After almost 50 years in business, Maren Engineering knows a thing or two about baling equipment, but the company does not like to rest on the reputation it has earned throughout the years.
Maren got its start in South Holland, Ill., in 1962 when Walter F. Kurnik and David R. Brown decided to take what they each had learned by working for baling equipment suppliers and launch their own company.
The name, Maren, was derived from Brown and Kurnik's desire to combine their backgrounds in marketing and engineering. The duo set out to establish a company that would take a hands-on approach to the business.
Flash forward to 2010, when Todd Wondrow joined Maren as president. Wondrow says he found a "company that sold solely on the earned legacy of reliability, durability and quality of our equipment."
Not a bad place to be, to say the least, but Wondrow says he believed the timing was right to take things to the next level. He and the Maren team set out to remind people: "If you thought you knew Maren look again."
Wondrow says the company still provides balers and shredders that its customers have come to trust, but it also has incorporated computer technologies throughout the years that are designed to reduce the cost, time and risk of building new equipment or renovating old designs.
In an interview with Storage and Destruction Business (SDB) magazine, Wondrow offers his thoughts on what to consider when buying a baler for a document destruction operation.
SDB: Is there a particular style of baler that produces a shredded paper bale with good integrity, or does the style of baler have little effect on integrity? What is the critical factor?
Todd Wondrow (TW): Typically, for a shredding operation, either a manual-tie, horizontal baler or auto-tie, horizontal baler will be used. An operation's throughput, volume and budget will determine whether the manual tie or auto tie is right for the application.
A horizontal manual-tie baler will range from $35,000 to $55,000, and a horizontal auto-tie baler will range from $85,000 to $135,000.
SDB: Is fall-off inevitable? How can it be lessened?
TW: There will always be fall off in a shredding operation. Cross-cut or grinder operations will have more fall-off than a strip-shred operation. Higher compression balers typically have less bale fall-off, as the bale is compacted more tightly by the higher compression force.
Any excessive movement of the bales will cause fall-off.
SDB: Do you recommend wrapping or bagging of shredded paper bales to aid in reducing fall-off?
TW: While bagging and wrapping can be very good prevention for fall-off, the cost of the process is quite high and is typically beyond the value it brings.
SDB: How does particle size affect bale integrity? How does a bale comprised of 2-inch shreds compare with a bale comprised of three-eights-inch shreds?
TW: Generally, shreded paper is very easy to bale and will make a good bale in any horizontal baler. The strip-shred-type shredder makes a much better looking bale than the newer industry standard using either a cross-cutting or grinder-type product.
SDB: What should a document destruction firm look for when shopping for a baler? How can a company go about selecting an appropriately sized baler for its operation?
TW: There are at least three factors that have to work together. Baler horsepower, bale cross section and cylinder size.
Typically, throughput requirements will determine required horsepower. From there a combination of bale cross section versus cylinder size should be selected to keep good ram face pressure. A machine with a large bale cross section and a large cylinder but with low horsepower may make a beautiful bale but fail to keep up with production throughput. The same machine with a smaller cylinder will run much more quickly, but the loss of ram face pressure can cause low density bales with excessive fall-off.
A firm needs to establish volume throughput requirements for its current operation and what it forecasts for a few years down the road. The baler must meet and exceed the shredder's output volume if it is part of a plant-based shredding operation. Having a baler that cannot keep up with the shredding system leads to a very ineffective operation.
If the baler is part of a MSU (mobile shredding unit) shredding operation, the mobile shred trucks will typically return at the end of the day and dump the shredded material on the floor. The operator will then want to process the material as quickly as possible; therefore, the baler capacity should be rated for the typical daily volume and time frame the operation wants to process in so it can empty the floor.
SDB: How can maximum density be ensured when baling shredded paper?
TW: Ensure the correct baler model selection was made to achieve proper ram face pressure for the type of shred being baled. Ensure the bale is operating at maximum efficiency. Dirty photo eyes or improperly set up controls can cause premature cycling of the ram. The result will be low density bales, loose tops and bale deformation, or banana-ing, once the bale has been ejected.
SDB: Is there a type of baling wire that is preferable when dealing with shredded paper?
TW: The standard for typical horizontal, auto-tie balers is black-annealed wire. For manual-tie balers, you can use black-annealed or galvanized single-loop bale ties.
The key is use only the size wire that is required to hold the bale. Wire is priced by the pound, and 10-gauge wire used where the 11-gauge is sufficient can be a significant waste of profit.
SDB: Do you have any advice when it comes to feeding the baler to ensure good density and integrity?
TW: Ensuring a good, even metered flow of shredded paper into the baler hopper is very important.
SDB: Do you recommend using water in the baling process? Why or why not?
TW: Typically, the rule is: Don't use water unless you really have to. Water sprays are typically supplied on balers that are baling tough-to-bale material such as slick-stock magazines or coated folding carton material, such as cereal boxes.
Water sprayers are a maintenance item and also require a dedicated water line run to the baler area.
If a water sprayer is supplied, it should be interlocked with the baler cycle system, so that it only sprays when material is being delivered into the baler charge box.
SDB: What are the common maintenance issues for balers operating in document destruction operations?
TW: The excessive dust created in document destruction operations can cause problems with clogged oil coolers and oil reservoir air filters.
Oil coolers are visible, meaning you can easily see when they are clogged, which will cause overheating if.
A clogged reservoir air filter is usually not visible and can cause problems. Because of the oil volume difference from the extend versus the retract side of the main cylinder, the hydraulic tank literally breathes as the baler cycles. Not only does this draw dust into the filter, but once it is clogged this breathing action can cause tank cover seals to pull in or blow out, resulting in oil leaks. Once the tank seals are breached, the oil reservoir is now contaminated and this can cause premature pump failure.
Todd Wondrow is president of Maren Engineering Corp., South Holland, Ill.
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