Packaging and filling

The main types of packaging and filling of liquids

Any kind of packaging and bottling is divided into three different types. Each of them has its own purpose and advantages. When choosing the most optimal type of packaging, it is always necessary to take into account the type of products and sales opportunities.

Primary machines

Primary packaging is the packaging in direct contact with the product itself and is sometimes referred to as a consumer unit. The main purpose of primary packaging is to contain, protect and/or preserve the finished product, particularly against contamination. This is the first layer containing the finished product, such as a plastic pouch holding sugar crystals or the cardboard box containing the cube sugar. This type of packaging is often intended for the end user or consumer. In addition to making it easier for consumers to handle products, it makes the products look more appealing and can be used for communication purposes to convey printed information about the products to consumers.

Secondary machines

Secondary packaging is a type of packaging used to group and pack a certain amount of packaged or bottled products, to create a storage unit. This makes it easier to pack small packages by combining them into one common package. This type of packaging also provides additional protection, helping to preserve the integrity of the primary packaging. Secondary packaging often consists of several separate parts (box, dividers, cardboard base, etc.). It can also be configured so that the product can be easily transported. For example, in the case of cubed sugar, the secondary packaging may be a corrugated cardboard box containing several separate boxes or paper boxes with stick packs.

Tertiary packaging is referred to as wholesale trade packaging or transit packaging, this type of packaging is used to group larger quantities of production to transport. This type of packaging makes it easier to transport large and/or heavy loads safely and securely. In addition to helping prevent damage, it consequently facilitates the handling, storage and transport of goods. An example of tertiary packaging is a stretch-wrapped pallet containing a quantity of cardboard boxes or bags (secondary packaging) to enable efficient product shipping.

Operating principle:A - fully automated, M - manual , SA - semi-automatic

Small retail packaging

Stickpack and sachet packaging are both perfect options for consumers who are on the go or prefer to pack light for numerous occasions. Such packaging also plays a huge commercial role, since targeted commercial information can be printed on it. These types of packaging provide high convenience. In the presence of an appropriate packaging machine, it is possible to produce easily opened packages by making incisions on the outer layer.

What is a stick-pack? A long and narrow pouch, which is considered iconic for small single portions of bulk products. They are very compact and are convenient to store. This special type of disposable packaging makes it easy for consumers to take products with them anywhere, easy to store them when traveling and easy to use. This type of packaging is mainly used for sugar packaging. Depending on the need, these bags contain 3-5 grams of sugar.

What is a Sachet pack? Similar to the packaging in the form of stick-packs (the usual package with a 3-sided seal), the sachet package is ideal for storing sugar or seasonings. Sachet packaging is the perfect way to keep the product fresh and guarantee ease of use for your customer. Unlike stick-packs, these packages are slightly larger in capacity and most often contain 5-10 grams of product.

Multi-lane filling machines:

• Stick packaging
• Sachet packaging

Attention:the feeding device for raw material and the outgoing conveyor are not included in the package.

Middle retail packaging

Packaging in medium-sized packages is most common due to convenience and low cost. Medium-sized packages can be of different types, made of different materials, various shapes and also different functionality. The WESTTEX company offers mainly those filling machines that are designed for packing sugar or similar products with similar flowability. The most popular types of sugar packages are pillow-type packages and ready-made paper bags.

Pillow style package. Traditional it is 3-side seal pillow bag. A versatile, economical, and popular package style that can be quite eye-catching with the right graphics design. Applicable to many food industries. The main advantages of this type of packaging are - simplicity of production, ease of achieving high filling speed and lower film cost. Filling machines of the VFFS (vertical form fill sealing machine) type are used for filling on this type of packaging. The most popular packaging materials: laminate, BOPP, CPP, PET, PE. Depending on the filled product, the packing machine can be equipped with both a volumetric dispenser and a dispenser by weight. To achieve high speed, multi-head weight or volumetric dispensers are used, although the choice of dosing method mainly depends only on the flowability of the product. For filling sugar on such packaging, the packing machine can be equipped with a rectangular bottom shaper. Sugar in packages of this type is usually packed in 1000 grams.

Filling in pre-made paper bags. Paper bag is one of the most popular forms of packaging for consumers, and in recent years it has also become an obvious choice from an environmental point of view. The traditional free-standing package construction is practical for many people, and thus becomes added value for your product, which can become a decisive factor for many end customers. Paper bags are commonly used in industry for packaging bulk food products such as sugar, flour and cereals. Paper bags have many advantages over film bags, the main ones being environmental protection and ease of use. Special filling machines are required for packing into such packaging. Depending on the design and type of machine, a filling speed is achieved that is not inferior to machines designed for filling into a pillow-type package. Naturally, filling paper bags is more expensive due to the complexity of the equipment and the price of empty bags, but it pays off due to the commercial attractiveness of packaging and convenience. Sugar in paper bags is usually packaged in 1000 or 2000 grams.

Machines for filling into film bags and pre-made bags:

• Film bags filling
• Paper bags filling

Attention:the feeding device for raw material and the outgoing conveyor are not included in the package.

Wholesale packaging in bags

Packaging for wholesale. This type of packaging is most common among manufacturers who do not sell products at retail. Even with the wholesale sale of products, there is flexibility in the choice of packaging. Among manufacturers of bulk products, the most popular are the so-called woven bags (PP) and flexible containers, often called Big Bags. There are a lot of similarities between them, but also and differences.

If you are looking for a bulk products bagging option, PP woven bags or FIBC containers will be a perfect choice no matter what type of materials you’re transporting – finely powdered foods or agricultural items. Woven polypropylene bags (PP) and big bags (FIBC), also called flexible containers, are actually the same thing, despite how different they may sound. FIBC is also called polypropylene bags because they are made of polypropylene fabric. The durable fabric ensures that the products will remain safe for a long period of time, will not deteriorate and will not be contaminated. Many industries use flexible containers (FIBC) or polypropylene woven bags to store and move bulk goods because of their functional characteristics and economic benefits. When it comes to transporting products such as sugar or salt, polypropylene woven bags become preferable to other bags.

The similarity of these types of bags is that both are woven, i.e. made of polypropylene and both have polyethylene liners. Basically, they differ in capacity. If polypropylene woven bags can be filled with product in the range of 25-50 kg, then flexible containers are usually filled in the range of 400-1100 kg, depending on the density of the product. In case of intensive production, the packaging lines in woven bags can be equipped with robotic palletizers and other equipment, and machines for filling flexible containers can be equipped with robotic feeding of empty containers. The choice of such equipment depends entirely on the volume of products produced and the marketing model. If the products will be filled in polypropylene woven bags, it is always advisable to check how much by weight they can be filled. The fact is that in some countries the weight of such bags is limited due to labor safety laws and cannot exceed 25 kg. The reason for such restrictions is the fact that these bags are often carried manually, and this leads to injuries to people. There are no weight restrictions for flexible containers, as they are serviced only with the help of various lifting equipment.

Woven bags fillers:

• Woven and paper bags
• FIBC bags

Attention:the feed device and the sewing machine are not included in the delivery package.

Bottling of non-carbonated and carbonated beverages

Installation and operation of a bottling plant requires knowledge, investment in specialized equipment. Bottling of various drinks also requires special equipment. Despite some specific differences in procedures and necessary equipment depending on the type of product being poured, the general process of filling all drinks is the same. If non-carbonated drinks such as drinking table water or natural mineral water are bottled, then the technological scheme of the bottling line is standard. The main stages of bottling operations are:

1. Rinsing and cleaning
2. Filling
3. Capping
4. Bottle drying
5. Labeling
6. Packaging

If carbonated drinking water, carbonated natural mineral water or soft drinks are bottled, then the bottling line arrangement becomes more complicated, since additional equipment is needed for carbonating or preparing carbonated drinks. The main stages of carbonated drinks bottling operations are:

1. Rinsing and cleaning
2. Water chilling
3. Mixing the drink
4. Filling
5. Capping
6. Bottle warming
7. Bottle drying
8. Labeling
9. Packaging

The main difference between the bottling of non-carbonated and carbonated beverages lies in the principle of bottling. This means that different filling machines are also required for these different types of drinks. For bottling non-carbonated drinks, the gravity filling method is used, and for carbonated drinks, only isobaric. What is the essence of this difference? The fact is that gravitational filling is carried out by a simple fall of liquid. Gravity filling systems are suitable only for non-carbonated beverages, since they do not have foaming properties, and due to the absence of dissolved gases, such drinks do not increase the pressure inside the bottle. With the bottling of carbonated drinks, the opposite is true. Isobaric filling tethod reducing the loss of carbon dioxide contained in the product and prevent excessive foaming during the filling process which affects product quality and quantitative accuracy. Because the pressure inside the bottle to be filled and the pressure inside the drink storage tank before and after filling is equal and also greater than the atmospheric pressure, it is called an isobaric filling.

The difference between filling non-carbonated and carbonated drinks is also that when filling carbonated drinks, they are cooled. This requires cooling equipment. In addition, after bottling carbonated drinks, since they are cooled and the temperature inside the bottle is lower than outside, dew appears on the outer wall of the bottle, which prevents the labels from sticking. To avoid this, after filling carbonated drinks, the bottles are heated in a special tunnel.

Any bottling line can be equipped with various additional equipment, depending on the product being bottled, as well as in order to increase the commercial value of the product. In the "Auxiliary machines" section you will find the most popular labeling and packaging machines.

Machines for filling water and beverages:

• Non-carbonated
• Carbonated
• Beer

Attention:feeders, conveyors, mixers and other auxiliary equipment are selected in accordance with the desired performance of the processing line.

Filling of various viscous products

The filling of viscous liquids is special. Due to the poor fluidity of such products, special technical solutions are required. Usually, three filling methods are used for filling viscous products.

The first is the use of a machine with a pump, which uses a pump to feed the product into the bottle. These machines use one pump for each filling head of the machine, and the type of pump is selected depending on the product being filled and the required capacity.

The second type is piston filling machines, which are often used for products with high viscosity. In machines of this type, a piston is used to feed the product into the bottle. The piston retracts to pull the product into itself, that is, into the cylinder, then pushes forward, moving the product into the bottle.

The third and most popular method of filling viscous products is volumetric filling. On such a machine, the liquid from the main buffer tank enters the measuring capacity through the valve, where, having reached a predetermined level, the supply valve closes and the drain valve opens. After emptying the measuring capacity, the drain valve closes and the feed valve opens again, filling the measuring capacity with liquid. Although this method is popular, it also has disadvantages, which include low accuracy and low filling speed. To avoid these drawbacks, these machines are most often used for lower viscosity fluids.

Pumping, volumetric and piston filling machines are the best solutions for filling products with high viscosity. To improve the accuracy of filling and increase productivity, depending on the product being poured, these machines can be equipped with product heating.

Viscous liquids fillers:

• Vegetable oils
• Non-edible oils

Attention:to order this equipment, it is necessary to provide detailed characteristics of the product planned to be bottled.

Optional equipment for packaging and filling

Bottling water, and even more so the preparation and bottling of beverages is a complex production process. At first glance, it may seem that only a filling machine is enough, but in fact a number of different equipment is required and, equally important, it must be compatible. In addition, this equipment should not degrade both product quality and commercial value. The following equipment can be classified as auxiliary:

1. Water treatment equipment
2. Filters
3. UV water sterilizers
4. Mixers for beverage
5. Carbonators
6. Additional capacities
7. Pipes
8. Water chillers
9. Heat exchange equipment
10. CIP cleaning systems
11. Bottle warming tunnels
12. Bottle dryers
13. Data and date printers
14. Labeling machines
15. Packaging machines
16. Conveyors and elevators
17. Compressors

Each bottling line is designed and manufactured to order. The complete set of equipment is selected depending on the requirements of the production line and the available technical capabilities. Please note that when completing the filling line, it is necessary to evaluate the technical parameters of each individual equipment and the possibility of integration into a common system.

• RO - CIP systems
• Beverage mixers
• Labeling machines
• Shrink wrapping

Automatic machines for blowing PET bottles

Plastics are an inseparable element of modern human life. In our life, we encounter plastic products every day, and probably there is no person who does not have a bottle of mineral water, lemonade or milk at home, which are in plastic bottles. All these bottles are made of plastic, which is called PET. Polyethylene terephthalate in short PET is a thermoplastic polymer from the group of polyesters. PET has unique chemical and physical properties, which, when heated and cooled, allows changing the amorphous state of this polymer and forming products of various geometric shapes. Due to this property, this plastic is used to form various containers and packages, of which various bottles are the most popular.

The process of blow molding PET bottles is carried out by reheating the preformed PET billets. Extrusion blow molding can be used for the manufacture of polypropylene bottles for bottling of various products. Blow molding is usually used for the production of PET bottles for water and various beverages, as well as various containers for household and industrial chemicals. Special machines are required for the production of bottles, and the bottle blowing itself consists of several stages:

1. the preforms are fed to a longitudinal conveyor
2. the preforms are heated in infrared rays
3. the preforms are closed in a blow mold
4. the air nozzles enter the softened preforms
5. compressed air is inflated in two stages to improve the quality of the bottle walls
6. the blow mold is opened and the finished bottles are removed

During blowing, the plastic in the workpiece undergoes significant changes in the orientation of the molecules, increasing various barrier properties and making PET bottles practically unbreakable, light and with perfect transparency.

The blowing machines offered by WESTEX company are distinguished by a fully automated process. The built-in clamping unit in machines with an automatic lubrication device allows you to set the oil supply time, which does not require human intervention and thanks to which the machine can work continuously, i.e. it does not need to stop for lubrication. The unique design of the molds is very easy to install due to the presence of a groove in the clamping unit, and the design of the blowing machines allows you to directly connect the filling machine by air conveyor.

PET blow molding machines:

• 250 - 1500 mlbottles
• 350 - 2000 mlbottles
• 2000 - 5000 mlbottles

Attention:the kit includes a preform feeder, a cooling dryer, an air-cooled water chiller, as well as low and high pressure compressors.