Flexible intermediate bulk container

A Flexible Intermediate Bulk Container, FIBC , big bag, bulk bag, or Super Sack® is a standardized container

Shipping container

A shipping container is a container with strength suitable to withstand shipment, storage, and handling. Shipping containers range from large reusable steel boxes used for intermodal shipments to the ubiquitous corrugated boxes...

in large dimensions for storing and transporting dry, flowable products, for example sand

Sand

Sand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely divided rock and mineral particles.The composition of sand is highly variable, depending on the local rock sources and conditions, but the most common constituent of sand in inland continental settings and non-tropical coastal...

, fertilizer

Fertilizer

Fertilizer is any organic or inorganic material of natural or synthetic origin that is added to a soil to supply one or more plant nutrients essential to the growth of plants. A recent assessment found that about 40 to 60% of crop yields are attributable to commercial fertilizer use...

s , and granules of plastics.

FIBCs are most often made of thick woven

Woven

A woven is a cloth formed by weaving. It only stretches in the bias directions , unless the threads are elastic. Woven cloth usually frays at the edges, unless measures are taken to counter this, such as the use of pinking shears or hemming.Woven fabrics are worked on a loom and made of many...

polyethylene

Polyethylene

Polyethylene or polythene is the most widely used plastic, with an annual production of approximately 80 million metric tons...

or polypropylene

Polypropylene

Polypropylene , also known as polypropene, is a thermoplastic polymer used in a wide variety of applications including packaging, textiles , stationery, plastic parts and reusable containers of various types, laboratory equipment, loudspeakers, automotive components, and polymer banknotes...

, either coated or uncoated, and normally measure around 110 cm or 45-48 inches in diameter and varies in height from 100 cm up to 200 cm or 35 to 80 inches. Its capacity is normally around 1000 kg or 2000 lbs, but the larger units can store even more. The average bulk bag made to ship one metric ton can weigh between 5-7 lbs.

Transporting and loading is done on either pallet

Pallet

A pallet , sometimes called a skid, is a flat transport structure that supports goods in a stable fashion while being lifted by a forklift, pallet jack, front loader or other jacking device. A pallet is the structural foundation of a unit load which allows handling and storage efficiencies...

s or by lifting it from the loops. Bags are made with either one, two or four lifting loops. The single loop bag is suitable for one man operation as there is no need for a second man to put the loops on the loader hook

Hook

- Technology :* Hooking, a computer programming technique* Hook echo, a feature visible on radar indicative of tornadic rotation in a thunderstorm* Tailhook, a device on an aircraft- Language :* Hook , a rhetorical device that "hooks" the listener...

. Emptying is made easy by a special opening in the bottom such as a discharge spout, of which there are several options, or by simply cutting it open.

History

Although there is disagreement on exactly where FIBCs were first made and used, it is certain that they have been employed for a variety of packaging purposes since the 1940s. These forerunners of the FIBC as we know it today were manufactured from PVC

PVC

Polyvinyl chloride is a plastic.PVC may also refer to:*Param Vir Chakra, India's highest military honor*Peripheral venous catheter, a small, flexible tube placed into a peripheral vein in order to administer medication or fluids...

rubber

Rubber

Natural rubber, also called India rubber or caoutchouc, is an elastomer that was originally derived from latex, a milky colloid produced by some plants. The plants would be ‘tapped’, that is, an incision made into the bark of the tree and the sticky, milk colored latex sap collected and refined...

and generally utilised within the rubber industry for the transportation of carbon black

Carbon black

Carbon black is a material produced by the incomplete combustion of heavy petroleum products such as FCC tar, coal tar, ethylene cracking tar, and a small amount from vegetable oil. Carbon black is a form of amorphous carbon that has a high surface-area-to-volume ratio, although its...

to be used as a reinforcing agent in a variety of rubber products. One of the first known importers of the PVC containers into the United States is Robert Williamson, founder and CEO of B.A.G. Corp., in 1969. These first PVC bags were imported from Japan as an efficient way to solve the loading and handling problem faced by crop dusters.

By the 1960s, with the development of polypropylene combined with advances in weaving, the bulk bags as we know them today came into being and were rapidly adopted by a wide variety of oil and chemical companies to store and transport powdered and granular products.

It was during the oil crisis of the mid 1970s that the FIBC really came into its own for transporting huge quantities of cement to the Middle East from across Europe for the rapid expansion of the oil producing countries. At its zenith, upwards of 50,000 metric tons of cement was being shipped out on a weekly basis to feed the vast building programme. The Flexible Intermediate Bulk Container Association (FIBCA) was formed in 1983 by the companies that were manufacturing bulk bags at that time.

The modern FIBC transports a growing figure of over ¼ billion tonnes of product each year and is used to handle, store and move products as varied as cereals to powdered chemicals and flour

Flour

Flour is a powder which is made by grinding cereal grains, other seeds or roots . It is the main ingredient of bread, which is a staple food for many cultures, making the availability of adequate supplies of flour a major economic and political issue at various times throughout history...

to animal feeds. With a capacity of up to 3m³ and load capability ranging from ½ a tonne to two tonnes FIBCs are highly cost effective, easily recyclable and ideal for virtually any free-flowing granule, powder, pellet or flake. FIBCs are also being developed to hold and filter fluid products.

Construction

U-Panel construction
Circular/Tubular construction
Baffle construction
Four side panel construction
Round construction

Lifting options

Cross corner lifting loops
Corner lifting loops
Four loops
Two loops
Sling loops
Full loops

Electrostatic properties

Type - A - no special electrostatic safety features
Type - B - Made from plain (non-antistatic) polypropylene. Type B bags are not capable of generating propagating brush discharges. The wall of this FIBC exhibits a breakdown voltage of 4 kilovolts or less.
Type - C - Conductive FIBC. Constructed from electrically conductive fabric, designed to control electrostatic charges by grounding. A standard fabric used contains conductive threads or tape.
Type - D - Anti-static FIBCs, essentially refers to those bags which have anti-static or static dissipative properties without the requirement of grounding.

Industries Served

Chemicals
Fertilizers
Fiberglass
Food Products
Grains
Mining (Used to hold shotcrete)
Pharmaceuticals
Pigments
Plastics
Refractories
Rubber Additives
Seed
Peanuts
Starch

Flood Barrier Use

Thailand utilized big bags to erect temporary walls to protect areas during the 2011 Thailand floods

2011 Thailand floods

Major floods are occurring during the 2011 monsoon season in Thailand, most severely in the Chao Phraya but also in the Mekong River basin. Beginning in late July and continuing for over three months, the floods have caused 602 reported deaths by early November, affected over 2.3 million people,...