Stages of the Bottle Capper Process
Filling bottles is one of the main operating aspects before the bottle capper and the packaging. The process system and its complexity vary according to the type of product being bottled, the productivity capacity of the industry, the type of bottle and the closure, apart from many other factors.
That is why we are going to include general information related to the whole bottling process, from preparation to using the bottle capper, suitable for press-to-close and screw-on capping systems. From the reception of bottles to the selling process of the final product, some of these steps may be eliminated or additional steps may be required depending on the needs of the industry.
Bottle capper machinery process
Before getting to the actual bottle capper process, there are other previous steps. Depending on the product, industry and individual manufacturer, these may include:
- Reception of bottles: the material used for making the bottles (e.g. glass or plastic such as PV, PE or PET) should be compatible with the bottle capper.
- Bottle washing: the bottles are subjected to a meticulous washing and sterilization process that guarantees the total hygiene of the packing. In order to achieve that process, industries may use rinses, blowers, deionizing or mixed equipment to clean the bottles with air, sterile air, ozonized water, alcohol, bactericide products, saturated steam, etc. This stage can finish may include a device that electronically inspects the condition of the bottles.
- Bottle filling: the bottles are generally sent to a conveyer belt that places them over movable supports, lifting them from the neck until put they reach the filling tap that doses the liquid into the bottles. In this stage, depending on the characteristics of the products, different dosage processes may be used.
Once these general steps have been completed, the next logical step is applying the closure using the chosen bottle capper equipment.
- Bottle capping: just like with the bottle filling process, there are multiple choices when making the closing. Some of these diverse systems include plastic threads, pressure capping, roll-on, dropper, flex-top, cork, capsules, sealing foil, metallic foil, etc. Of all these choices, two systems are more widely used than the others. These are:
- Press-to-close system: consists of a feeder system that puts the caps on by pressing them with plugs.
- Screw closure: has a coupled system with the rest of the machine that fits any format and bottle design.
