A neatly cut trio of juicy sirloin steaks sealed in a clear film tray. A freshly cooked supermarket butter chicken and accompanying basmati rice, both in sturdy plastic trays sealed with professionally branded lidding film.
Both of these popular food items have most likely been packed and sealed using a fully automated tray sealing machine, as most high volume tray-based produce is these days.
Tray sealing machines are one of the great advancements in the food packaging industry, improving production line efficiency, saving time and cutting costs, not to mention giving sealed produce greater aesthetic appeal.
And it’s not only large food manufacturers benefiting, small and medium-sized operators can now simplify a labour-intensive process with either manual or semi-automatic tray sealing machines as well.
It’s all about speed, hygiene and presentation, three things a tray sealing machine can provide consistently. Sealing machines seal in freshness and seal out contaminants thus increasing shelf life and consumer confidence.
Category ID 2376121
As the name suggests, a tray sealing machine is a machine that seals trays thus preserving precious food from deterioration. Tray sealing machines automate what is otherwise a laborious and, potentially, flawed manual process.
Picture meat trays in a supermarket butchery section or trays containing sliced watermelon in the chiller section. Chances are both of these items have been professionally sealed in their trays using an automatic or semi-automatic tray sealing machine to present food professionally and hygienically.
Tray sealing machines use specialized film to lock in freshness, lock out leaks and extend the shelf life of all kinds of produce.
Just as importantly, most tray sealing machines use recyclable materials and help to eliminate environmentally unfriendly packaging waste from food retailers and manufacturers.
Tray sealing machines come in three forms: manual, semi-automatic and automatic.
A manual tray sealing machine is a perfectly good option for a startup or business still working with moderately small volumes. While produce trays have to be manually loaded into the machine one at a time, sealed and removed, a manual tray sealer makes the process easy and ensures a quality seal.
A semi-automatic tray sealing machine makes sense if a business is finding it hard to keep up with demand via manual sealing. While the machine still requires manual loading and unloading, a semi-automatic unit will do the sealing and deal with any offcuts, something a manual unit won’t do.
Lastly, a fully automatic film sealing machine is suitable for serious production lines packing large volumes on a daily basis. With this machine, the entire sealing process is completely automated - from feeding trays into the sealer, sealing, removing offcuts and feeding out the other end. Weighing and labelling machines can even be added to the mix for fast, efficient and profitable production.
Unfortunately not. Not all lidding films and trays work well together and not all trays are a good fit for all tray sealing machines.
The problem is that many manufacturers make films and lids to match their particular sealing machine, which means they might not be compatible with a machine from somewhere else.
Make sure all components are a perfect match before committing to an entire tray sealing system.
A critical consideration is: are my preferred lidding film, tray and tray sealing machine 100% compatible together?
But first, all the preferred components need to be found.
The average price for a tray sealing machine is around $14,500, though basic machines are available for only $2,500. For a top-of-the-range tray sealing machine, expect to pay as much as $46,000.
If you are looking to a buy a Tray Sealing Machine for sale, suppliers on IndustrySearch include Select Equip