In the interests of reducing manual handling and associated costs, pharmaceutical manufacturers have increasingly adopted large containers such as rigid IBCs for the delivery of mixed materials to tabletting lines. These enable obsolete methods such as the use of small containers and hand scoops to be eliminated.

Spiroflow were approached to offer a solution not only because of their in-depth knowledge of powder handling but also because of the comprehensive range of products they offer.

Dublin, Ireland based Gem Pack Foods Ltd are both a Contract Packer and provider of an extensive range of own brand ‘Gem’ and ‘Gem Gourmet’ products - several of which are simply repacked from bulk supplies but many of which are proprietary mixes.

The product in question is Premier Foods’ SMASH Instant Mashed Potato. SMASH ranks among the UK’s best known consumer brands confirmed by the fact that its ‘Martians’ advertisement has been voted the best TV ad of all time.

The management team at confectionery manufacturer Joseph Dobson embarked upon a programme of measures to improve and automate selected elements of their operation. The areas for improvement were chosen on the premise that they must not compromise the heart of their traditional boiled sweet making process.

Solutech Ltd of Winsford, Cheshire is a small company operating as a specialist food grade liquid blending contractor, currently despatching around 12,000 tonnes of blended liquids a year to the food and beverage industry.

Thomas Tunnock Ltd is renowned for their famous Camamel Wafers, Snowballs, Camamel Logs, and Tea Cakes

A major part of the success of these products is Tunnock's own brand of chocolate made to a secret recipe from a blend of cocoa liquor, two famous brands of proprietory chocolate, sugar and lethicin.

Carroll & Meynell Ltd, a leading manufacturer of electrical transformers, moved to new premises to accommodate considerable growth in their business. Further growth caused them to re-think their production methods. The handling of the fine silica sand used to ‘pot’ transformers was a major bottleneck in their production line.

Two ingredients, (potato flake and crumpet mix) needed to be conveyed from bulk bags through an existing wall and into two mixers in the room beyond. The mixers were situated 10m apart and needed to be fed at precise rates in order to ensure compliance with batch recipes.

The use of dry powdered ingredients can cause a number of problems for producers of ceramic goods.

A reliance on manual handling can cause dust to be released into the atmosphere and operator involvement can be excessive when trying to dose the correct ratios of materials for batch recipes.