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This analysis deals primarily with
lower capacity cosmetic fillers used by small to medium sized companies
and excludes high speed rotary cosmetic fillers typically found only in
the mass market. The cosmetic fillers discussed here
are also used throughout all industries including food, beverage, chemical,
cosmetic and pharmaceutical but at lower speeds; usually less than 200 containers per minute.
In fact, most of the market for cosmetic fillers in terms of units sold is for semi automatic
equipment that operates at speeds not exceeding 20 containers per
minute.
No one type of cosmetic filler can handle all liquids in the cosmetic industry.
For example, a machine that fills thin cosmetic products usually cannot fill cosmetic
cold cream. The choice of cosmetic filler depends on
the range of viscosities, temperature, chemical compatibility,
particulate size, and foam characteristics. Each one of the machines below is discussed with its
strengths and weaknesses and range of best suited applications. |
Overflow cosmetic fillers
This type of filler is perhaps the most widely used
machine in small bottle filling operations because it handles a
wide range of thin, free flowing liquids as well as liquids with
medium viscosity. This machine is also commonly referred to as a
"fill to level" cosmetic filler or cosmetic height filler. This
means that machine fills to a target fill height in the
container rather than volumetrically. But it can also be shown
that as long as the container specification do not vary greatly,
the volumetric accuracy of this machine is excellent.
Because this filler operates in a closed loop basis, it is also
ideal for handling foamy products. The Examples of
products that work well in this filler are bottled water, liquid
soap, motor oil, cleansers and even some dairy products. It can
be constructed in both chemical duty versions as well as
sanitary versions capable of filling pasteurized products at
high temperatures.
This machine is relatively low cost and easy to use. However it
is generally not useable for products with viscosities greater
than 25000 centipose or products that have any particulates
exceeding approximately 1/16" diameter.
Click here for a
guide to selecting overflow cosmetic fillers. |
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Servo Pump cosmetic fillers
This is a very versatile cosmetic filler capable of
filling nearly any type of product that can be pumped. Each
nozzle has a dedicated servo controlled pump that can deliver
thin liquids, medium and thick viscosity liquids, and liquids
with large particulates. Because it is so
versatile, it is often purchased by contract packagers who never
know what their next filling challenge is going to be. Examples
of the range of products that can be run on this machine include
soaps, butters, astringents, oils etc. etc.
The challenges of this machine are its high capital cost and the
ability of the owner to conduct normal maintenance on a more
sophisticated machine. Positive displacement pumps are expensive and so are servo
controlled drive systems. Troubleshooting and maintenance
requires reasonably competent technical level. However, if
affordable, this type of filler is an outstanding choice for
nearly any type of filling operation.
Click here for a guide to selecting servo
cosmetic fillers. |
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Piston
cosmetic fillers
The piston filler is one of the oldest and most
reliable types of fillers used in the packaging industry. This
cosmetic filler is best suited for viscous products that are
paste or semi paste. Piston fillers are primarily built to meet
food grade standards and commonly fill heavy sauces, salsas,
salad dressings, cosmetic creams, heavy shampoo, gels, and
conditioners.
The machine works by a simple principle; The piston is drawn
back in its cylinder so that the product is sucked into the
cylinder. A rotary valve then changes position so that the
product is then pushed out of the nozzle instead of back into
the hopper. The volume of the product that is sucked into the
cylinder is the precise volume that will be dispensed into the
container.
The advantage of this type of filing machine is that involves
conventional mechanical technology that is easy to understand
for most users. It is also the most cost effective, accurate and
fastest way to fill fairly thick products. Although more costly
than overflow and time gravity systems discussed above, it costs
less than the servo pump filler is still the most cost effective
cosmetic filler for thick products.
There are several disadvantages this type of filler. It is
practically speaking, NOT suitable for thin products because the
mechanical characteristics and clearances of the machine parts
allow for leaks on thin products that do not occur on thicker
products. The other major disadvantage of this machine is that
if there are multiple product and container size changes
involved, the cleanup and "tweaking" processes are tedious and
time consuming. Lastly, there is a finite range of fill volumes
per piston set that can be run on the machine. An operator who
needs to fill both gallon containers as well as 8 oz containers
will find they cannot run the 8 oz containers accurately using
gallon or half gallon piston sets. (This is where the servo pump
filler is superior)
Click here for a guide to selecting
piston cosmetic fillers. |
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Net
Weigh cosmetic fillers
This type of filler is best suited for liquids filled
in bulk quantities e.g. 5 gallon pails, etc. or smaller quantity
products that have a very high manufactured value. Oftentimes
there are products that must be sold by weight for commercial
reasons and therefore this cosmetic filler is the only choice.
Examples of this type of filler for bulk products include
cleaning chemicals, enzyme solutions, oils and other medium
value products. High value products filled by these machines
include specialty adhesives and paints, precious metals
dissolved in acids, and other expensive specialty chemicals.
The operation of this type of cosmetic filler is simple. The
product bulk supply is pumped into a holding tank above a
pneumatically operated valve. The valve opens and real time net
weight information is monitored until the target weight is
achieved. The valve simply shuts when the target weight is
achieved. Accuracy of fills is accomplished by various "bulk and
dribble" methods in the filling process so that overfills are
avoided.
The advantage of this cosmetic filler over others is that it is
sometimes the only practical (and legal) type of filling for a
limited range of applications and for large volume fills. It is
also very accurate and effectively provides its own quality
control assuming the scale is functioning properly. The
disadvantage of this type of cosmetic filler is that it is very
expensive per filling head and it is also a relatively slow
method of filling into a container. For these reasons, the use
of this filling technology is limited to the examples outlined
above.Click here for a guide to selecting
net weight cosmetic fillers. |
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