What to Consider Before Purchasing a Capping Machine

The goal when buying a new capping machine is to find a capping machine that perfectly tightens your caps and fits seamlessly into your production environment. In order to accomplish this, begin by taking a closer look at your caps, bottles, and the work area the capping machine is to be used in.

The perfect place to start is with your caps. Here are some examples of the types of questions that should be considered. How many different sizes and styles of caps do you have? What are the outside diameters of these caps? What are the torque requirements for these caps? Do you have any caps with external features such as sports caps, mist spray caps, yorker caps, dropper caps, trigger spray caps, lotion pump caps or other such caps? Is there anything unique about your containers, such as their size or shape?

Knowing the answers to these questions will allow you and your capping machine supplier to narrow down which capping machines will be best suited for you and will allow you to equip the capping machine with any accessories that will be required.For example, if you have a large cap, such as an 89mm cap, you will require a capping machine capable of tightening large caps as well as the appropriate chuck size to fit an 89mm cap. If you have a trigger spray cap, then you cannot use a chuck capping machine and will instead require a capping machine that can grip the cap at the sides of the cap such as our Pump Cap capping machine or a spindle capping machine. If you have a cap with an external feature such as a yorker cap, then you will require a special chuck called a deepwell chuck to tighten it.

Before purchasing a bottle capping machine, it is helpful to know at least approximately how much torque is required to properly tighten all of your caps. Your cap supplier is the best source for this information.

After you have completed reviewing your cap sizes and determining your torque requirements, give some thought as to how you want the capping machine to fit into your production environment. Here are some examples of the types of questions that should be considered. Do you have a lot of space for the capping machine, or do you have limited space? Do you have compressed air available or will you require a cap torque that runs on electricity? Are you going to use the capping machine on a conveyor or would it be better to place it on a table? Do you have any special requirements such as capping in a clean or sterile environment? A particularly important question to consider is who will be using the capping machine?

After you have examined your caps, bottles, and work environment, you are now ready to start shopping. Make sure the company you purchase your capping machinery from is expert in what they do. If they are, they will be grateful for all of the information you have gathered because it will make their job of providing you with the best capping equipment for your particular needs so much easier. It will also greatly increase the likelihood that your search and purchase of a new capping machine will be a successful one.