The packaging industry has developed drastically over the years. Due to this, companies had to keep up with the technological advancements that followed. Whether it is filling containers or packaging in general, without the proper machinery a business cannot compete in today’s market.
This equipment needs to meet certain industry standards regarding sanitary as well as safety requirements. On that note, depending on the product you are working with, you will need a different type of equipment.
Packaging Machine Types
When you are deciding on what packaging equipment to get, you will have to take several factors into consideration.
First and foremost, you need to identify what liquid you are working with. The viscosity of the liquid plays the most important part when it comes to the packaging process. A liquid can have either low viscosity or high viscosity. For example, liquids such as water have low viscosity and are generally easier to work with, while paste-like liquids have higher viscosity which makes them harder to work with.
An additional factor that you need to consider while working with different liquids is their purpose. Different liquid filling equipment is specifically designed for liquids that have a certain purpose. For example, every liquid that is used for consumption must be packaged according to industry safety and sanitary regulations. Therefore, liquid filling equipment manufacturers had to adapt their machines to the required standards.
Furthermore, depending on what containers you are working with, the machines need to be able to handle them and fill them without problems. This means that machines need to be able to handle different sorts of containers that you are using in your production line.
Lastly, you need to consider the volume as well as the fill rate of the liquid you are working with. Depending on your needs, you will choose a specific machine for your production.
Filling Machine Types
Here is the most common filling equipment that is used in the industry today.
Piston Filler
A piston filler machine is a type of packaging machine that is designed to handle different liquids. More precisely, this includes liquids with higher viscosity such as sauces, pastes, icing, and batters. Their advantage is that they can fill these high-viscosity liquids at high speeds making them very efficient.
Molten Filler
As you can probably guess from the name, a molten filler is a liquid filling machine that works with liquids that have a high temperature. These machines fill the liquids into the containers while they are still extremely hot after which the liquids cool down and are sent to be fully packaged. Molten fillers are used to package things such as soaps, candles, and deodorants.
Pump Filler
When it comes to pump fillers, they are like a Swiss army knife. These machines are so versatile they can fill all kinds of liquids with different viscosities. Additionally, they can operate on various principles depending on the type of liquids you are working with.
Pressure Filler
Pressure fillers are generally used for packaging thicker liquids. Their working principle involves gravity as well as different valves and pumping systems.
Inline Filler
Inline fillers are best at filling containers that are moving in a line on a conveyor system. They are extremely efficient as they can fill several containers at once without changing the fill rate. Additionally, inline fillers are in a sense like pump fillers. They are extremely versatile and are used across the industry for various liquids.
Gravity Filler
These machines are one of the most used ones in the industry. Gravity filers are most commonly used to fill liquids that have low viscosity such as juices, water, or sodas in general. They can achieve different fill rates according to your needs. Their working principle is very basic and you can probably guess it from the name. These machines use gravity in order to fill the containers due to the specific design of their valves.
Rotary Filler
In the matter of rotary fillers, they are a bit different compared to other machines we have mentioned in this article. To start, stations on these machines are circular which means that there are different operations done on the station. When the container enters the station, it is first filled. After that, it is moved to the next part where it is closed and lastly on the third part, it is completely sealed being ready for transport.
Net Weigh Filler
Last but not least, we have net weigh fillers. These machines have a specific purpose when it comes to filling containers. They are used when there has to be a specific amount of liquid in a container. This means that each and every container needs to be perfectly filled without error. When there is a high product demand, these machines are fast and precise enough to handle it. They are generally used with liquids that are expensive.