Capping machines or known as cappers are machines used in food and beverages, pharmaceutical, and cosmetics industries. These machines are intended to safely tighten caps on containers, to ensure the product is safe and intact during shipping and storage. In this article, we will discuss what capers are in today’s production line, the categories and several considerations to make when selecting a capper.
Contents
- 1 What is a Capper
- 2 Types of Capping Machines
- 3 Benefits of Using Capping Machines
- 4 Factors to Consider When Choosing a Capper
- 5 Production Volume
- 6 Type of Cap and Container
- 7 Automation Level
- 8 Main and Endurance
- 9 Future Trends in Capping Machines
- 10 Smart technology integration
- 11 Sustainability
- 12 Customization & flexibility
What is a Capper
A capper is an equipment used to close containers with lids. Such containers may consist of bottles for liquids or jars and vials for powders or solids used in the packaging of liquid products. The final step involves placing a cap on the upper opening of the container, and screwing it tight enough to avoid any seepage, pollution or decomposition.
If you are a manufacturer that needs a capper that you can rely on, Levapack has capper machines for different uses. You can find more information aboutLevapack’s capping solutions here http://www.levapack.com/es/taponadoras/
Types of Capping Machines
There are various types of capping machines mainly because there are different types of containers, and cap sizes that are in the market. The most common types include:
Screw Cappers
Bottle capper machines are used in sealing bottles that come with screwing caps on them. These machines are common in the food and beverage industry particularly in sealing fluids in glass or plastic containers. Screw cappers include a rotating chuck or head that twists the cap and excellently screws it to the neck of the bottle.
Snap Cappers
Snap capping machines are employed to fit caps which have to be sealed swiftly and then snapped on. These are often applied to plastic or metal lids in production from companies in the beauty products or drug manufacturing industries. After crushing, through the mechanism of the machine, the cap is closed tightly to guarantee the seal.
Press-on Cappers
Press-on capping machines are used in capping bottles that have press-on or push-on caps. These machines are used mostly in pharma and food industry products like medicines, syrup and juices etc. Press-on mechanism is to provide the safety mechanism in which there is no requirement of any extra tightening.
Specialty Cappers
When it comes to the packaging requirements, there are customized capping machines available for the market. These are machines that are dedicated to certain kinds of caps or containers for example tamper evident caps, child proof caps or caps of certain shapes or material.
Benefits of Using Capping Machines
Implementing a capper into your production line offers several advantages:
Increased Efficiency
Capping machines are used in sealing capping operations of containers to ensure faster capping than when done manually. This assists in increasing production rate, lowering cost of labor and also preventing mistakes that may be brought by interference of man.
Consistent Sealing
Capping machines help to guarantee a tight and proper capping of every container that is in use. This is important for seal quality, to avoid leakage and to ensure that the cap fits well on every container of the product.
Improved safety and hygiene
Capping machines are designed hygienically and for safety when used in the production process. They are easy to clean and maintain so that there is little chance that food will become contaminated. In addition, they free human workers from exposure to dangerous materials or vessels at risky circumstances.
Flexibility
The current models of capping machines are versatile in that they can handle different sizes of the containers and different types of caps. This flexibility does well to mean that the businesses will not have to worry about additional costs of equipment when expanding.
Factors to Consider When Choosing a Capper
When selecting a capper for your production line, it’s essential to consider several factors to ensure it meets your specific requirements:
Production Volume
Another thing is to pay attention to the speed and carrying capacity of the capper. The production lines associated with a high degree of automation need machines to transport a large number of containers per minute. Some of the factors that should be considered when selecting capping machines include; The companies should consider getting capping machines that will be able to meet its supply chain needs.
Type of Cap and Container
The capping machines include pre-formed cap-oriented capping machines which are suited for various types of caps and containers. For instance, there are screw capping machines, which are preferred for threaded caps and snap cappers for non-threaded plastic caps. It is important for businesses to understand that different caps and containers require the use of different machines, so that they do not make mistakes that could slow them down.
Automation Level
The overall level of automation of the capping machines is also different from machine to machine. There are models that are completely automated, while others may only partially automated and need manual input at some point. As a result, the choice of a particular machine has to reflect the company’s staffing policies in addition to production capacity.
Main and Endurance
Capping machines are an investment which means that they need maintenance from time to time and like most machinery that is used on production lines. When selecting a machine, it is also important to consider acquiring the machine from manufacturers such as Levapack that specialize in the development of long lasting, easy to maintain capping machinery. Also, it’s important that the business considers the aspects of maintenance when choosing a particular machine since this can lead to long downtimes.
Future Trends in Capping Machines
Change is inevitable especially for industries where they invest in technologies to produce capping machines. Here are some of the key trends shaping the future of capping machines:
Smart technology integration
In the current world of Industry 4.0, most of the capping machines are installed with smart features. These are machines that can diagnose the problem before it happens hence need to be monitored in real-time. Some of the machines also contain data capture and analysis tools to enhance production rate.
Sustainability
Global concerns have shifted manufacturers towards developing the capping techniques that would reduce wastage and energy use. New capping technologies are more efficient and standard materials for capping are expected to be utilized in the least while during the manufacturing processes to minimize carbon emissions.
Customization & flexibility
There are new possibilities in capping technology where manufacturers are introducing different options where the main capping line can be adjusted according to requirements of producers. This incorporates machines that are capable of changing between different cap types or from one size of container to another, in light of the market variation.
Therefore, capping machines are significant for every packing line with numerous industries that use them. Therefore the correct selection of a capper results in increased production, quality products and more minimized costs.