ULMA celebrated its first Southern Cone seminar: from primary packaging to palletizing

The contents developed in the seminar, present new challenges for advanced and innovative solutions applied in production processes. Iosu Unamuno, who is the Area Manager of ULMA for America, opened the meeting explaining the evolution of packaging and customers which need a global supplier for a complete packaging process solution. In that sense, ULMA has developed its own product lines as well as alliances with key industry players to offer the market the best global solution.

Worlwide leading brands participated on the conferences: Marel as provider of food processing equipment provider and SEALED AIR as provider of packaging materials. ULMA took part with various various specialists explaining its developments in the field of integrated solutions.

"In this framework was evidence of the possibilities of ULMA Packaging to provide integrated solutions through its development capabilities, its extensive automation expertise and local support in the region. ULMA Packaging is part of the ULMA Group integrated into the MONDRAGON Group, one of the top 10 Spanish companies with a turnover of around 15.000 million euros."

ULMA Handling Systems, which could not participate, is seen as the process continuing provider, providing integrated logistics solutions with automated warehouses, through design, development, assembly. It complements the offer with a local support in the region for their activities.

DESSERTS AND DAIRY PACKAGING AND DOSING SOLUTIONS
José Alberto Cerdeira, Director General of IPS, a company belonging to ULMA Packaging, presented the recent developments in this sector of the market with an offer of high production lines (up to 50,000 packs/h). Thermoforming and tray sealing machines, dosing systems for liquids or solids, ultra-clean (CIP and SIP) and systems for end of lines.

The company specializes in the desserts sector, offers complete solutions, with facilities in different countries and has recognized clients such as Nestle, Yoplait, MULLER, Lactalis and Kraft among others.

HYGIENE, PERFORMANCE AND RELIABILITY IN THE PACKAGING OF PERISHABLE GOODS IN THERMOFORMING
Nerea Arbulu, Product Manager of ULMA Packaging for the Thermoforming line, presented the growing needs of the sector in terms of food security and packaging of fresh products in vacuum or modified atmosphere (MAP).

This situation led to ULMA Packaging to develop a range of thermoforming machines named TFS. These machines complement its product range and have been designed and manufactured to perform beyond the most stringent requirements on washing and sanitizing processes.

• Optimize the cleaning processes.
• Reduce time to sanitation.
• Allow to get the approval of facilities by the strictest audits.
• Reducing the risks of contamination in the packaging process.

The TFS range has models starting from entry level to high production lines, capable of integrating into complete lines. The highest level offers the option of automation in product loading and unload through robotic systems, inspection systems, vision. They also offer the option of integration with the most common equipment such as slicers and automatic weighing and labeling systems.

All the models are easy to access for inspection and maintenance.

HIGH PRODUCTION IN MAP AND SKIN PACKAGING. INTEGRATED AND DOSING SYSTEMS FOR READY MEALS IN TRAYS
Paolo Mondini, Commercial Director of MONDINI, distributed in the region by ULMA Packaging, developed in two papers the latest achievements of the company worldwide in fresh and ready meals.

MONDINI is world leading reference in high speed tray sealing lines for skin and modified atmosphere (MAP). It's also specialized in product dosing into trays with single or multiple cavities for ready meals. Foods which can even be heated and consumed in the same tray.

The company offers packaging solutions from mini dose of sauces up to trays with various kilograms with dimensions of one meter. But the activity is mostly focused on consumer portions at high speed.

It has multi-line packaging systems to get productions up to 280 trays per minute with sliced food and facilities in the most prestigious clients of fresh products (meat, chicken, cheese ...) and ready meals in all over the world.

In the second part of the exhibition on fresh foods, Luiz Henrique Nalini, Applications Engineer, showed some of the specific applications that ULMA Packaging has performed in various countries and also in the region. It was divided into three specific areas that are core business for the company: Meat, Poultry and Cheese.

Meat and poultry industries are the most demanding for ULMA Packaging, which has a full range or special applications for both fresh and processed product.

1. Automating the packaging process, minimizing the labour of the operator and, therefore, the cost of handling and contamination risk.
   
   
2. Optimization of packaging materials, using different materials and minimizing its consumption.
   
   

The presentation showed application videos describing the advantages of each one:

• Hamburger packaging automation.
• Cook In ham.
• Sliced products.
  

The second skin application allows to pack frozen meat in a continuous process, thus reducing material consumption and product handling, adapt automatically film's length to the length of the product.

[Second skin in continuous process for frozen meat]

There were shown new sucess applications in other regions as USA and Europe.

[Slice Pack]

[Mirabella]

[Masterbag packaging for stretch film wrapped trays in group, combining the traditional appearance with and increased shelf life in MAP packaging]

 
[FLOW-VAC® vacuum packaging in continuous line for different products with different shapes]

[Products packed in skin pack on thermforming and traysealing]

CHICKEN
The extensive experience of ULMA Packaging in the poultry industry in different countries and with its wide range of equipment such as Horizontal and Vertical Flow Pack, Stretch Film, Thermoforming and Shrink, allow to offer many solutions for fresh and frozen both for whole chicken as well as cuts, to meet the needs of customers seeking the lowest cost of packaging in their products or those who seek to differentiate themselves with a better presentation.

So they were very different solutions with and without modified atmosphere with, and without tray with printed film. Such as those shown below:

[IQF chicken]	[Chicken cuts in tray with SSF]	[Whole fresh and frozen chicken]
[Chicken in vacuum]	[Whole chicken without tray, economic pack]

CHEESE
As in the previous case, the availability of different packaging systems developed and its presence in over fifty countries, the offer includes many solutions for the packaging of whole cheese, slices, grated, providing complete lines and integrated with other complementary equipment.

[Cheese packaging in FLOW-VAC®]

[Slices, wedges and cheese cream packaging in thermoforming]

LINE AUTOMATION AND INTEGRATION IN PRIMARY AND SECONDARY PACKAGING PROCESSES
Wilson Jr Mansour, Director of the Automation activities for the whole region, closed the conference by presenting the activity of ULMA Packaging Automation, which defines, designs and implements solutions for packaging applications for Fresh Food.

ULMA Packaging Automation (UPA) based in Brazil supports the region and develops automation projects in the packaging sector, with solutions that coordinate the various activities in the area of packaging:

• Product planning and management prior to the primary packaging.
• Automatic loading and unloading out of the packaging machine.
• Handling and transportation of plastic or cardboard.
• Case packing.
• Identification, transport and distribution of boxes.
• Mechanical or articulated robot palletizing systems with different levels of automation.
  

[TFS with loadind and unloading robots]	[Robot for fresh product loading]
[Case packing of trays]	[Automatic palletizer]

All this through the integration of equipment and elements, with first level peripheral equipment such as, vision systems, inspection, weighing & labeling and cartoning. Assuming the integrated management of the line and ensuring the necessary support through its network of local service, offering:

• A unique contact and responsible for the installation.
• Project adapted to the specific needs of each client.
• Full integration of the automated line.
• Simple operations and centralized the whole line.
• Optimized performance in mechanical, electrical and electronic equipment.

[Examples of facilities]