Alpesh Patel, Director, Knack Packaging, discusses the company’s commitment to sustainability, their use of reprocessed materials, and the role of technology and automation in enhancing production efficiency.

What are the varieties of bags manufactured at your organisations? What is your manufacturing capacity?
We, at Knack Packaging, manufacture PP, HDPE and BOPP laminated woven bags. Our bags are not only used in the cement industry, but also are used in the fertiliser, seeds and grains industry.
Our manufacturing capacity is to manufacture approximately 3 crores to 3.5 crores bags in a month. On an everyday basis we manufacture approximately 1.1 million (11 lakh) bags. Our major production is of BOPP bags and BOPP pinch bags. Our facility is located in Ahmedabad, Gujarat.

Tell us about bags specific to the cement industry.
PP Bags (unlaminated) are traditional bags with an extended valve to fill in the cement. These PP unlaminated bags have a valve attached to them, which closes automatically when the bag gets full. The advantage of these bags is that it is low in cost, however, the disadvantage is that there is dust that keeps coming out of them. We manufacture these for the cement industry.
There are laminated bags that are made from traditional woven material with a coating on top which prevents cement from coming out of the bags or leaking from the bags. This is the other kind of bag that we manufacture, which is used in the cement industry. We also manufacture block bottom bags and pinch bottom bags.
Block bottom laminated bags are the second category of bags that we manufacture specific to the cement industry. This bag also contains a valve mouth where the cement flows in, when full, it locks the bag and then the bag is transferred to the facility for storage. Another value adding bag for the cement plant has a similar structure but with an additional layer of printing, which can be used from a branding point of view.
The next category of the product is the pinch bottom bags. These bags have an open mouth in which filling is much easier. Once filled, the bag is then sealed. This bag’s shape is the same as BOPP printed bags.
These categories of bags are manufactured at our facility, which are specially designed for
cement packaging.

What are the steps taken by you to make bag manufacturing a sustainable process?
We are exporters of bags to over 90 countries across the globe. As a manufacturing unit and our customers both understand the value of reducing our carbon footprint and bringing sustainability to the system and therefore, we have taken steps to make our manufacturing process sustainable in many ways.
We use 30 per cent reprocessed materials in making our products and are constantly involved in research and development with competent companies. This research and development has led to us starting to use and reprocess our in-house industrial waste and utilising the same in making our end products. We are also running trails on our pre-consumed waste materials and are sure we will be able to recycle the same and make them sustainable.
Our company is aiming to be carbon neutral from an electricity point of view. We have been working on the same for the past three years. Even now, approximately 60 per cent of the energy used in our company is green energy and in the coming months, we shall be utilising 100 per cent green energy. This is one of our first steps to reduce our carbon footprint and we plan to keep moving ahead with this endeavour.

Tell us about the material used for bag manufacturing. Is your organisation experimenting with newer materials to better the quality or make it more environment friendly?
With growing awareness about sustainability and the need to improve the environment, the cement industry has become more accepting of re-processed materials. This would mean that they also use bags made out of re-processed materials.
Some of our bags are manufactured with repurposed materials and have been placed at some cement plants for trials. However, we believe that it is the need of the hour for the world to bring more and more sustainability to every manufacturing process and facility.

Tell us about the role of automation and technology in your manufacturing process.
We use machines to turn our materials into final bags using European make and Indian make machines, which has led to huge development and enhanced production at our facility. We have however kept the weaving of the materials and making of the thread a traditional practice with the labour working on it.
We are focused on our technological advancement to provide the best possible quality product to our customers.

Cement bags are exposed to harsh environments. How equipped is your product to prevent cement wastage?
The first use of cement bags is, of course, at the cement manufacturing units for filling in cement. But the bags made for cement in the cement industry are often reused and that too multiple times. Cement makers themselves collect their used bags and burn them off in the kiln, which is in a minor proportion acting as an alternative fuel, thus reducing the need for coal or other fossil fuels for kiln operations.

What are the key challenges in providing packaging material for cement?
The process of making bags is lengthy, from making the thread and weaving to making the bags and getting customised printing. Earlier, the most challenging process was making the bags itself. However, with the advancement of technology, stable machinery etc., our processes are set and this challenge has been overcome.