curwood liquiflexHaliburton International Foods Inc., a leading manufacturer of food products based in Ontario, California, is reporting significant gains in productivity and cost control using the new Curwood Liquiflex® AV-2.2-CB-HF Series Packaging Equipment. Featuring a highly efficient continuous box (CB) motion design, the new high-speed VFFS bulk foodservice pouch packaging machine is the latest model in Curwood’s market-leading Liquiflex® AV equipment series. Haliburton is the first U.S. food company to install and evaluate the new high-speed technology.

According to Haliburton, who accepted delivery of the machine this past May, the new Liquiflex® machine delivers on—and exceeds—expectations. The company, which packages a wide variety of food products for retail, foodservice and industrial customers, uses the new VFFS pouch machine and Liquiflex® Advance™ barrier films for bulk hot fill and cold fill soups, salsa and sauce applications in pouch sizes from 1 to 10 lbs.

In just five months, Haliburton Foods reports significant improvements:

• Acceleration of packaging throughput to over 80 packages per minute, which more than doubles head-to-head productivity from previous packaging rates

• Outstanding processing and weight control, which allowed Haliburton to reduce product giveaway by two-thirds

• Quick change-out between product sizes and types for improved versatility, flexibility and speed in responding to customer demands, with significantly reduced downtime

• Up to 30% source reduction through thinner, proprietary 13-layer Liquiflex® Advance™ barrier bulk liquid films

Haliburton President and CEO Ian Schenkel said, “The nature of our business requires us to be fast and flexible to meet changing customer needs in the most cost-effective way possible. The Liquiflex® AV-2.2-CB-HF machine is the first of its kind VFFS machine that could bring us to the 80+ packages per minute level. It also delivers added flexibility to respond to customer and market needs. It’s been a pleasure to partner with Curwood to innovate packaging and process solutions that create value for our customers while providing a true business advantage.”

Haliburton Foods purchased the new equipment to anticipate expanded production of a new facility, slated to be completed November 1. Supported from initial installation through commercial production by Curwood field and technical service, the Liquiflex® film/equipment platform quickly proved its mettle, prompting Haliburton to lease four more machines for delivery fourth quarter of 2012.

Curwood’s Liquiflex® AV Series VFFS equipment combines accelerated speed and performance with advanced engineering to simplify setup, operation, changeover and maintenance. Liquiflex® AV Series machines complement Curwood’s Liquiflex® Advance™ bulk liquid pouch film, a proprietary 13-layer structure with redundant nylon, PE and EVOH layers for unprecedented strength, abuse resistance and barrier.

Available exclusively through Curwood, Liquiflex® AV Series equipment features a space-efficient footprint and incorporates standard Allen-Bradley® controls for proven, reliable operation and ease of service. The machines are available in four servo-driven models, including the new high-speed CB “Continuous Box Motion” option, and can be easily customized for code dating, conveying, weighing systems or other enhancements. The equipment platform is field-proven in over 400 machine installations worldwide and incorporates advanced, simple-to-operate controls and features.

Both Liquiflex® Advance™ films and Liquiflex® equipment are backed by Curwood’s nationwide network of dedicated field service experts and U.S.-based supply for unrivaled customer support.