Crushing It

Balers and compactors have one main job: to reduce the volume of waste material in preparation for storage, disposal, transport, or recycling. While balers and compactors make big messes smaller through the simple art of crushing them, the bales themselves can be conformed to specific dimensions, finely tuned for a variety of end goals. For instance, in the case of bales of uniform materials, reusable commodities can be extracted and prepared for market as a potential revenue stream. In a landfill environment, baling can be used to compress materials to extend the facility's capacity in tonnage without demanding more space either vertically or horizontally.

While the core functions of balers don't change rapidly, the market can change quickly, said Mike Gernes, co-owner of Excel Balers and President of R & R Repair. Gernes said, "Commodity prices are rising rapidly," and as a result, "recycled materials have become increasingly profitable." He said a lot of solid waste management (SWM) facilities are looking to increase recycling capacity to meet this market and this presents an opportunity for manufacturers of balers and compactors.

Though he says the company recently completed a change of ownership and a name change, from Excel Manufacturing to become Excel Balers, it will continue to build the product lines such as the Excel 2R10, that Excel Manufacturing had been producing since the 1990s. Gernes says, however, the company is always seeking ways to enhance its products. "We're improving the baler we've made for years. The Excel 2R10 is a proven product; we're simply changing them to make them easier to maintain."

Some of these changes include “simplifying shim maintenance and reconfiguring components to make routine maintenance, such as filter changes, and oil changes easier. Gernes said R & R Repair has a long-term working relationship with Excel Balers, providing technical support and service for its products. Gernes said R & R Repair is always available to Excel Baler customers to provide “genuine OEM parts that fit, and experienced technicians who know the equipment.”

WORKING SMART

"There is a wide range of jobs that need to be done in a waste management facility," said Todd Wondrow, President of baling equipment supplier Maren Engineering. However, he said, “A lot of times in a facility, there are barely enough people to do all the jobs.” Recent developments in the labor market, due to the pandemic and the changing economy have made it even more difficult for waste management facilities to meet their staffing requirements, he said. According to Wondrow, operating a baler has traditionally been a labor-intensive task requiring its own unique mix of skill, experience, and knowledge.

In the past, Wondrow said, "Baler operators would be required to configure the machine to each type of material, they would need to set the bale dimensions to match the truck, dry van or container size." Once the baler was started, he said, "A well-trained, experienced operator assigned to each vertical baler would need to stand at the machine," to manage and monitor it while operating. In Maren Engineering's view, a key way to reduce labor costs and boost efficiency is to automate the work of the baling machine operator “wherever feasible and prudent.”

They introduced a new system to achieve this goal. Their newest innovations incorporate “programmable baling recipes” as part of the solution. Wondrow explains, "In a typical baling system that does not have internal recipes you need a materials expert and a trucking expert. You need to know the dimensions of the dry van or the container and the specifications of each baling job. It can take months to become proficient to set up the baler to perform the proper baling processes. Our system simplifies things."

“We study the things a person does on the baler and make the baler do that without operator input. And with Smart Bale Mobile Remote, a tablet on mobile equipment such as a skid steer, the operator doesn't have to stand next to the baler and can operate the baler from the skid steer feeding the material.”

A touchscreen human-machine interface (HMI) eliminates the need for an operator next to the baler and programmable baling recipes allow non-experts to run baling operations. "People may think a touch screen is going be complicated. Ours is used to simplifying things. It's like with your car radio now, you don't have to switch from antenna to satellite or Wi-Fi, you just put in the station you want and the system does the rest. With our touch screen, you just have a baling specialist preload the recipes and the system does the rest.”

Maren Engineering's lineup of high capacity horizontal balers with efficient piston pump power systems have the brawn to bale almost any type of material, Wondrow says. The company's philosophy for innovation provides their baling equipment with the brains to deliver efficiency for the customer.

SO MANY CHOICES

At the same time, customers are facing a challenging labor market, Jon Mann, National Sales Manager for BE Equipment says that municipalities have been inundated with a new waste stream. Due to “the Amazon effect,” he said, “There is a lot more curbside cardboard than ever.” While the revolution in shipping and fulfillment is changing the way Americans meet their desires, the trucks and drivers needed to haul away leftover packaging for disposal or recycling are getting harder to find. As a consequence, he said, "Customers want the heaviest bales possible so they can handle more tonnage with fewer truck hauls and fewer drivers."

Mann said customers are showing a growing interest in accountability to track tonnage, and the number of bales run. They are looking for systems with remote capabilities and systems to diagnose issues in the field. Along with the ongoing popularity of hydraulic style balers, Mann forecasts growing interest in auger style compactors which, though more expensive, have the advantage of being cleaner to operate with fewer moving parts to maintain.

As a distributor and service provider with 38 years in business, Mann said BE Equipment has seen a trend towards manufacturers meeting customer needs in these areas by including remote capability for tracking tonnage and monitoring operations as standard equipment on larger balers and offering these capabilities on smaller as an option.

Representing various manufacturers, Mann said BE Equipment is in an ideal position to guide municipalities in making the best choices. “We sit down with the customer one on one and survey their site. We determine where the material coming from on the site, what type of material it is, and what are their space constraints for storage, what are the floor space constraints for locating the equipment.”

After the acquisition, BE Equipment provides excellent ongoing support, Mann said. "We have four to five service technicians on the road every day, and three full-time sales consultants. We also have field managers that can narrow down processes for customers over the phone." For equipment with dial-in access, he said, BE Equipment's, "in-house specialists in Programmable Logic Controls (PLC) can make adjustments to customer equipment remotely."

Mann offers advice to customers planning to invest in new baling and compacting equipment. “Don't just search the internet; you could end up with the wrong equipment, or too much equipment that you don't even need. Contact a company like ours to pick out the right piece of equipment for your needs.”

STEADY IMPROVEMENT

In the recycling industry, “there's very little that's big and new,” says Michael Schwinn, Director of Sales and Marketing for American Baler, a manufacturer of automated high volume balers used in recycling, distribution center, and corrugated packaging operations.

“It's the little things that make the big improvements.” For example, he said, "We recently implemented manifold block upgrades as an advancement in our popular W721 two ram balers." Schwinn explains. "The manifold block shifts the direction and flow of the hydraulic oil as it either pushes or releases the plunger to compress the material in the baler." To produce the force required, "the manifold blocks have to be big," he said. At the same time, to exclude contaminants and avert blockages that can lead to overheating and increased maintenance they also need to be high precision-tooled.

To meet these challenging criteria, the newest modification to American Baler equipment introduces a cartridge package to replace the poppet valves traditionally used to manage hydraulic fluids in the manifold block. The W721 and W828 2-Ram balers now come with a power unit and manifold block designed with off-the-shelf Parker DIN Cartridge valves on the manifold and standard Directional Control Valves. All the pumps have a Pressure Control Kit.

Jim Wolfe, VP Engineering & Customer Service said, "The new design is easier to build with fewer errors and provides a much better flow of oil." From the customer perspective, Schwinn says, "The cartridge package allows the baler to run with fewer manifold blockage problems, that means less heat, and that improves the longevity of your cylinders, so it's kind of a key component.” Schwinn added, “It made our two rams much more efficient and reliable. It eliminates downtime and increases their longevity. It may cost a little more, but our equipment is competitively priced considering the efficiency gained from reduced maintenance."

“By consistently improving on the little things and the details, we're more confident it's going out the door without any flaws. We're constantly improving, we take pride in that.”

SHREDDING THE BARRIERS

Almost any material can be baled and compacted, however, some items require preparation in advance. "Whether it's paper or mattresses, certain bulky materials have lots of air in them," said Sebastian Ward, general sales manager for eFactor3, a systems integrator representing Metso shredders and serving the recycling and waste management industries.

"Mattresses are specifically designed to preserve those airspaces and resist compression. Shredding allows operators to get a higher compaction rate." Furthermore, he said, "Not only does shredding increase the compaction rate, but it also increases the decomposition rate," both of which promote the productivity of a landfill. Shredding he said, can also play a role in helping to "liberate commodities for recycling."

While Ward says there have not been a lot of dramatic changes in shredding technology recently, he says eFactor3's has an interesting new option for users. eFactor3 offers a unique short-term shredder rental program for the new Metso M & J 4000 Mobile shredder which can deliver dramatic savings and productivity gains for landfill operations.

“Landfills are large operations, so it makes sense to move the shredder to the material that doesn't compact well. One of the new things we're doing is renting shredding equipment on a daily, weekly or monthly terms. We have a diesel crawler mounting that allows these shredders to be moved around to problem sites at a landfill.”

He says mattresses and tires are two of the items that have long been problematic for waste management operations, with many landfills refusing to accept them. But being able to shred them in place, down to 11-inch pieces presents landfills with a viable alternative to rejecting these often dreaded components of the municipal waste stream. After all, accepting what nobody wants is one of the prime functions of a landfill, and being able to do so with rental rather than purchased equipment is, "an attractive option that saves money." Ward said.

TIED FOR THE WIN

Simplicity is a thread that runs through a lot of the current innovations in baling and compacting, and what would be more fitting than a simplified system to hold it all together.

Once a bale is smartly crushed down to precise dimensions, all that remains is to get it tied up in a knot and sent on its way. Accent Wire Tie's new Accent R400 simplifies that process for two ram balers in both new installations and as a retrofit to existing systems. Gabriella Doss, Marketing Manager for Accent Wire Tie, said, “The new system is compact and easy to install in a facility where space is an issue.” Operationally she says, the unit produces a high efficiency four twist knot using a non-reciprocating rotary knotting sequence that assures improved uptime. “The knotter rotates in a single direction which provides for an easier and smoother flow for the wire while strapping bales.”

With fewer moving parts than preceding wire-tie systems, Doss said maintenance on the Accent R400 is simplified. "In wire ties from 20 years ago, you had to take out 15 to 20 parts to get to the one part you needed to service." In contrast, the new design makes service easier by housing serviceable parts in a patented removable "parts cartridge."

Doss said Accent Wire Tie provides high-quality support for its products, with technicians to assist with installation, and technical staff available to walk through all of the customer's baling products during the initial start-up period. Accent Wire Tie promotes its brand with the phrase "simplify your life." Among innovators in baling and compacting, it's a theme that seems to resonate when it's time to really break things down.