Use-Case – FS150 Continuous Band Sealer

The Challenge

A mid-sized dry food manufacturer near Maribor, Slovenia packs nuts and dried fruit into LDPE and PP bags weighing up to 3 kg. As orders increased, their two manual bar sealers became a production bottleneck at approximately 1,200 bags per day.

Operators spent most of their shifts manually positioning bags and waiting for the seals to cool. Fluctuating temperature and pressure resulted in about 5% of bags needing rework due to weak or uneven seals, along with occasional open bags found during final inspections. Management aimed to triple their potential output without increasing headcount, while also ensuring consistent seal quality for retail customers.

Manual Process

The previous process used two handheld impulse/bar sealers and a simple conveyor. Bags were filled, manually placed in the sealer, clamped, released, then checked and packed into cartons. Each seal required hands-on operator time plus dwell and cooling time.

Before Automation:

• Daily output: 1,200 bags per day
• Cycle time per bag: 22.5 seconds per bag (10 s positioning + 10 s sealing/cooling + 2.5 s handling)
• Total daily time: 1,200 × 22.5 s = 27,000 s ≈ 450 minutes (7.5 hours per day)
• Labor cost: 7.5 h × €25/h = €188 per day
• Rework/issues: 5% of bags (about 60 per day) required resealing and extra inspection

Automated Solution

The company implemented an FS150 Continuous Band Sealer in a vertical setup for 1–3 kg bags. The machine was placed after the filling station, with one operator only needing to present filled bags to the infeed and perform light visual checks.

After Installing FS150 Continuous Band Sealer:

• The machine runs at 60% of its maximum output for consistent performance
• New cycle time: 7.5 seconds per bag (steady infeed and automatic continuous sealing)
• Total daily time: 1,200 × 7.5 s = 9,000 s ≈ 150 minutes (2.5 hours per day)
• Labor cost: 2.5 h × €25/h = €63 per day
• Quality improvement: rework dropped from 5% to 1% (about 60 → 12 bags per day)

At 60% of its rated 13 m/min speed, the FS150 easily manages the current 1,200 bags per day in a small portion of a shift, with enough capacity to scale up to around 3,600 bags per day without needing more staff.

ROI Calculation

Investment:
Machine price: €599
Daily savings: Labor: €188 − €63 = €125 per day
Rework reduction (time/labor): 48 fewer bags per day × 0.5 min per bag ≈ 24 min per day ≈ 0.4 h per day
Rework labor saved: 0.4 h × €25/h ≈ €10 per day
Total daily savings: €125 + €10 = €135 per day
Monthly savings (22 working days): €135 × 22 = €2,970 per month
Payback period: €599 ÷ €135 per day ≈ 4.4 days (less than 1 week)

Even factoring in extra setup, training, and occasional maintenance, the real payback period stays under 1 month. In regular use, the FS150 continues to save about €135 per day in labor and rework while supporting higher output.

Conclusion

By switching from manual bar sealers to the FS150 Continuous Band Sealer, the food manufacturer reduced sealing labor by roughly 5 hours each day, cut rework by 80%, and gained the ability to triple bag output without hiring more staff. The low investment and very fast payback made the decision straightforward.

“The FS150 reduced our sealing time from 7.5 hours to 2.5 hours per day and lowered rework from 5% to about 1%. We recovered the €599 investment in less than a week and now have the capacity for over 3,000 bags a day without adding more operators.” — Marko K., Production Manager, NutriPack d.o.o., Maribor (Slovenia)