The firm, which makes ultrasonic bonding and cutting machinery is about to receive CE certification, a mandatory conformity marking for products sold within the European Economic Area (EEA) and has won a contract to design a custom-built machine for a large US food manufacturer.
Speaking to FoodProductionDaily at Pack Expo in Las Vegas, Gordon Hull, managing director, Rinco Ultrasonics, said liquid pouch packaging for the F&B sector is really catching on and it is innegotiations with a soup manufacturer to produce sealants for its machinery.
Long-term expansion plans
“If things take off with the OEM we’re looking at relocating to a larger place and expanding if the packaging market does what we expect it to do,” said Hull.
“We see a huge increase in the flexible packaging market for liquid foods in the next two to three years. It’s going to take off because it takes up less space for shipping, it saves money in the cost of materials and from a marketing perspective, it has real advantages in shelf appeal.
“Pouches are more modern and better looking compared to the same old metal can people have had for years. They are eye-catching and manufacturers can print any design they want onto the film.”
FPA 4500-T
The company showcased it latest line of FPA (Flexible Packaging Actuator) series ultrasonic pouch sealing systems at the tradeshow with the FPA 4500-T, which has an IP67 rating and meets food contact regulations.
“We got into the flexible packaging market a few years ago after seeing what our competitors (Herrmann Ultrasonics, Branson Ultrasonic and Dukane) were doing and realised we had a niche set of geometry tooling to differentiate ourselves in the market, which we were awarded a patent for this year,” said Hull.
“We have three FPA machines in total. The 4500T is a thinner version of the other two and can seal pouches up to 155 mm wide. Customers don’t just want to buy a single component any more, they want a turnkey system that bolts right into the heat field station.”
Leak free sealants
Hull added the main challenges in the industry are striving for a leak free sealant.
“Anything that contaminates the seal gives us a lot of problems,” he said.
“We work with some big name manufacturers such as Kraft and PepsiCo for cheese, beef stew, liquid sports drinks and alcoholic beverages. Cocktail drink pouches are very popular in the US now.
“I’ve worked in the industry for nearly 30 years now and in that time it has been interesting to see the market evolve. Equipment has changed a lot and we are happy to have a few patents under our belt in the coming months.”
Rinco Ultrasonic is at Pack Expo, Las Vegas, booth #55669.