Specifications for Cotton Bale Packaging Materials
Approved by the Joint Cotton Industry Bale Packaging Committee (JCIBPC), these specifications are intended for use as manufacturing guidelines, and are designed to improve the quality and protection of the cotton bale and to improve the appearance and marketability of the American cotton bale in domestic and foreign markets.
U.S. Cotton Bale Dimensions
Description and characteristics of a typical U.S. gin universal density cotton bale.
Guide to Cotton Bale Standards
A guide to bale conditions which are generally considered acceptable to receiving warehouses and textile mills. (398k PDF file)
JCIBPC Participating Gin/Warehouse Forms
Link to Participating Gin/Warehouse forms for firms with JCIBPC approved Experimental Test Programs and Compatibility Test Programs.
Specifications for Permanent Bale Identification Bale Tags
The cotton industry has developed a Permanent Bale Identification (PBI) system that enables a unique number and standard barcode to accompany a bale of cotton from the gin to the textile mill. This document is intended to provide you with the details of the PBI system as well as define AMS requirements for the Classing Identification Coupon, which accompanies the tag placed on the bale by the gin.
Permanent Bale ID Tag Update
The cotton industry has developed a Permanent Bale Identification (PBI) system that enables a unique number and standard barcode to accompany a bale of cotton from the gin to the textile mill. The success of the PBI system is based on the principle that all numbers will be unique across multiple years. Even though you can repeat your numbering series after five years, it is a better business practice to continue adding unused PBI numbers to your series.
A letter to state and regional gin associations and cotton warehouse associations from the National Cotton Council and the National Cotton Ginners Association describes the problems of misshapened bales at warehouses, including increased handling time per bale and loss of storage space. The letter urges gins to accept the challenge of producing well packaged bales of uniform size, shape and density that enhance the image of U.S.cotton.
Bale Press Maintenance and Bale Shape Uniformity (1.8 MB pdf)Misshapened bales present a problem for not only gins and warehouses but also textile mills and the transportation industry. The most obvious problems include increased per bale handling charges. It is important for ginners to understand the significant safety hazards at the gin and warehouses associated with misshapened bales. The following power point presentation, created by Joe Thomas and Duncan McCook with Lummus Corporation, was created to assist ginners as they seek solutions to address the issue of misshapen bales. This presentation was given by Mr. McCook at the 2008 Ginners Conference in Nashville.