Introduction
The mechanization of production and marketing procedures for burley tobacco has experienced little change during the past 50 years. Burley tobacco continues to require large amounts of hand labor with minimum mechanization. Both the availability and cost of intensive hand labor required at peak seasons are forcing many producers to seek labor-saving techniques.
About one-half of the labor required for the production of burley tobacco involves stripping and preparation for market. Leaves of air cured burley tobacco are removed from the stalk, held in an oriented fashion and tied with a wrapper leaf into "hands" or bundles. Burley tobacco producers and tobacco research personnel have logically reasoned that considerable labor and time might be saved if burley tobacco could be successfully marketed in an untied or loose-leaf form. Flue-cured tobacco is marketed in a loose.leaf, unoriented manner, packaged in a burlap sheet. Canadian and other types of tobacco are packaged and marketed in a compressed bale. Interest by many producers in loose-leaf packaging of burley tobacco has increased in recent years. Research on loose-leaf methods for burley tobacco and exploratory packaging of burley tobacco in loose-leaf forms have coincided with this increased interest.
Information is available from controlled experiments on labor requirements for packaging by conventional and loose.leaf methods, on moisture variables in the loose-leaf package, and on the technical and mechanical aspects of loose-leaf handling. Two major domestic manufacturers have cooperated in the evaluation of loose-leaf burley tobacco relative to the handling and manufacturing aspects from warehouse floor through the processor.
Several aspects of loose-leaf versus conventional handling of burley tobacco have not been thoroughly considered. For example, the effect of loose-leaf burley on export sales has not been evaluated. One might reason that there would be an advantage if the price were more competitive or a disadvantage if less useful. While American burley ks in demand for the export markets because of its high quality, price per pound is always a factor.
Loose-leaf packaging and marketing of burley tobacco would represent a departure from traditional methods of handling a type of tobacco which has been presented for sale in hand-tied form since 1904. The initial response to such a change may be foreseen in part by recognizing the problems or difficulties such a change might cause. Examples of potential problem areas include: producers having to learn how to handle loose-leaf burley and bear the costs of acquisition of new equipment and materials to make the change;and warehousemen, graders, and buyers having to adapt to evaluating a new package of burley tobacco. On the other hand, there are probable advantages to loose-leaf packaging such as lower production costs and easier physical handling of packages through the trade channels.
An expanded bale marketing program has been approved by the Secretary of Agriculture for the 1979-80 marketing year for educational and evaluational purposes. The program will be administered by the various federal and state agencies (ASCS, AMS, CCC, etc.). Details and procedures are available from these various agencies.
This publication provides educational information and plans for packaging and handling burley at the farm as part of the 1979-80 bale program.
Selecting and Building the Bale Press Equipment
Introduction:
The preparation of burley in bale form requires special bale press equipment and methods. The design and use of this equipment has been made as simple and economical as possible for farm conditions while still enabling the preparation of neat, firm packages of burley leaves and protecting the quality of the product.
Features of Bale Press Equipment:
The design and operation of bale press equipment has been based on similar equipment already used with other types of tobacco in the United States and foreign countries. The currently designed bale press features: (1) notches for positioning and holding the tie twine, (2) an open top to receive the oriented leaves, (3) a lightweight and movable presshead for compressing the tobacco, (4) an openable front door to permit tying of the bale while under compression and removal of the completed bale, and (5) the capability of being built in single or multiple box units to match various farm stripping conditions.
The bale presses are constructed of exterior 1/2-inch A-C grade plywood and dressed 2" x 4" lumber along with some small steel pieces and hardware. Construction methods mostly involve the sawing and nailing of the wooden materials with some hole drilling, cutting, and welding of the steel pieces, depending on the type of bale press built.
An individual bale box is recommended for each grade of tobacco being stripped. This permits each grade of leaves to be continuously placed into a box to protect the leaves from excessive drying in heated stripping rooms and to reduce the potential for mixing and contamination with foreign objects. If too few boxes are available, some leaves will have to be piled aside and held until a box is empty, thus allowing drying and potential contamination problems. (The use of the bale boxes in the stripping room is described later.)
The bale boxes can be built and used as single units or connected together as multiple-box units. Single-box units offer flexibility in crowded stripping rooms and are easily moved. Three-box units have evolved as a suitable size for construction and handling while providing three basic stalk group separations in the stripping room and satisfying the tobacco companies' minimum preferences for grade separation (4 or more boxes and grades are equally feasible).
Bumper-type car jacks or air cylinders are shown as primary means to provide the compression force required. Studies have shown that 1,000 to 1,200 pounds of vertical force are needed to compress burley leaves in the bale box to the required bale density and firmness. The use of hydraulic cylinders (oil type) and components has been avoided to eliminate potential oil leakage and damage to the tobacco. Besides, the proper hookup of hydraulics is generally more costly and difficult than the air method for this application and too great a compression force produces bruised tobacco and "caked" bales.
The car jack presshead is the most economical and workable design recommended at present. The tubular post type of jack with notches and an extension handle seems best. Select a good quality, heavy duty jack for maximum life. The life of some jacks for bale press use has been very short. Some units used in previous farm experiments wore the notches and pawls beyond use in a few days while others have been used during a season and for several thousand pounds of tobacco. A special heat-treated jack for longer life is being made available this year.
Alternate construction plans are shown for fabricating the car jack pressheads. Both require some welding to provide the necessary strength, rigidity, and safety of operation. Any farm welding equipment or local repair shop can perform the required welding.
The car jack plan shows the bumper-hook type of jack with the post only welded directly to the presshead or welded to the base support and the base bolted to the presshead. With the welded post design, the post could easily be cut off just above the weld and returned to normal usage. With the welded post-to-base design, the base can be unbolted and the jack returned to normal usage. A wooden or steel bar is required across the top of the bale box to anchor the jack during the compression process.
The air cylinder presshead is faster to use but has greater initial cost (about $175 for the air cylinder and control valve only). This design is suggested for producers using a 3-box unit and baling over 5,000 pounds per year. Greater cutting, drilling, and welding of steel is required to form the frame. Four to six feet of air hose and several fittings are needed along with a 10-foot length of barn door track and a pair of roller type door hangers. The air cylinder presshead is suspended from the roller hangers and a counter-balance mount under the track so it can be moved back and forth as needed to operate in any of the 3 boxes. The counter-balance arrangement allows the presshead to be pivoted up and out of the way when filling the boxes.
The air control valve is mounted on the front of the presshead adjacent to the cylinder for convenient use. The combination of box height and press stroke has been established to provide the maximum "free board" filling capacity yet compress to a 21-22 inch minimum bale height. The specified 18-inch air cylinder fulfills this requirement. Anyone deviating from these components or the present plans could jeopardize this operational relationship and may impair the performance of the equipment.
The air cylinder presshead design uses a pair of "J"-type hooks per bale box for engaging and holding the presshead during the compression stroke. The construction, alignment, and clearance of these hooks are very important for smooth operation of the pressheads and bale press during use.
The removable front doors are reinforced 1/2-inch plywood. Wooden 2 x 2-inch extensions on each side of the door and a strip of plywood along the bottom front edge of the box allows the doors to be easily placed and held in position. Heavy duty 6-inch safety hasps have been used as the best available and most economical latch for fastening the doors. However, some new special latches are available from a company for 1979 uses. An "L"-shaped sheet metal strip is shown on the top edge of the wooden door for protection of the plywood edges from wearing due to many repeated filling and compression cycles. The edges of the metal must be stiff and in full contact with the wood to prevent tobacco or the press from catching and hanging under the edges.
One special feature of the bale boxes that is shown and recommended for all construction is the "tapered" dimension. That is, the box is 3/4-inch wider at the front than at the rear. The purpose is to make the compressed and "wedged-in" bale easier to remove from the box when completed, just as with many tapered-fit items. Bales made in "square" boxes are harder to pull out and likely to result in broken twine or distorted bales. The tapered box design should be used.
To aid in judging the final bale height dimension, markings should be painted on the inside back plywood showing 22-inch and 24-inch distances above the bottom. Bales must be made within these dimensions. The markings should be placed 6-8 inches away from the center line of the back so as to be easily seen by the operator when the bale is being pressed.
Proper strength in construction and safety in operation are necessary for making good bales and protecting the workers. While several variations in construction materials, methods, and operational techniques will likely occur as many tobacco producers build and use this equipment, the basic construction methods described and shown have proven workable and should be followed until specific improvements are proven acceptable. Anyone fabricating and using the equipment should give careful attention to the methods for abnormal conditions and ways to improve the current procedures. Suggestions for improvement are always welcome.
Plans for Building Bale Press Equipment:
Detailed plans for building the bale
presses are shown in this publication. The following options are shown:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Preparing and Handling Burley in Bales
The following procedures for preparing
and handling burley in bales are based on producer experiences and research
data from four years of experiments on packaging and handling burley in
bale form.
The conditioning and management of
the tobacco for bales is essentially the same as for hand-tied tobacco.
That is, the moisture content control, bulking and covering techniques,
and grading methods, etc. should follow conventional practices. The labor
saving advantages of the bale method result from faster removal of the
leaves from the stalk by not having to keep the stem ends precisely aligned,
elimination of the actual hand-tying process, and less labor in preparing
and handling the one-man bale package compared with small stick-size units
of hand-tied bundles. Burley tobacco prepared in bale form will not affect
the quality or market value when handled in a normal manner.1,2
Condition of Tobacco:
Tobacco with medium to low moisture
content for handling ("case" or "order") results in bales of good firmness
and storage characteristics. High moisture tobacco (high "case" or "order")
is subject to molding and heating just as with conventional hand-tied tobacco
and should not be baled.
Bales stacked and stored on edge with
free air circulation around the stem ends and sides will allow migration
of moisture if needed to equalize moisture characteristics of bales.
Bales may be covered with tarps or
other commonly used materials to protect the tobacco during storage as
is done with normally bulked tobacco.
Density and Weight of Bales:
Proper bale density (firmness) is essential
to production of bales that will maintain their shape during handling and
that will stack without toppling over. Tobacco bales will deform under
the load of a stack. Excessive deformation generally causes instability
of the stack. The higher the moisture content, the greater the deformation.
The lower the density, the greater the deformation.
Three primary factors affect the density,
or weight, of the bale. These are:
Table 1: Relationship Between Moisture Content and Density for Lower
and Upper Stalk Tobacco Using A 4-inch Diameter Air Cylinder at 95 PSI
to Make a 12 X 22 X 36-inch Bale of Burley Tobacco.
High moisture tobacco (above 22-23% w.b .) and bales above 90 pounds
should be avoided because of potential storage problems.
Conclusions from a research study of
moisture effects on storage of burley bales2 indicate that storage
requirements for burley bales are essentially the same as those for hand-tied
bundles. Those conditions which normally cause damage in piles of tied
hands will likely cause damage in bales.
Stripping Methods:
For a stripping crew of 3 workers or
less, two methods of stripping and baling are very comparable in time.
One method is to assign each worker to strip a particular grade with no
other duties. One worker that is the fastest or most capable of operating
the bale press equipment is assigned the task of taking the leaves from
each worker and making the bales. The other method is to have each worker
strip and deposit his own stripped leaves into a bale box, compress, and
tie each bale. An important difference in the two methods is that one worker
assigned to make all bales can probably learn and become more proficient
in making uniform bales than 2 or 3 different workers.
For a 4 to 7 person stripping crew,
one person should be assigned the full-time task of depositing the tobacco
in the bale boxes, making and carrying out the bales, bringing in unstripped
tobacco, and removing stripped stalks. Larger crews will need to have these
tasks divided among two or more workers. Using this procedure, the workers
removing leaves can devote their full effort to becoming proficient at
leaf removal without distractions and congestion around the bale box, whereas
the worker making the bales will become knowledgeable and proficient in
making proper bales.
During the stripping process, each
worker should remove his respective group of leaves, keep them oriented
the same way, and pile them neatly on the bench or a special holder within
convenient reach to his side or rear. Each worker, or the one assigned
to make the bales, would periodically pick up bunches of leaves having
150-200 leaves and deposit them in the proper bale box.
Making Burley Bales:
Several steps are important in making
good quality burley bales. Following are guidelines developed during previous
experiments and studies which are recommended for your use.
*NOTE: Approximately 1 1/4 lb.
of the cotton twine is needed for each 1000 lbs. of tobacco baled.
Delivering and Selling Burley Bales
The handling and loading of the burley
bales at the farm should be done similar to the normal handling of hand-tied
tobacco. Use a clean bed vehicle that will not contaminate the tobacco.
Stack the baled tobacco three to five bales high with the bales laid flatways
to form a stable load. Use ropes if necessary to secure the load onto the
vehicle.
Be sure each bale has a tag securely
attached showing the owners name and indicating a farm grade. This tag
is necessary for proper grouping and accountability of your tobacco at
the warehouse.
Cover the loaded tobacco with a tarp
or suitable material for wind and other protection on the way to the warehouse.
At the warehouse, instructions will
be available on the method of stacking the bales on baskets and other pertinent
details. Generally, up to seven bales of the same farm grade will be stacked
onto a basket. You may have some baskets with only 1 or 2 bales. These
lots of tobacco will be weighed as normally done.
The baskets of bales will be lined
up on the warehouse floor until sale time.
In preparation for federal grading,
a warehouse representative will open a particular bale in a lot of tobacco
chosen by a grader for inspection. The producer is responsible for certifying
that the bale inspected is representative of the grade of all the tobacco
in that lot, that the leaf was stalk-cured, that the bales do not contain
any foreign matter or material and that the bales are not nested.
After grading, the bales will be sold
by auction in the same manner as conventional hand-tied tobacco. In 1979,
a warehouse can sell baled burley on any regular sale day.
References
Suggested Assembly Procedure:
SUGGESTED ASSEMBLY PROCEDURE:
(Figure 4)
Introduction:
1.
2.
3.
*The 17, 20, and 23 percent moisture contents, wet basis, represent approximately
low, medium, and high case (order} tobacco.
Stalk Position
Moisture Content, %(W.B.)*
Density Lbs/Ft3
BaleWeight, Pounds
Lower stalk
17
12.1
66
tobacco
20
14.4
79
23
16.8
92
Upper stalk
17
12.7
70
tobacco
20
15.4
85
23
17.0**
94
**17.0 lbs/cu. ft. is adequate for stable stacking of 4 bales vertically
at the high moisture content.
1.
2.
3.
Low Moisture
Normal Moisture
High Moisture
65-70 lbs.
80-85 lbs.
90-95 lbs.
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b.
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b.
c.
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b.
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h.
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j.
k.
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b.
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a.
6.
a.
(1)
Compare the size, weight, and moisture content with research results
and recommendations reported on page 4 of these instructions, or
(2)
Lay a sample bale flatways on a smooth, solid base. Stack 3 similar
bales on top of the first bale. If the stack remains nearly vertical for
24 hours, then the bottom bale is "firm" enough. If the top of the stack
leans 2 to 4 inches or more or topples after 24 hours, the bottom bale
is too loose and soft. Repack and press this and all similar bales tighter.
(3)
CAUTION: For tobacco too moist (high "case" or "order"), the
tobacco can be pressed too tight, resulting in "bruised" or "caked" leaves
and possibly lowering the market value of the tobacco.
1.
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6.
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NOTE: Put all ripped edges of 2 x 2's to the plywood and nail
with 6d common nails at 6-8 inch spacing.
After partial assembly per Figure 3:
6.
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12.
NOTES:
(A)
(B)
(C)
(D)
Suggested Assembly Procedure For 3-Box Tobacco Bale Press
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