Bulk-Flow Group expands production plant in the heart of the bulk packaging industry in China
BULK-FLOW will invest $4.25M by 2020 in its global manufacturing facilities to match the increasing demand for bulk packaging products. The new plant is part of its strategy to consolidate its presence in America, Asia Pacific and Europe.
BULK-FLOW started operations in late 2015. It was one of the first occupants of a newly developed industrial area in a building with 8,000m of manufacturing space and 2,000m of administration offices, warehouse, canteen and lab.
The factory is located in Jintan in the Jiangsu province in the outskirts of Changzhou the heart of the bulk packaging industry in China. The privileged location provides access to numerous textile and film suppliers for a wide variety and quality of sourcing. The factory is also close to 3 ports: the inland port of Changzhou, and the seaports of Shanghai (the biggest port in the world) and Ningbo.
Continued investments in the Bulk-Flow Group manufacturing facility
BULK-FLOW will invest $4.25M by 2020 in its global manufacturing facilities. Some of the machines have been fully developed in-house, due to BULK-FLOW’s unique manufacturing techniques and the singularity of their tailor-made bulk solid products. The manufacturing facility focuses on cleanliness, high efficiency raw material conversion, very tight quality control standards, and on-time shipments for hard-to-flow bulk products. A SAP system is currently in the works and will be implemented soon.
“The factory will have an initial annual capacity of 80,000 bulk container liners and could eventually produce 140,000 units a year,” said Oswaldo Mino, president of Bulk-Flow.
BULK-FLOW has a full-time staff of over 70 employees in 1 shift, with the potential to double its workforce with slated night shift. BULK-FLOW has developed critical close ties with suppliers in the region, and has quickly become one of their main customers, generating significant activity within the suppliers of textiles, films and components.
Investments needed to follow demand
The investments in China are not stand-alone. BULK-FLOW Group also invested in R&D and announced a revolutionary bulk handling system – the Tilt-Less Liner® available in the market before the end of 2017.
“In the past decade, we have seen BULK-FLOW Group’s sales growth in the double digits, year-after-year. We are very excited about this development, as it is the result of BULK-FLOW employees and sales reps working to develop, manufacture and distribute BULK-FLOW products. The high demand for bulk container liners also puts a strain on our factory and headquarters around the world, so we make these investments to ensure that we can deliver all the products consumers desire both in the short and long term,” said Pablo Llopez, sales director and executive vice president of BUL-FLOW Group.
“We are regularly reviewing the need for further investments in order to deliver on our ambition of eventually bringing BULK-FLOW Group bulk handling solutions to every bulk producer in every country around the world,” said Mino.
He added, “it also means that we anticipate welcoming new employees to BULK-FLOW Group as we continue to expand our global presence. This is a clear signal that we are committed to ensuring that we can meet the future product demands of the bulk industry and its customers.”
Global investments to bring high quality bulk container liners to more bulk producers
BULK-FLOW has developed the widest portfolio in the industry of bulk container liners for all types of containerized bulk packaging: marine containers, over the road containers, rail containers, reefer containers, etc. Therefore, our factory is completely focused and dedicated to manufacture this wide array of bulk liners, unlike any other manufacturer in the world that alternates FIBCs with bulk liners as demand varies from one product to the other. BULK-FLOW Group is the first company to offer turnkey solutions, some of which have been designed in-house and include all the necessary equipment to load and discharge efficiently.
BULK-FLOW is committed to be the leader in bulk packaging innovation. BULK-FLOW’s products uniqueness requires the focus and attention of an in-house manufacturing source.
The very specific design requirements and high-quality standards of BULK-FLOW’s products cannot be easily and/or consistently outsourced, especially when supplying to Fortune 500 companies in the chemical, mining and agricultural industries. By taking control of our own production, we ensure that we truly deliver high performing bulk liners to customers seeking trouble-free, high-performing bulk packaging.
The market is full of obsolete designs that use old-school, underperforming materials, that render bulk liners as a commodity. However, BULK-FLOW is showing the industry that a high performing bulk liner is far from being a commodity and can have a great impact on the logistics operations of a bulk shipper.
BULK-FLOW: experts in container liners, super-sacks, bulk handling equipment and bulk packaging for cost savings and sustainability in transportation of goods.