Fluid-Bag bulk grease containers - efficient handling and no contamination of lubricants
Fluid-Bag is a flexible IBC for grease with the capacity of 1000 or 900 liter (265 / 240 gallons). The bulk liquid totes are designed for industrial greases, lubricants, oils, coolants, and other liquid and semi-solid products.
The Fluid-Bag container for grease stays sealed during filling, handling and discharge.
It can be connected and emptied without exposing the product to air and the elements, thus there is no risk of particles or moisture ending up in the grease during handling and discharge.
Fluid-Bag is used by major players in the industry
The Fluid-Bag concept is used by companies all over the world, including many of the members of the Independent Lubricant Manufacturers Association (ILMA), the National Lubricating Grease Institute (NLGI) and the European Lubricating Grease Institute (ELGI).
As ExxonMobil states in a letter of recommendation:
"This flexible, yet durable IBC (intermediate bulk container) gives our customers the following key advantages:
- Clean grease; since the closed system prevents contact with air (and contaminates) product quality is protected.
- Cost savings; less product loss due to contamination; less waste and residual product; less labor associated with moving residual grease to a new drum; return freight costs are eliminated for returnable totes; no drum disposal costs
- Ease of use; eliminates drum handling and related safety issues
Any company engaged in the production, packaging and distribution of viscous fluids will want to take a closer look at how the Fluid-Bag system will benefit you and your customers."
For more industry references, click here: Scroll down to references
Do you want to know more?
Why the lubricant industry love Fluid-Bag
A lot of companies are still using steel barrels, drums, totes, or even rigid IBCs for handling bulk volume of liquids such as grease or lubricants.
Manufacturers and end-users switches from drums to Fluid-Bag
Steel drums, though durable, are prone to denting with rough handling and offer limited capacity. Compared to modern alternatives, you need up to five drums to match the capacity of a single 1,000-liter (265 US gal) container, such as the Fluid-Bag FLEXI or Fluid-Bag MULTI.
Emptying drums fully is difficult, especially with viscous liquids, leading to unnecessary amount of product waste. And even though reconditioning and recycling are possible, these processes demand substantial transportation, water, and energy, increasing both costs and environmental impact.
Some of the benefits with Fluid-Bag
Traditional bulk packaging and totes for lubes and greases have lots of limitations, compared to the Fluid-Bag concept with strong, flexible IBCs.
Let’s look at some of the most common advantages with the Fluid-Bag system.
- 1. Less spillage
- 2. Low carbon footprint
- 3. Eliminate contamination
- 4. No need of washing or cleaning
- 5. Get more space (storage/warehouse)
- 6. Reduce shipping costs
1. Less spillage – minimize your waste
Due to the rigid construction, it is hard to empty traditional containers effectively. There is lots of valuable product being wasted.
Does the bulk grease user end up throwing away more than 4-5 percent of the grease they buy? The truth is mostly "yes", there is a good risk they do…
By choosing Fluid-Bag containers, grease users can reduce their product wastage of bulk greases and oils drastically, dropping the grease wastage down to below 1%.
With the suitable discharge set-up, 99% product recovery should be considered the norm.
In short, our flexible grease containers can be squeezed and emptied much more efficiently than the traditional rigid once, and at the same time be as stable and protecting (or in fact even better).
When discussing the hot topic of calculating the carbon footprint for bulk grease users, this increased usage rate enables a considerable CO2 saving.
2. Low carbon footprint – improve your sustainability targets
The manufacturing process of rigid bulk liquid containers and grease totes have a large environmental impact, and the transport of heavy packaging contributes to huge emissions of carbon dioxide equivalents.
Luckily, this is a problem that you get rid of by choosing Fluid-Bag’s flexible containers.
Fluid-Bag’s containers have low carbon footprint, and we are happy to share the third-party study that has been made. Just contact us here and our team will help with all you want to know.
With our containers you will also save emissions from your transportations, as well as lower the amount of residue (less spillage).
3. Eliminate the risk of contamination – keep the product quality
Do you position your grease and/or lubricants as “high-quality”, and will ensure it is?
Fluid-Bag is a closed container system. And since the bag is flexible, there is no need to let air into the container, so you avoid the risk of particle, bacterial or moisture contamination.
The protective barriers of the Fluid-Bag inner bag ensure that your grease or lubricant’s characteristics and quality remain unaltered from filling to discharge.
Fewer changeovers are also needed with a 1000-liter (265 gal.) grease container such as Fluid-Bag’s, compared to 200 l (≈50 gal.) drums, further diminishing contamination risks.
Get inspired by Petro-Canada Lubricants and their many years of using Fluid-Bag flexible bulk containers, through this video: Ensure the highest product quality (YouTube)
Clean industrial lubricants ensure a well-functioning fleet and less downtime and lower malfunction costs.
4. No need of washing or cleaning – save time and money
Do you spend a lot of time (and money) washing or reconditioning your containers?
With Fluid-Bag, costly and time-consuming cleaning and maintenance of rigid steel or plastic grease containers can be a thing of the past.
Especially the Fluid-Bag FLEXI is an excellent option if this is your major problem since the FLEXI is disposable and requires minimal handling. No more empty grease totes on the road. A greener choice also in this respect.
Bulk grease users can avoid all cleaning costs with Fluid-Bag's single-use inner container and abolish return transport costs.
5. Get more space – improve your storage/warehouse
The supplier, meaning the company who fill the containers and sell the grease or oil inside, receive neatly packed Fluid-Bags in boxes and piles.
In only 2.5 square meters, you can store 20 000 liters worth of Fluid-Bag containers.
Think about how many rigid containers (or steel drums) you need for 20 000 liters, and how much space they occupy, before or after use…
Also, the end-user, meaning the company who want to use the product inside of the containers, does not need to take up space keeping empty, dirty containers around – if you use Fluid-Bag.
There are of course more advantages than those, such as that a grease container of 1000 liters is much faster and more efficient in terms of warehouse truck movements than a steel drum or grease barrel of only 200 liters. Sometimes size matters.
6. Reduce shipping costs – more efficient logistics
Costly, time consuming cleaning and maintenance of rigid steel or plastic grease bulk containers can be a thing of the past.
Don’t spend your resources on expensive and inefficient return freights.
Instead, reduce costs and pollution caused by mass-transportations of empty containers. Fluid-Bag is a hassle-free solution designed to make your processes easier and more efficient.
The Fluid-Bag FLEXI is completely disposable, while the Fluid-Bag MULTI includes a disposable inner container and reuses the outer pallet and transport bag.
Together with you, we create the perfect combination for filling, transporting, handling, and discharging your products.
What kind of industrial lubricants are suitable for use in Fluid-Bag grease containers?
- Greases (currently used with NLGI class 00-III products)
- Oils (hydraulic oils, engine oils, gear oils, metalworking fluids, white oils etc.)
- Coolants
- Other liquid and semi-solid products
Which Fluid-Bag model should you use for your industrial lubricant?
The choice of the size of the outlet pipe depends on the viscosity of the lubricant product you fill in the Fluid-Bag.
As a general rule Fluid-Bags with a 2” outlet pipe should be used for NLGI class ≤ 0 greases and for all oils.
Fluid-Bags with 3” outlet pipes are used for NLGI class > 0 greases.
As a rule of thumb, it can be said that all industrial lubricants can be transported in Fluid-Bags if they are not transport classified as dangerous goods.
Contact our team and we will help you find the right solution.
References
Have you considered the contamination risks in the lubrication supply? Is lubrication cleanliness on your priority list?
If you answered yes, then read more in our reference cases about how some of our customers like ExxonMobil and Engen Petroleum (Petronas Group) have experienced improvements from their grease packaging by using Fluid-Bag bulk grease containers.
"Any company engaged in the production, packaging and distribution of viscous fluids will want to take a closer look at how the Fluid-Bag system will benefit you and your customers."
- Brad Jeffries, Global Industrial Marketing Advisor
Engen Petroleum has actively introduced Fluid-Bag Flexi containers for lubricants, greases and transformer oils that are shipped to mining sites in South Africa, Moçambique, Angola, DRC and Ghana.
“We are excited about this system because it improves the distribution process and operational efficiencies while streamlining the logistics of bulk grease delivery and reducing shipping cost. But it wouldn’t be possible without the ingenious Fluid-Bag”
- Bruce Wise, Portec Rail, Vice President – General Manager.
