As a supplier of bulk bags to various businesses across South Africa, Custom Bulk Bags works closely with purchasing managers to provide expert advice on how to get the most out of their bulk bags. We are able to provide the necessary technical know-how to ensure that you are using the correct packaging product for your needs.
Bulk bags come in a variety of styles and are highly customisable. Choosing the right bag can be a daunting task, especially with large orders. Before making the final decision on which design to choose, we advise our customers to grant us access to your business so we can get to know your specific needs and requirements in more detail.
Having a good working relationship with your bulk bag supplier provides opportunities to improve safety and efficiency in your logistics chain. Understanding the needs of customers can help bulk bag suppliers give guidance on how to improve the efficiency of warehouses, factories or logistic sites. Let’s look at the benefits of giving your bulk bag supplier access to your business.
Working with your bulk bag supplier
Whether it is a site visit or simply a video call, bulk bag suppliers can get to know the layout of your premises. Looking at how bags are filled, emptied and stacked can give us insight into how your production and logistical operations take place.
There are safety concerns when it comes to filling, transporting and storing large volumes of produce in bulk bags. These flexible bulk containers can hold up to 2000 kilograms. Proper handling will ensure that staff are kept safe and that there is no contamination or spillage of your product during filling or discharging.
It is essential to place bulk bags carefully on forklifts using the lifting loops. Staff need to stay clear of the area and avoid walking under raised bags. When moving bulk bags from one area to another, forklift drivers should do so as smoothly as possible, as any jerky motion might cause the bag to topple and fall.
Your bulk bag supplier should be able to give advice on where to stack and store your containers. Since this type of packaging is flexible, bulk bags need to be stored with the proper support – for example, between two solid walls. Stacking bags in a pyramid shape can ensure that they can be securely stored for a long period of time. Placing the pyramid stack on pallets will give it a steady base and some additional protection.
Understanding your bulk bag requirements
Aside from how to maximise efficiency and safety on your premises, bulk bag suppliers can also provide insight on how to design your customised bulk bag. They come in a variety of shapes, such as U-shape, baffel, circular and four-panel. There are a number of customisable features, including the style of the top and bottom attachments of the bag. Bulk bags can be lined or coated to provide extra protection for your goods.
Depending on what goods your company deals with, there are different types of bulk bags available. Food items, such as sugar, rice and grains, need to be packaged in food-grade virgin polypropylene. This means that the bag has never been used before and that the food will not encounter any contaminants from the packaging. Feed-grade bulk bags, on the other hand, are available for the storage and transportation of animal feed and other related goods not for human consumption.
Construction materials, mined materials and waste products do not need to adhere to such strict regulations. Reusable bulk bags, or those made from recycled polypropylene, can be used for such goods. These bags come at a lower cost compared to both food-grade and feed-grade bulk bags.
At Custom Bulk Bags, we offer printing services. Your products can be customised with your logo and other text. Customising your bulk bags can ensure that they are kept in circulation within your business, making them distinguishable from those belonging to other companies. This is useful for companies that share warehousing facilities. Giving your bulk bag supplier access to your business can give them a clear picture of what your labelling requirements are and how to choose a design that is tailored to your needs.
Giving bulk bag suppliers access boosts efficiency
Let’s look at an example of how giving a bulk bag supplier access to your business can boost efficiency. After a visit to a warehouse where bulk bags are used for export goods, our team found a number of health and safety issues. Although the customer was using the correct bag style and size for their product, the bags were not being correctly filled, moved or stacked. Staff did not stay clear of filling areas and bags were stacked in unstable piles.
The company was storing unused bags for long periods of time outside in the sun. This led to a deterioration of the fabric of the bags because polypropylene degrades over time with UV exposure. Damaged bags were being put back into circulation and the company had no method of tracking which bags were in use and how many times they had been used.
As this case study shows, giving your bulk bag supplier access to your business helps prolong the shelf life of bags, as well as helping you to preserve the contents of your packaging. We were able to help the company to use their bulk bags more efficiently and safely. As a result, the company was able to speed up the logistics chain and improve the health and safety of its workflow. For more information about our bulk bags, please contact us today.
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Custom Bulk Bags is a leading South African manufacturer of woven polypropylene bags for various industries, such as mining, chemicals and food. We are able to produce over 3.5-million bulk bags per year, keeping our customers in-stock at all times. Our bags adhere to the highest levels of quality as a result of our stringent in-house testing and quality control programmes.
Custom Bulk Bags holds ISO 9001 certification and we currently have a number of UN-certified designs. We are a Level 3 B-BBEE manufacturer and supplier and fall under the ownership structure of Deneb Investments Limited. For more information on our products, contact sales@custombulkbags.co.za. Follow us on Facebook for our latest news and industry insights.
