Big bag filling unit for potting soil and fertiliser

A mechanical design office chose ISERCO to design and manufacture a filling unit for a customer in Martinique.

The end customer produces, collects and sells composted materials (fertiliser, potting soil, fertiliser, etc.).

The filling unit supplied by ISERCO integrates a new process at the end customer. It is used at the end of the process to pack the materials into big bags.

All the equipment is installed near the sea, in a humid marine atmosphere. The filling unit must therefore be particularly well protected against corrosion. The steel structure is sandblasted and coated with a special protective paint designed to withstand salty and tropical environments.

The complete installation ordered by the customer consists of several components.

The Big Bag filling station consists of:

• A painted steel frame.

• A big bag pre-forming fan and a big bag air degassing filter sleeve.

• A double-walled filling head with a suction port and a port for pre-forming the big bag. Each nozzle is fitted with a butterfly valve to optimise the filling phase and the air (fines) extraction phase. The suction nozzle is equipped with a filter bag. This equipment is equipped with a push button control for starting.

• An inflatable seal that seals the Big Bag by squeezing it. When inflated, the seal fits snugly around the Big Bag spout.

• 4 automatic hooks on rails. This system allows the Big Bag and its sleeve to be positioned with the rear hooks automatically advancing. At the end of filling, the big bag is automatically unhooked.

• An extension table to keep the Big Bag stable and optimise filling.

• A vibrating table to compact the product during filling. It also helps to avoid slopes and stabilises the big bag on the pallet for transport. It also ensures that the product is deaerated and compacted by vibration.

• A dosing valve to feed the big bag.

• A weighing system to dose the product by weight through an electro-pneumatic valve.

• A pneumatic cabinet is located behind the filling station.

The entire Big Bag filling unit is connected to a control cabinet and controlled by a PLC system.

A Factory Acceptance Test (FAT) was carried out at ISERCO in the presence of the customer before delivery of the installation to the end customer in Martinique.