Pallet suppliers, notably companies that offer recycled pallets and pallet management and recycling services, may also find themselves in a position of offering additional services to handle, collect, and recycle other materials for a customer, such as corrugated and stretch film.
What are the machinery options for recycling corrugated? The equipment of choice for consolidating corrugated material are balers or baler machines. They compress the used corrugated into bales — think of a bale of hay. The bales can be easily loaded on a forklift and handled, stored, and moved. Even if your company does not handle large distribution center or warehouse accounts, you may have seen a baling machine at the rear of a big-box retail store or in some other application.
There are a number of factors to consider in purchasing or leasing a baling machine, including your requirements and your budget. A key consideration should be: how much corrugated are you dealing with? What kind of volume of material do you expect to recycle? That certainly is going to drive some of the decision-making process in choosing a baler machine.
Baling machines can be divided into two categories: vertical balers and horizontal balers. Generally speaking, vertical balers are designed for lightweight waste compression and to handle smaller volumes of material, and horizontal machines are designed to compress large amounts of waste corrugated material in industrial applications.
Vertical balers are loaded at the top of the machine. The material is fed down into a chamber where one or more hydraulic arms or rams crush it and compact it. Horizontal balers are loaded from the side or end and the hydraulic arms move horizontally to compact the material. Horizontal machines also can handle greater loads of weight and produce larger, heavier bales of material. They may be loaded and unloaded automatically, making them more efficient than horizontal balers.
Both types of balers use hydraulic power to compact corrugated. They may feature systems to strap or bind the finished bale automatically in order to ensure the compressed material does not come loose or fall apart.
Balers are going to vary, among other things, according to production time, the size of the bale produced (footprint and dimensions), and the weight of the bale.
Cycle time is the average time to compress the corrugated in the chamber. This may only take 30 seconds, but that does not represent a finished bale. The process may have to be repeated multiple times to create one full bale. Other factors to consider include how much time it takes the operator to prepare and load the machine with corrugated. In addition, depending on the machine, the operator may be involved in the process of strapping or binding the bale and ejecting it onto a pallet. Therefore, the average time to produce one bale is going to depend on the machine cycle time, the availability of material, and the efficiency of the operator.
Some balers can compress and compact other materials in addition to corrugated, such as stretch film, plastic, and other materials. This might be a factor to keep in mind if your company needs to handle and recycle other types of material for a customer, too.
Baling machines can include a variety of electronic diagnostic and control features. These may link to the service staff of the manufacturer or distributor to facilitate trouble-shooting and remote support and service.
Additional features include touch screen controls that enable the operator to reconfigure the machine to handle other types of material.
Other factors to consider in a buying decision include power requirements and energy efficiency, footprint, noise, safety, maintenance, warranty, set-up and training, and future production capacity.
Of course, as with any equipment purchase, consider the reputation of the manufacturer or distributor. Ask for referrals to customers, and ask them about their experience with the company. Visit a customer that has a machine you are considering to purchase and observe it in operation.
A small, vertical baling machine for corrugated may cost as little as $5-10,000. High-end industrial balers may cost in the hundreds of thousands of dollars and even seven figures. Manufacturers may offer leasing programs.
Balers are durable machines and are widely available for second-hand purchase. Used balers, if properly refurbished, can work just as well as a new one. If you are interested in purchasing a used machine, have it suitably tested to make sure that it is in full working condition and the quality of the original workmanship and material is satisfactory.
If you consider buying or leasing a new machine, some manufacturers may offer maintenance contracts.
For more information about corrugated baling machines, visit the following websites: www.waste360.com/mag/waste_buying_best_baler
This website is operated by Informa, a leading research firm based in England: www.recycling.com/cardboard-baler/
This website is operated by a Dutch publishing business: www.iqsdirectory.com/cardboard-balers/
This website offers a directory of manufacturers and distributors of corrugated baling machines.
Following is a list of some companies that manufacture or distribute baling machines for corrugated and some brief information about the company and its products. The list is not meant to be exhaustive.
OBC Industrial
Strongsville, Ohio
OBC Industrial distributes new and used industrial balers and compactors and has more than 50 years of experience providing systems for material processing and recycling applications. It also provides turnkey installation and rigging services with new systems. OBC Industrial represents such manufacturers as American Baler, MaxPak, and others.
OBC Industrial offers horizontal and vertical machines for baling corrugated, and within each category there are many models ranging in size, capacity, and price. Vertical balers start around $10,000, and two-ram machines cost up to $650,000.
International Baler Corp.
Jacksonville, Florida
International Baler Corporation offers a large and diversified product line of baling equipment and has over 150 years of combined experience in engineering and manufacturing. The company’s line of balers includes entry level vertical machines to high-production horizontal machines with two rams and auto-ties that provide fully automatic operation and can handle a large volume of material. Machines can be customized.
The company offers five series of balers, most of which can handle different types of material, including corrugated. The IVB series are vertical balers for light to moderate volume, manual operation, and primarily for compacting corrugated. Standard models are available in 60-inch and 72-inch wide chambers.
Maren Engineering
South Holland, Illinois
Maren Engineering was formed in 1962 and has become a North American leader for designing and manufacturing a full line of balers and shredders. It also supplies conveyors, metering systems, cart trippers and material handling equipment.
Maren Engineering manufactures horizontal auto-tie balers, two ram balers and closed-door manual tie balers to streamline recycling of corrugated material. Maren’s ProPak two ram balers put forth high bale densities to maximize baling, storage, and shipping efficiency; they have the extra power needed to safely bale high volumes of large and bulky corrugated cardboard containers.
JWR Inc.
Johnson Creek, Wisconsin
JWR, founded as a welding shop in 1972, evolved into a company that provides innovative technology and solutions for waste and recycling. It specializes in installing, servicing, and rebuilding industrial compactors, balers, and waste equipment.
JWR distributes a wide range of baling machines for corrugated material, including vertical and horizontal machines, two ram balers, and it offers both new and used equipment. It represents Maren Engineering, Bramidan, and Sierra International.
Sierra International
Bakersfield, California
Founded in 1946, Sierra International has grown to become a leading provider of processing equipment for the scrap and recycling industries. It manufactures its own line of equipment at a plant in Jesup, Georgia, and also distributes equipment from additional manufacturers.
Sierra International offers single ram balers and two ram balers for paper, corrugated, and other materials, and it has several models in each category. It also offers material handling equipment and conveyors.
Bramidan
Bramming, Denmark
Bramidan has developed and produced balers and waste handling equipment for many customer groups around the world for more than 40 years and is a leading European supplier of balers and compactors. It offers mainly vertical balers for compressing corrugated and also has one horizontal model. A range of models can handle small, medium or large volumes of waste corrugated. Many models will compact other material in addition to corrugated.
Bramidan recommends that companies shopping for a baler focus on the total cost of ownership over 10 years.
A list of distributors is available on the Bramidan website.
Compactors Inc.
Hilton Head Island, South Carolina
Compactors Inc. is a leader in solid waste disposal and pre-recycling processing equipment. It offers an extensive line of equipment, including compactors and balers.
Compactors Inc. offers 20 vertical balers. Three horizontal balers are suited for warehouses, recycling centers and distribution centers.
The model HH and HX series balers are horizontal machines designed for warehouse applications and are noteworthy for their ease of installation, operation, and maintenance. They are built with extra heavy-duty construction and are designed for warehouses and recyclers that deal with large quantities of corrugated and paper products. These machines are designed for long hours of operation and can operate either manually or automatically with photocell control. Optional custom engineered feed conveyors and cart dumper systems efficiently control baler feed rates for optimum performance in a complete baling system.
