Flexicon

““Switching from 50 to 2,000-pound bags has resulted in a lot less handling of raw materials. It also allows us to buy in bulk, reducing our materials costs.”

““Another reason we decided on Flexicon was their test facility where they ran tests with our material to confirm that the unit could do the job before we bought it. This gave us the confidence to go ahead with them.””

““Picking up 50-pound bags by hand was labor intensive and not economical. The Flexicon system enables us to automate our process without increasing our cost. The equipment has proved to be the least costly of all the alternatives that could perform the functions we are looking for.””

““The Flexicon system eliminates manual lifting and provides for more precise weighing of raw ingredients than was previously possible,””

“The Flexicon system provides a steady and reliable conveying process that leads to consistently high product quality, while allowing better planning and adherence to delivery times,” he says. “The system works very well and is a benefit especially for the employees. The physical labour has been greatly reduced, and the process flow is very reliable and stable.”

“The ingredient discharge, blending and repackaging process is now totally enclosed and dust-free,” says Riggs. “In fact, after their last visit, an inspection team from the audit firm Randolph Associates said that our facility was the cleanest they had ever seen.”

“We have been using these flexible screw conveyors on all of our form/fill/seal machinery and are very pleased with the results. Packaging equipment is a tool for growth. So it makes sense to choose the best there is.”

““The level of comfort, the amount of physical labor, and the cleanliness in the new facility is so much better,” Hubers says. “It’s not even comparable to what we had.””

““Now we have an automated process, with no manual handling,” says Worrell. “Before, we had to have someone there all the time, so we are probably saving $20,000/yr in labor costs.””

““Previously, it would take two or three workers to unload the 50 kilo bags and load them onto the skids,” he says. “Now, it takes one operator with a fork truck.””

““The flexible screw conveyors haven’t needed any maintenance,” he says, “and they require very little sanitation to speak of because they are completely enclosed.””

“This system allowed us to reduce our headcount by two”

“From a health and safety standpoint, we’re definitely better. We’re not dragging buckets around anymore.”

““We come in at 7 a.m., and by 8 a.m. we’re rolling. Previously the line wouldn’t get up until 10 a.m. after a weekend wash-down.””

““With a sketch, we told Flexicon what we wanted. They came back with drawings and a plan.””

““We can change the layout over a weekend,””

“I’m responsible for the smooth running of the plant, including maintenance operations, and I work in production as well,” says Helms. “It means a lot to have a conveyor that not only does the job well but also keeps running for many years with very little attention.”

“After operating for more than two decades, the conveyor continues to do the job well and has needed little maintenance,”

““It’s much easier to sweep a small amount of granular material than to clean up liquid spills, which had to be washed down into a sump and treated with the wastewater,” King points out, “and we drop any granules we collect into the blender, so no material is wasted.””

““Except for some granules that occasionally need to be swept and put into the hopper,” remarks King, “It’s now a completely clean operation.””

““This higher level of flexibility has helped us to increase output and reduce costs, while maintaining product quality””

““We didn’t look at other equipment. We have good service…they are quickly here to support us, we are good partners at this moment and they understand our needs and issues best.””

““We tried one bulk bag filling station, and that reduced our dust big time,” Stassen explains. “So we chose to go forward with Flexicon for all 11 stations, followed over the years by nine bulk bag dischargers and numerous flexible screw conveyors. They reduced dust tremendously in the plant.””

““We plan to tie in the silos to piggyback on the pneumatic conveying system,” Reiber says. “The goal is to cook, ferment, and distill around the clock, and this system has brought us much closer to doing that.””

““Our malt supplier’s bulk bags are about 14 inches longer than the normal ones,” Reiber notes. “But it only takes maybe five minutes to adjust all four posts.””