such as slicers and product
orienters/loaders to follow the same
path to ensure smooth integration of
the various machines.
Ⅲ

FLEXIBILITY
IS KING
When it comes to maximizing efficiency and profits, flexible equipment
is king. Enter the DonutKing Cake Donut Depositor. Vary production rate
with standard Multi-Spaced heads and interchangeable cylinder plates.
Switch from plain, star, or mini donuts to French crullers in a flash.
* Cuts 4 to 24 pieces wide
* Standard Stainless Steel Plungers
and Cylinders
* Mobile Carrier with Lift
* Washdown Duty Design

®
C L
S
AS

LD
®

Profit from our Experience.

Y
U A
L I T

CLOSURE CHOICES. Closing equipment is mounted at the outfeed of
the bagger. The fastest units are rated
in excess of 100 per minute, more
than adequate to accommodate the
output from today's fastest baggers.
Closure options are divided mainly between twist ties and plastic clips.
Heat sealing is a third option that
is particularly popular for zipperequipped bags like those used for
some brands of tortillas and for pillow-packed bulk product. Heat sealing also can be used in conjunction
with twist-tie application to create a
tamper-evident (TE) package.
Twist ties often are color-coded
to make it easy for route sales personnel to identify and pull expired
product. Plastic clips also may be
color-coded and often are imprinted
with date codes. In the United States,
twist ties dominate on bread; while
clips are favored on buns and round
products such as muffins, pita bread
and tortillas.
Each option has advantages.
Twist ties tend to be less expensive,
can produce a tighter closure and
are positively viewed by consumers.
Plastic clips may be more compatible for lines equipped with metal
detectors and can be imprinted
with date information. However,
imprinting may not be necessary if
expiration dates are applied to the

bags to meet retailer requirements.
Improvements in baggers will continue to be incremental and follow
what's happening in packaging machinery in general: increased use of
electronics and touch-screen operator
interfaces, reduced number of manual
adjustments needed for changeover,

W OR

reported the supplier.
The other area of interest is bulk
bagging for food service customers.
Bulk baggers follow the same trend
as their smaller counterparts, replacing mechanical parts with electronics
to simplify maintenance and sanitation. One new bulk bagger replaces a
high-maintenance drive and sealing
system with a cross-seal design. This
above-belt side sealing process not
only reduces maintenance and produces a better seal but also enables
a 25% increase in speed from 30 to
40 pillow packs per minute. This unit
also features an air evacuation system
to enhance product freshness.

P.O. Box 16308 * Duluth, Minnesota 55816-0308 USA
(218) 624-5734 * FAX (218) 628-3853 * www.moline.com

For more information, see Page 113

April 2004 / BAKING & SNACK / 91

http://www.moline.com

Baking & Snack - April 2004

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