As well as safety and economic aspects, sustainability is a factor that is becoming increasingly important in industrial packaging. Schütz offers its customers a complete solution based on the most advanced technology, combining innovative products with comprehensive service to ensure the highest quality, superior performance and global supply security. Schütz will be presenting this holistic concept at Fachpack under the banner “Containing everything that matters”.
Environmentally-friendly industrial packaging plays a key role when it comes to making supply chains more sustainable and helping manufacturing companies reduce their carbon footprint. As resources become scarce and more expensive, the focus is shifting to recycling and reconditioning. The packaging in the Green Layer range is based on this principle. In this product line, Schütz uses 30% high-quality, natural-coloured recycled material as the middle layer of the packaging. The recycled material is recovered as part of the company’s own worldwide collection programme for emptied packaging. At Fachpack, Schütz will be presenting its entire Green Layer product portfolio, including IBCs, plastic drums and jerrycans.
Pallet solutions optimised for automated conveyor technology
Schütz's new, eco-friendly plastic frame pallet, which is used in IBCs, is also made from Schütz’s own high-quality recycled plastic. Thanks to its geometry, this new packaging component is optimised for the internal transportation of containers on conveyor systems and is specially designed for the safe and smooth transport of IBCs in automated warehouses. The plastic frame pallet is extremely robust and stable and therefore offers the IBCs optimum protection in challenging storage and production environments.
The second pallet innovation that Schütz is presenting at Fachpack also impresses in these environments: the 3-skid steel pallet with embossed sheet metal skids. Compared to standard steel skid pallets, it has a new additional middle skid, which greatly enlarges the contact area. This IBC pallet is highly robust, demonstrates minimal sagging even when fully loaded and greatly improved handling properties on conveyor systems.
Laser-welded steel drums for exceptionally challenging products
In the steel drum segment, the packaging specialist will be presenting the innovative Schütz Laser Drum, which is made of sheet steel that is hot-dip galvanised on both sides. The raw material is dipped into a molten zinc bath before the coil is wound and galvanised to obtain a high-quality, evenly distributed zinc coating on all sides. The drum body is manufactured in a special laser welding process by butt-welding the sheet metal together. After lid and base assembly, the Schütz Laser Drum is comprehensively protected against corrosion inside and outside. The new type of drum is a high-performance alternative, especially for demanding and sensitive filling products, for which conventionally galvanised or internally coated drums have been used in the past.
Combi steel drums with plastic liners
The new Schütz Combi steel drum version offers even more safety and cleanliness. Here, either the new galvanised Laser Drum or a coated standard steel drum is combined with an inner liner made of HDPE plastic. To seal the space between the liner and the outer drum, an additional circular seal is inserted in the bung area to provide double leakage protection. This packaging solution is especially suitable for chemicals that are otherwise incompatible with untreated steel or the standard inner coatings of steel drums, including particularly challenging products from packaging group I that have highly permeable, aggressive and corrosive properties. Schütz combines the corrosion resistance and cleanliness of a plastic drum with the stability and permeation protection of a steel drum.
Schütz will also be presenting a new solution to efficiently secure tight-head drums during transportation: the Schütz Drumfix system quickly and easily forms four drums and a pallet into a secure and eco-friendly load unit.
Protecting flammable hazardous goods: the Ecobulk SX-D variant
Schütz designed the Ecobulk SX-D as a double-walled system specifically for the transport and storage of flammable hazardous liquids. This new container type offers maximum protection thanks to a closed, fire-resistant outer hull made of steel. It has FM Global and Underwriters Laboratories (UL) approval. At Fachpack, Schütz will be presenting a new variant with integrated access to an outlet fitting, thus enabling discharge from below. Full leakage and fire protection are provided when the protective lid is closed.
A licence to stir: the Schütz Impeller
For absolutely safe and efficient agitation and homogenisation of viscous fillers in the IBC, the packaging specialist has developed a revolutionary, self-contained concept: the Schütz Impeller, which will also be on display at the trade fair. This single-use agitator is inserted in the container at the factory. The bucket agitator has movable wings that open up automatically as the speed increases, allowing the Impeller to homogenise filling products gently and without foaming: all sediments are completely dissolved, thus minimising filling product loss. It is made of HDPE, the same chemical-resistant material as the IBC inner bottles and is firmly integrated into the screw cap of the filling opening. With the appropriate process and container configuration, the Impeller does not need to be removed during the filling process, meaning that the ECOBULK remains permanently closed throughout the entire supply chain until the filling product is removed – even during stirring processes. This completely eliminates quality risks and the resulting costs that inevitably occur when using standard stainless steel agitators due to contamination caused by insertion, removal and reuse. This makes the Impeller an ideal solution for stirring paints and varnishes, sealants and adhesives as well as chemicals with a higher viscosity.
MX 560: optimum storage, handling and transport performance
At Fachpack, Schütz is presenting the Ecobulk MX 560, a packaging solution that combines a low tare weight compared to stainless steel containers or drums with a lower container height. With its reduced capacity of 560 litres on an optimised footprint, the MX 560 provides lower capital commitment and shorter downtimes for products with a lower turnover. This is a particular advantage in industries in which large containers are not needed because the product is highly concentrated, e.g. agriculture and agrochemicals (highly concentrated, high-value crop protection agents or seed dressings). The base assembly of the MX 560 corresponds to that of the Schütz MX models with capacities of 820, 1,000 and 1,250 litres, meaning that the container is compatible with all other models in the MX line. With the pallet size, storage and transport space in standardised large-capacity containers can be optimally utilised, even with mixed loads. This is a major advantage when shipping by sea, for example.
Further information is available from 24 – 26 September at the Fachpack trade show in Nuremberg at the SCHÜTZ Stand 6-328 in Hall 6.
