Yorkregion.com - Whitchurch-Stouffville - Bagging machine to the rescue in flood country
Bagging machine to the rescue in flood country
Whitchurch-Stouffville
May 17, 2008 01:08 AM
Gormley company invented sandbag maker for landscaping industry
By: Jim Mason
A Whitchurch-Stouffville company may be able to help in communities being struck by spring flooding across North America.
It already has, in at least one.
Twin Tooling Inc. of Gormley produces a machine called the Nifty Bagger.
Normally used for bagging landscaping material, it can be used to make sandbags for emergency flood situations.
The machine can bag up to 340 bags an hour using only gravity for power. It can be towed behind a pick-up truck.
When high waters threatened the Peterborough area last month, the community of Campbellford took Twin Tooling up on an offer to donate a machine during the emergency.
Company vice-president Dennis Assinck and his father, Leo, who invented the machine, delivered two.
“Later that day, they began to run out of sandbags because they were bagging so fast,” said Twin Tooling’s Melody Duguay, who grew up in Campbellford.
President Rick Assinck and employee Wayne Smith delivered 10,000 more bags, followed by another 10,000 the next day.
Twin Tooling staffers and volunteers worked the machines.
“They were bagging at a phenomenal rate,” Ms Duguay said. “The town’s people were bagging straight through the night and finally were able to get the flooding under control.”
“I have never been involved with something of this magnitude and to be a part of that and help was a wonderful feeling. You don’t get tired, you just want to keep going.
“It’s such an amazing feeling to watch people come together for such a worthwhile cause and do what they can to help out their community. This type of event helps restore your faith in people. We at Twin Tooling just wanted to help a community that was desperately in need.”
Leo Assinck managed the production of hundreds of custom engineered machines for crushing, conveying and screening limestone and gravel when he was plant manager of Assinck Bros.
Twin Tooling, which was founded in 1995, prides itself on building custom machinery including innovative products.
One of the company’s other products is the Secure Firing Device, which test-fires guns for the defence, law enforcement and security industry.
Go to twintooling.com for more information.