How we make woven bags

Polypropylene arrives as granules and leaves as finished bags. These photos and clips were taken on our own production floor in 10th of Ramadan City.

Five steps, in order

1 Tape extrusion

Polypropylene granules are melted and extruded as a thin film, which is slit into narrow tapes. The tapes are then drawn over a series of rollers: stretching aligns the polymer and gives each tape the tensile strength the finished bag depends on.

Polypropylene tapes passing over the rollers of the tape stretching line

White polypropylene tapes running from the stretching rollers towards the winders

2 Winding

At the end of the line every tape is wound onto its own bobbin. Rows of winders run side by side, and full bobbins are racked until a loom needs them.

A long row of winders taking up polypropylene tape onto bobbins

Full bobbins of polypropylene tape stored on racks

3 Circular weaving

Bobbins are loaded on the creel around each circular loom. Shuttles carry the weft tapes round the ring while the warp tapes feed in from the creel, producing a continuous, seamless tube of woven fabric that rises from the centre of the loom.

Circular looms weaving polypropylene fabric, the woven tube rising from each loom

Inside a circular loom, where the tapes meet the ring that weaves the fabric tube

4 Fabric on the roll

The woven tube is flattened and taken up on rolls. White fabric is the standard; coloured tapes on the creel give a coloured fabric, or coloured stripes that run the length of the bag.

A roll of white woven polypropylene fabric

White woven polypropylene fabric with green stripes along both edges

5 Cutting, sewing and printing

The fabric is cut to the length of the bag, and the bottom is folded and sewn. Bags ordered with print carry the customer’s design; plain bags are packed as they are.