Formed piece particularly for use as packing material method and apparatus for its manufacture and use

A method for manufacturing formed pieces for use as packing material comprising the steps of:

• forming a bar shaped blank, having an outer surface layer and randomly arranged therein inner layers of sheet material, from a feed sheet material by reducing the width of the sheet material,
• twisting said bar shaped blank around its longitudinal axis thereby reducing the cross-sectional area of the bar shaped blank, and
• cutting said bar shaped blank into formed pieces, said formed pieces being twisted substantially along their whole length.

An apparatus for manufacturing formed pieces used as packing material comprising:

• bar shaped blank means for reducing a width of a sheet material and making said sheet material into a bar shaped blank having an outer surface layer and randomly arranged therein inner layers,
• twisting means for twisting at least a surface layer of said bar shaped blank around its longitudinal axis and for creating air gaps between said inner layers, and
• cutting means for cutting said bar shaped blank to obtain formed pieces, said pieces being twisted along substantially the whole of their length.

A formed piece for use as packing material, comprising:

• a substantially cylindrical outer surface layer of sheet material extending along a longitudinal axis of the formed piece between a first end and a second end of the formed piece, and
• inner layers of sheet material randomly arranged within a space defined by said outer surface layer and having air gaps between at least portions of said inner layers, and
• wherein at least said outer surface layer is twisted around the longitudinal axis of the formed piece along the whole length of said formed piece between said first and second end.