Abstract: Utilizing exhaust materials from various plants and industrial wastes containing CaO, Al.sub.2 O.sub.3, SiO.sub.2 and Fe.sub.2 O.sub.3 as major components, inexpensive ground-strengthening/soil-improving material is obtained by blending thereinto clay minerals and sintering the resultant mixture. A high unconfined compressive strength is conferred upon the ground-strengthening/soil-improving material upon the addition of alumina.

Abstract: A shrink packaging apparatus wherein articles surrounded by a heat shrinkable film are transported on a double side-holding conveyor and a carry-on conveyor for being sequentially fed into a series of heating units so that each article is uniformly heated all over in order to allow the entire film to come in contact with the entire surface of the article in a sightly manner, whereby shrink-wrapped packages having a good appearance can be produced.

Abstract: A film packaging apparatus comprising a tube former for forming a continuous length of a heat-meltable, heat-shrinkable film into a tube of such film with its longitudinal margins overlapping each other and extending downward through a bottom longitudinal outlet of the former, a longitudinal sealer disposed below the former for longitudinally heat-sealing and cutting the overlapping film margins, a transverse sealer disposed behind the former for transversely heat-sealing and cutting the film tube, wherein the longitudinal sealer comprises a cutter disc having a rounded circumferential edge and a counter disc having a flat circumferential surface in contact with the rounded edge at a position slightly deviating toward the cutter disc from a center line of the longitudinal outlet, and a longitudinal guide plate disposed immediately under the position of contact between the two discs.

Abstract: A film tubing device for use in a packaging apparatus comprising a former arranged in a transfer path of a continuous length of a heat-meltable film, the former including an inner former member on which the film is wrapped with its longitudinal side edges overlapping each other, the former further including an outer former member having a longitudinal outlet through which the overlapping side edges of the film project out, a pair of longitudinal sealers disposed adjacent to the longitudinal outlet as slightly spaced from the outer former member for nipping the overlapping side edges of the film, the sealers being heated for heat-sealing the overlapping side edges of the film, a thin air guide plate arranged between the outer former member and each sealer to define a clearance between the guide plate and the outer former member, and an air supplying nozzle for feeding cooling air into the clearance.