A contract packer to several major supermarkets is preparing for growth in 2024 following a significant investment at its Boston facility.
Mason Bros, which packs the sweet potatoes for the Rush Group, has upgraded its packing line, giving it 33% more capacity.
Simon Mason invested in a GIC 4100 angled machine late last year and now has improved his throughput to such an extent that the business can take on extra work.
The GIC 4100 Angled machine features a specially designed tilting backplate. By positioning the backplate at an angle, sweet potatoes slide smoothly into the packaging rather than being dropped; this prevents bruising and damage to the tips.
“We have been packing sweet potatoes for ten years and have seen their popularity rise significantly over that time,” says Simon. “Our previous packaging machine was struggling. It was old and unreliable, and replacement parts were increasingly difficult to source, so we decided it was time to invest. I didn’t look at any other manufacturer. I knew other sweet potato packers were using GIC’s angled machine, so it made sense to follow suit.
“I did visit a couple of factories to see the angled machine at work, and I was impressed with what I saw.
“The new machine is running at 40 packs per minute and is certainly faster, simpler and more reliable than our previous machine, so we’re really pleased with it.”
Mason Bros’ relationship with GIC goes back to 2011 when the company bought one of its vertical form fill and seal machines to pack onions. Since then, Mason Bros, which was established in 1961 by Simon’s father and uncles, has widened its focus and today packs onions, potatoes and butternut squash as well as sweet potatoes.
Based in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, GIC was established 40 years ago and employs 25 people. The company manufactures an extensive range of vertical bagmakers, producing a wide range of finished bag sizes from 150 to 600mm wide in both intermittent and continuous motion variants. All GIC machines offer low-cost ownership, robustness, reliability and exceptional build quality.
GIC’s machines integrate seamlessly with upstream equipment such as check-weighers, multi-head weighers, cup fillers and counters, with the company offering efficient and cost-effective after-sales to all of its customers in fresh and frozen produce, cereals, snacks, confectionery, pasta, powders and pulses, industrial hardware and liquids.
