Accutek

Ryan, If the shrink oven is built to shrink capsules it will certainly shrink PVC but not the other way around. As Kristian mentioned - we spin / rotate the container at higher line speeds. At lower speeds (<80 bottles per minute) we don't need to rotate with our shrink ovens. The point of rotation is to put heat on the capsule from all directions for even shrink. If the dwell time is great enough inside a properly designed oven, you don't need to spin. PVC will shrink at a much lower temp and can shrink up to 60% of its' original size. Capsules reqire much higher temp and are designed to shrink about 15%.

Smoog - The semi-auto labeler from Label One is priced appropriately for the market. I've never seen one in person but it looks well made. I can certainly understand the need to save money by purchasing a machine from China but keep in mind that the customer support, language barrier, lead time, and availability of spare parts is usually an issue. The stories I've heard would probably change your mind. Better to go with a manufacturer that can support the machine. This will make up for the cost savings in a short time. Even though the machine is semi-auto I think the value is still there. Accurately placing your label onto the container is very important. It is the first thing people see in the retail environment and if the label is not on straight, the consumer is bound to think the product is lower quality too. This machine will speed up your production and as long as it works well, you'll realise the ROI quickly.

Ryan, We manufacture both steam and electric shrink ovens. Our electric ovens emulate steam by using a PID Controller and haev low energy usage by recirculating the hot air from the inside. Both oven types have their advantages and disadvantages. Let me know if you need some more specific info. I am very familiar with the Generic steam tunnel. They are a direct competitor of ours. I think we have more familiararity with shrink systems since we've been doing it for over 20 years. Generic does not have the same experience but a steam tunnel is a steam tunnel. They do not manufacture electric ovens.

Ryan, It's really going to depend on your throughput. If you are running slow - less than 10 bottles per minute, a heat gun may be completely acceptable. Once you are running faster then you can look into a heat / shrink tunnel. The next question is the thickness of your capsules. An inexpensive hear tunnel that takes in ambient air and heats it up on the way to the container are in the price range you mentioned. These work great for thin capsules or tamper evident bands. The next step up is a recirculating heat tunnel that uses radiant and convection heat to shrink up thicker capsules or for higher speed applications. These types of tunnels will typically recirculate the hot air from inside the tunnel so they can achieve higher temps and are more energy efficient. Some capsules or even higher speed applications also require the container to be rotated during the shrink process or multiple ovens to ensure even shrink.

There are two types of thoughts on the filling process for spirits. The most typical filling application for spirits is called overflow. Overflow filling fills to a mechanical or visual fill level and has nothing to do with the actual volume of the container. This is the most common because lots of spirits are filled in glass containers which can vary greatly on their interior volume due to the imperfection of glass manufacturing. That's why all the fill levels look identical on the retail shelf. The spirits manufacturer / filling department will do an analysis of the volume variation in the containers and find the lowest interior volume, fill that container to the reported level (750ml) and then match the mechanical or visual fill level on the other nozzles. Most bottles will be slightly overfilled but none will be under filled. Volumetric filling means a specific volume will be placed into the container. This is fine if the consumer can't see the liquid inside or they are filling in plastic which is much more consistent. The upside is there are no over or under fills. The down side is the visual fill volumes are all over the place. If you are filling the same consistent container or can't see the fill level then you can go with volumetric. If you are filling anything where the consumer can see the liquid level then overflow is better. There is one small segment that isn't exactly overflow but still fills to a mechanical or visual fill level and that's siphon filling. It is a very inexpensive and low tech way of filling. The fill level is set by adjusting the depth of the nozzle in the container and the product is literally siphoned into the container from a gravity tank through the nozzle into the container. The result is the same as overflow filling - an identical visual fill level - but not volume. Gravity filling has nothing to do with filling principle - it's basically what type of pressure gets the liquid into the container. You can provide this pressure using gravity, vacuum, or pump. Gravity fillers are commonly used in older technology fillers because it was one less explosion proof or hazardous location motor that had to be purchased for a pump delivery system. Today there are pneumatic pumps that work quite well and EXP motors are not as expensive as they once were.

+1 for Aro and look at Wilden.

Hey Neil, This question is going to be up to your local authorities. I've installed lots of spirits packaging lines and have not seen this requirement from any of our customers. Typically the majority of the plastic body types available for Air Diaphragm pumps are made from food grade materials. Threaded connection points are also a sticking point for FDA inspectors but usually not until you get into hot pack food environments or dairy environments. Threaded connections for you should be fine. As long as the body and elastomers are rated for your process (temp) and product (chemical compatibility) you should be fine. Don't forget to check on the chemical compatibility of your cleaners and sanitizing products!

For hazardous environments an Air Diaphragm pump is the way to go. Inexpensive, all kinds of sizes (gallons per minute rating) available and all types of elastomers available. PTFE (Teflon) are usually more expensive than silicone or other elastomers. Verify chemical compatibility with the product your pumping AND the cleaning / sanitizing products you are going to use when selecting the elastomers in the pump. Also be aware of the product temp you are going to pump. Different body materials can handle different temp ranges. Air Diaphragm pumps are not built for pumping liquids with particulates. The particulates can cause the check valves in the pump to not seal. If your mash doesn't have particulates, then you can use the diaphragm pump for this operation. A centrifugal pump may be a better choice. If you have particulates then you may have to use a flexible impeller or lobe pump. Lobe pumps are much more expensive and Waukesha is about the most expensive. Flexible impeller pumps are pretty straight forward and come in a wide range of elastomers (impeller) and sizes (gpm).

Accutek manufactures all types of semi-auto, auto, and high speed rotary fillers, cappers, and labelers. Please call us if you have any questions. Even if you decide to purchase something used, I am more than willing to take a look and give you some honest feedback! www.accutekpackaging.com

+ 1 for Will - just make sure you check the elastomers and body for temp rating and chemical compatibility prior to purchase.

E-mail sent to you Marty and Bob.

Arthur, Here are some common questions that can get us into the ball park of what kind of machine you need: Are you labeling round or non-round containers? Are your labels pressure sensitive (a sticker) or are they paper labels (requires a hot glue labeler)? What are the dimensions of your containers (diameter or L x H x W) and labels? Are you labeling a front and back label that are on the same web and how do you plan on registering the front label to the back label (on a round bottle)? Small runs = usually means semi-automatic or hand feeding the containers into the machine - please verify. Of please feel free to call or e-mail if you have any questions!

Pete - The temp of your CIP will depend on the chemicals you are using. Your chem supplier should be able to provide contact time v. temp needed to achieve the desired result. Typical CIP applications use hot CIP to decrease the contact time required. When CIPing a tank, it is typically a close loop system. The drain on the tank will supply the pump which will pump through the spray ball. You fill the tank with the appropriate volume of water (usually hot) and add the chems, check your fluid path, open the drain and turn on the pump. You will let the closed loop cycle for the predetermined amount of time. The pump type used will be determined by a few factors: Gallons per minute rating (at a specific head height), temp requirement, chemical compatibility for the seals / elastomers in the pump v. the product(s) you are pumping. You mention 50psi - this would indicate that you want to use an Air Diaphragm Pump. This is an excellent choice for a multi purpose pump that can operate in a hazardous (explosion proof) area. They are typically inexpensive, require very little maintenance and are washdown. Make sure that you really check out the chemical compatibility of the pump body, the diaphragm and the checks and seats on the pump. You will also most likely require a S.S. body to accomodate the heat. A more typical pump used in CIP applications is a centrifugal pump. You should get one with a washdown motor if you go this route. These are dependable pumps that are easy to understand and still affordable - BUT if you require the pump to operate in a hazardous environment, adding an EXP motor to this pump drives the cost WAY up.

You'll have to look into federal and state weights and measures rules but the majority of the industry uses overflow or fill to level type fillers. You will need to look at your containers and do some testing to find out what the target volume is based on several containers to find an acceptable fill level. Some containers will have a bit more volume and some a bit less. Weights and measures allows for an acceptable window.

Nick, Accutek is an equipment manufacturer located in San Diego, CA. We have lots of new machinery in stock and ready to ship. You can check out our web site at: http://www.accutekpackaging.com/ Please e-mail or call if you have any questions - I'd be glad to assist. In a previous post, I talked about filling glass containers - typically this is accomplished with a fill to level style machine due to the volume inconsistencies found in glass containers. A fill to level machine such as a pressure overflow or vacuum filler will fill to the same "visual" fill level regardless of the internal volume of the glass. A volumetric filler (like the piston filler mentioned above) is a volumetric filler that will fill a specific volume. When a volumetric fill is used to fill glass, any internal volume inconsistencies in the glass will be apparent as the visual fill level will be different from container to container. The labeler you are looking for - do you need front and back? If front and back, are the labels registered (to the container shape or each other)? Is the container round or non-round? I can certainly understand attraction to the lower cost of purchasing a used filler but please keep in mind that the machine will be sold as is, will not carry a warranty, the original manufacturer may be out of business or may not be able to support the piece of equipment. Before you purchase a used piece, I would recommend getting the serial number, calling the OEM, and verifying the support available. It may actually lead to greater cost if key components need to be replaced or tooling / change parts need to be changed to support your specific container - not so much in semi-auto equipment but for sure in automatic equipment. If you have any questions on a specific manufacturer or machine, please feel free to give me a call or e-mail. I'll give you an honest opinion on quality and price and we may even be able to support another manufacturer's machinery.

Shaun, Accutek is an equipment manufacturer located in San Diego, CA. We have lots of new machinery in stock and ready to ship. You can check out our web site at: http://www.accutekpackaging.com/ Please e-mail or call if you have any questions - I'd be glad to assist. In a previous post, I talked about filling glass containers - typically this is accomplished with a fill to level style machine due to the volume inconsistencies found in glass containers. A fill to level machine such as a pressure overflow or vacuum filler will fill to the same "visual" fill level regardless of the internal volume of the glass. A volumetric filler (like the piston filler mentioned above) is a volumetric filler that will fill a specific volume. When a volumetric fill is used to fill glass, any internal volume inconsistencies in the glass will be apparent as the visual fill level will be different from container to container. I can certainly understand attraction to the lower cost of purchasing a used filler but please keep in mind that the machine will be sold as is, will not carry a warranty, the original manufacturer may be out of business or may not be able to support the piece of equipment. Before you purchase a used piece, I would recommend getting the serial number, calling the OEM, and verifying the support available. It may actually lead to greater cost if key components need to be replaced or tooling / change parts need to be changed to support your specific container - not so much in semi-auto equipment but for sure in automatic equipment. If you have any questions on a specific manufacturer or machine, please feel free to give me a call or e-mail. I'll give you an honest opinion on quality and price and we may even be able to support another manufacturer's machinery.

Pete, We manufacture a 2 head semi-automatic pressure overflow filler that we commonly sell for this type of application. Machine starts at about $6k. This is a heavy duty machine on a S.S. base and includes a beverage grade pump and very easy to use controls with job memory. Here's a link: http://www.accutekpackaging.com/products.php?model=SAPOF-Series Please contact me if you would like more detailed information. Accutek equipment is manufactured in the U.S. and we regularly ship to Australia. Keep in mind when filling glass containers, you would typically use a fill to level style machine such as an overflow or vacuum style filler. Glass containers are typically NOT the same actual volume on the inside due to variatino in thickness of the glass, ect.. Fill to level machines fill to a physical or visual fill level based on the position of the nozzle in the container. This fill theory will allow you to have the same "visual" fill level despite the actual volume in the container. A volumetric filler (like the piston filler mentioned above) fill a specific volume. You will see a variation in the visual fill level of the container will using a volumetric filler. This may not be what you or your customers are looking for when looking at the containers on the shelf.

Bob, Quicklabel is one of the print on demand companies that have been around the longest. I have lots of customers who use this brand and have great success. There are also other manufacturers to research. When you request a quote for the printer, ask for a commonly used spare parts list AND a price list for the consumables (color film rolls, ect..). There may be a large discrepancy in cost of the consumables that you may not realize until you've already purchased the unit. The last thing I would verify on any print on demand unit is a trigger input. If in the future, you decide to automate, an automatic label applicator (the machine that actually puts the label onto the container) can be coupled to your print on demand printer but the labeler will utilize this trigger input to print one more label as one label is applied. It is very common for us to couple an on demand printer with one of our automatic labelers. The primary purpose - that I've seen - for purchasing a print on demand printer is to utilize pre-printed label stock. The pre-printed label stock will be the common information that you can utilize across all of your brands - it may have warnings, contact info, logo ect.. and the print on demand printer will then print the specifics - usually in color - for each individual label. This will save in consumable cost for the printer and lower your overall COGS.

+1 on using Air Diaphragm pumps. Just make sure the elastomers AND the body of the pump are chemically compatible with the product AND the cleaning solutions you are using. Here's a link to a chemical compatibility chart: http://www.accutekpackaging.com/chem_resistance_chart.pdf

This reply is related to the packaging line only! The last few spirits packaging lines we have built for customers vary greatly based on what local codes and the knowledge of those codes are. Some customers have required Class 1 Div 1 and some are Class 1 Div 2. Some customers didn't care what the codes were and either weren't inspected, didn't have any special requirements or ... When we manufacture packaging equipment, most is available in a few formats. 1. All pneumatic - meets Class 1 Div 1/2 requirements but has less advanced features and can be trickier to control / set up. 2. Intrinsically safe - we place the control package and all the electronics in a remote location control box or pressurize the electrical enclosures. This option doesn't add a whole lot more to the project and meets most fire marshal's requirements. 3. Do nothing. Standard machine. Some machines cannot be manufactured to Class 1 / Div 1/2 standards due to the incredible cost - machinery like labelers, case erectors, shrink tunnels ect... In this case the customer will have a specific area that is classified for Hazardous Environment and place the filler and capper in this area and all the extra equipment either upstream or downstream outside this "area". The hazardous area typically is very well ventilated area. Worst case scenario requires a cinder block room that has a weak exterior wall that will "blow out" in case there is an explosion. This insanely high cost type environment is typically only used by highly volatile filling operations such as Isoproply Alcohol or acetone based products. Bottom line is you can find out what the codes are going to require before hand and work with the packaging machinery manufacturer to meet those codes or purchase the packaging machinery and work around the requirements after the fact. Keep in mind that it is more expensive to rework a piece of machinery after it has already been delivered.

+1 on the reinforced water activated packaging tape. We use this kind of tape when we ship heavy parts to our customers. The shipping companies don't really read the "fragile" or "this way up" labels so the water activated tape is the way to go - particularly when closing boxes that have heavier contents. Glue doesn't really come into the picture until you get into automatic case erectors / drop packers / and other forms of automation on the back end of the line. The glue is usually heated - Nordson is the primary brand used on these types of machines.

+1 @ Denver Distiller - Keeping 5 gallons or so of a previous batch of yeast is an excellent way to start your next fermentation or to get a new batch propped up for a future fermentation cycle. A 5 gallon hopper / tank that can be sealed (air tight is not required nor desired) and placed in a cold room until it is needed can save time and money. As long as the yeast is stored correctly and no unwanted yeast strains get into the batch, the flavor profile supplied by the yeast should be consistent for many generations. White Labs is an excellent source of yeast as well as information. If you need help putting together a storage tank or a propagation tank, feel free to contact me for an assist! Disclaimer - I was a Pro Brewer and the Production Manager @ White Labs.

Aloha Dave, I'm glad to hear it worked out. Please let me know if you need anything else or have any other packaging questions!

Dave, Looks like an old price gun dispenser. If you had a longer label I guess you could pull the trigger multiple times until it the dispense length was appropriate - unless that is an adjustment I can't see in any of their videos.

Hey Dave, No such thing (that I've seen) as a hand held label applicator. The closest thing I can think of is a label dispenser - the unit dispenses one label at a time and when you remove the label that is ready, it spits out and separates from the backing the next label. We are not the manufacturer of this machine but I have only heard positive things about them: http://www.take-a-label.com/label-dispensers/semi-automatic/