8 Ways to Eliminate Dust in Packaging Systems

Dust and other types of particulate can potentially cause a problem for packaging machines. Products such as protein powders, flour, dry snacks, or ground coffee can generate dust in packaging environments.

You’re most likely to encounter dust when powdered or dry product passes through certain transfer points throughout the packaging system. Any time the product is in motion or starts and stops suddenly, the process may generate dust.

Here are eight innovative features in modern packaging machines that can help prevent or eliminate dust buildup.

1. Enclosed Jaw Drives

If your packaging machines operate in a dusty environment or work with a dusty product, it’s necessary for the components of the sealing jaws to remain protected from particulates.

Packaging machines designed for wet or dusty environments will typically have a completely enclosed jaw drive to keep particulate from building up on the parts.

2. Dust-Proof Enclosures

Enclosures that contain electrical or pneumatic components need to have sufficient protection against dust buildup to function properly. When buying packaging machines for a dusty environment, you should make sure the equipment has an Ingress Protection (IP) Rating that’s intended for your application. An IP Rating is made of two numbers that indicate how dust- and water-tight an enclosure is.

For dust protection, you should get packaging machinery with an IP Rating of 50 or higher. If you need dust-tight enclosures choose machinery with an IP Rating of 60 or higher.

3. Dust Removal Machines

Dust buildup isn’t the only thing you should worry about. Dust can also get into package seams, which can cause inadequate uniformity during the heat seal process that can result in lost product. To avoid this, you can set up dust removal equipment at multiple points throughout a facility to recirculate dust and expel it from the environment.

4. Static Elimination Bars

When plastic packaging film is unwound and fed through the packaging machinery, it can generate static electricity, which in turn causes dust and other particulates to stick to the inside of the film. This can cause product to appear in the package seals, which can compromise the integrity of the package. A static elimination bar can help further avoid these complications.

5. Dust Hoods

Automatic pouch filling machines can benefit from a dust hood placed over the product dispensing station. This can help to collect and remove particulates as the product drops from the filter into the bag.

6. Vacuum Pull Belts

Friction pull belts are standard for vertical form fill and seal machines. They are responsible for pulling the packaging film through the system using friction. However, if the environment is dusty, particulates can get between the film and the friction pull belts, resulting in poor performance and wearing them down over time.

On the other hand, vacuum pull belts use vacuum suction instead of friction, which effectively eliminates the concern over dust buildup. They may be more expensive than friction pull belts, but they’re likely to last much longer and result in less of a risk for production lines.

7. Continuous Motion Packaging

Packaging equipment can function in either intermittent or continuous motion. Continuous motion is more ideal in dusty environments because of the downward airflow that keeps the product-generated dust inside the packaging.

8. Regular Preventative Maintenance

In addition to dust controlling measures, regular preventative maintenance is another great way to further eliminate dust from packaging systems. This includes cleaning and inspecting components for residue or dust.

All of these can help you combat dust in work environments, keeping products and equipment protected.

Save Time and Money

Of course, profit margins are a priority for most businesses. Making money while maintaining a good output are two reasons why used combination scales and filling equipment are a good method to switch to. Purchasing packaging equipment used is also a great way to save money upfront—you still get a high-quality product, you just pay less for it. This way, you can load your product into the scale, punch in how much of it you want in each package, and let the filling equipment do the rest. Naturally, you’ll need employees to supervise this process, but in the long run, you may be able to reassign other work to employees who, before the machinery, had to spend their days slowly packaging goods.

Remain Efficient and Productive

Keeping your packaging process at its optimal efficiency means not only implementing the fasted methods of packaging, but keeping your employees knowledgeable and trained on the equipment you’re using. If you have fast-packing used filling equipment in place but your staff doesn’t know how to operate the machines and has to revert to old methods, the machinery is of no use. Maintain maximum efficiency by installing the correct machinery, like used combination scales paired with used filling equipment, and training your staff on it—once you do that, you can reallocate work for maximum efficiency. Expediting the packaging process also gives your business new potential to grow, since you’ll be able to keep up with higher demand and may be able to take on more clients.

Tag: Used Filling Equipment

8 Ways to Prevent Dust Buildup in Packaging Systems