A Gem among drums

Having acquired the Peterlee-based UK blow-moulding assets of France’s Sotralentz last year, Ireland-headquartered Gem Plastics says it is now "competitively well positioned to supply the most complete range of rigid HDPE containers – from 5 litres up to 1,000 litres – currently available from one single source in the UK and Ireland, with the added flexibility and security of two manufacturing sites at its disposal".

With the bulk of its units UN-approved for the transport of dangerous goods, the-ISO 9001-certified company supplies a wide range of customers from the chemical, pharmaceutical, food and beverage industries "throughout the British Isles, including the world’s leading multinational players in these sectors".

In addition to holding a licence to produce Sotralentz-designed composite intermediate bulk containers (IBCs), Gem boasts a full spectrum of large tighthead and open head plastics drums, including the second generation MHX L-Ring model. Developed "in response to international calls for packaging waste minimisation", the MHX, the company says, "answers those concerns, with reduced weight for higher performance and improved emptying to allow it to be recycled more effectively". Indeed, the system’s design means any residues are kept below the 50 ml level.

Conceived to offer maximum space utilisation and therefore reduce a customer’s transport costs, Gem’s 100 litre Open Top Square intermediate drum enables a shipper to fit nine such units on a 1,140 mm x 1,140 mm CP9 pallet, representing an payload increase of 50 per cent compared to traditional 120 litre cylindrical systems. Shippers employing these particular drums, the company explains, can load 18,000 litres of packed product into a single ISO shipping container. UN-approved for the transport of solid materials, the Open Top Square not only features a "tried and tested lid system with [a] security sealing facility" but also boasts "assured stability and safety in storage, handling and transit".

www.gemplastics.ne