Filling machines: indispensable and vital equipment in Pharmaceutical sector

The role of filling machines in the pharmaceutical sector is quite vital and owing to the utilisation, the machines apparently necessitate certain mandatory constraints during the process of packing.  While most of the safety measures relate to the process of filling, the liquid filling machine is one such machine that necessarily requires proper operational environments and equally good maintenance. And most important of all the fillers or the filling machines must be well protected, sanitised and be absolutely free of microbial contamination. Of all the sectors that use fillers to pack their end products excepting food and beverage, pharmaceutical industry is one such sector that demands a high level of hygiene as well, since the end product either will be used for prophylactic purposes or therapeutic purposes, curing a disease, or fight against any infectious conditions. In a nut shell most of the pharmaceutical products are meant for human and animal consumption whether in liquid or solid / tablet form and hence the condition of the filling machine must have a very high level of cleanliness and aseptic condition. The sterile conditions that are exercised on a typical pharmaceutical filling machine is done in order to ensure that the end product or the pharmaceutical preparation does not become contaminated in any way.

Apart from the superficial requirements like maintaining a sterile environment and so on, there are certain other precautions that the filling machines call for. For instance, the pathway in which the product passes through into the container must provide an absolutely even surface thereby averting any product build up and must enable easy cleaning, leak protection and of course external contamination. To achieve this suitable material must be properly chosen. In this regard stainless steel is the metal of choice since the chances of corrosion and rusting is quite less in comparison to the other metals. The next aspect is the tubing in the machinery, wherever possible there are steel tubes fitted but in certain areas flexible pipes must be used, and in order to achieve the necessary performance. Another aspect that should be noted in these filling machines is that these machines use rinse media like water or other permitted liquid cleansers to clean the containers before filling the product. This removes any debris build-up inside the container thereby protecting the container alongside and preventing any possible contamination. Alongside the usual features that the fillers comprise, in the recent years contemporary technology has paved the way for innovations to be included into the existing features to improvise the performance. Companies like Feigeasia in Singapore have been one of the pioneers in the supply and servicing of filling machines. Being an active member of the Haver & Boecker Group and Feige Filling GmbH, Feigeasia has been a leading manufacturer of filling equipment & machines, known for speed, reliability and precision. Feigeasia has a range of fillers for filling liquid and pasty products in container types such as pail filling, cans, drums, conveyor systems or IBC and much more.

Filling Machines: An Essential and Significant gear in Industrial Sector.

Filling machines and their respective principles varies according to the utilities and industry. These filling machines are used to fill different categories of containers ranging from bottles, pouches, vials, cans and drums. Industries like pharmaceuticals, milk re-packing units, soft drinks and various other industries specifically use filling machines with advanced technologies for filling in the relevant products so that the containers in which they are packed or filled. Most of these filling machines are obtainable in manual, semi-automatic and fully automatic variations. While they cater to the precise needs and preferences of the specific industry, they are equally designed to work efficiently deliver best of their results in terms of their performance. Since the speed of filling machines are consistent and high, and hence meeting the demands of industries can be achieved to a great extent.  Ensuring an uninterrupted, smooth workflow they maximize productivity and minimize any possible downtime altogether.

In general filling machines are categorised as per their industry and their relevance and the nature of the product. Going by this categorization filling machines are grouped as liquid fillers, powder fillers and pasty and creamy products filling machines, granule filling machines and so on. While powder fillers are suitable for dry powdery products like sugar, beverages, talcum powder etc. liquid fillers are efficient in products like water, juices, soft drinks, oils, liquid formulations etc. for pasty products like shampoos, creams, toothpaste, ointments etc. relevant filling machines hold good. The collective features of filling machines backed up by the contemporary and advanced technology in order to achieve smart packaging undoubtedly is an invention that can virtually carry the process to the next level. Every day advancements in the filling machine sector is in fact a result of ever increasing challenges and demands that are seen in the industry. In order to cope up with such demands and requirements, the filling machine manufacturing industry strives hard to develop new and cutting-edge solutions that fit in precisely.

Many different sectors employ liquid filling equipment worldwide. Big names in the manufacture of filling machines like Feigeasia have been making great strides in this aspect. With the pride of being a member of the Haver & Boecker Group, Feige Filling GmbH, are a reputed manufacturing giant with a world-wide reputation. High speed, consistency, precision in the process of filling, especially in cases of liquid and pasty products, into containers like pails, can fillingsystems, drums etc. are the speciality of Feigeasia. Filling machines and filling equipment that are manufactured by Feigeasia are employed mainly in food and beverage industry, pharmaceuticals and various other sectors in accordance to the requirements like quality, resources, technological practicality and other variables.

Filling machines: categories and segments they are used in

 

The process of depositing a known or predetermined quantity of the finished product into a suitable container using a mechanized method is in general referred to as filling, and the machinery that is used to carry out this process is called a filler or a filling machine. These machines are usually used for filling various products, such as food and beverage oils, powders, pastes, semisolids, liquids, water, and a number of other products as well. While these machines or fillers are used to fill the products into a bottle, pouch, or any other suitable container, which is totally dependent on the product, suitable types of fillers also have to be selected. Nevertheless, the filling machines that are to be used to fill the products are determined by taking into account certain key factors that are decisive.

These aspects are the nature and state of the product to be filled, the amount of speed at which it has to be filled, the availability of resources, the technology to be implemented, the feasibility of the filler, and other variables. The products all range from simple solids to semi-solids, free-flowing liquids to viscous liquids, hot, warm, cold, or frozen, suggesting that fillers or filling machines must be of maximum flexibility and versatility and should comply with the other regulations as well. Along with various filling machine technologies, which are primarily determined by the nature of the product, These filling machines can be rotary fillers, inline fillers, or continuous filling machines. Further, they may be semi-automatic liquid filling machine or fully automatic liquid filling machine by function.

While each filler or filling machine offers its own unique advantages and can be categorized as agitator fillers, which are intended to fill dry products like flour and sugar, Mechanically speaking, these fillers or filling machines consist of a hopper that retains the mix or the finished product and fills it in a pouch or other suitable container, like a bottle, box, can, sachet, and so on, through an auger conveyor. The container then gets sealed by a series of mechanically automated processes. Flow fillers, or filling machines, are basically designed and built for filling liquids, oils, and similar thin liquids and food products. These filling machines are those kinds of automatic filling machines, or automatic fillers, that are designed to seal the bottle once the filling is over. Likewise, tablet fillers or tablet filling machines fill in the products or tablets by the number of pieces.

Manufacturers of filling machines are apparently experts in filling machine technologies and must be in constant touch with the updated methodologies and technicalities. One such manufacturer is Feigeasia, a leading manufacturer of filling machines with specific expertise in the manufacture of liquid and pasty product filling machines. By combining filling equipment with our conveyor systems and palletizing systems, we can provide comprehensive solutions for fully automatic packaging processes. With their current reputation as a globally recognized manufacturer of filling machines, the company offers filling machines that are well known for speed, reliability, and precision.

Working & mechanism of filling machines in varied sectors

It is a known factor that different types of fillers or filling machines used in different industries for the filling of products that are manufactured, in various containers like cans, vials, sachets, tetra-packs bottles etc. While filling machines are a complex kind of machinery, their working, mechanism and technology accordingly is also sophisticated. Nevertheless, as in case of all the other sectors, the technology of filling machines has also developed over the last few decades. Since most of the industries of different sectors use various filling machines in accordance to the day to day requirement which helps them to achieve better production and thereby fulfil their demands in the market, filling machines or fillers are hence a great help for these companies.

Beginning from the food and beverages, which are those sectors where the filers are used widely, their working principles the filling process are quite interesting and amazing. With the advent of the digital era these filling machines have practically undergone a drastic facelift with respect to their technological knowhow and mechanism to such an extent that the contemporary filling machines are intelligently designed and developed so that they function only when all the parameters and the criteria are met with. The digital filling machines of the present day run through the pre-programmed set of commands and are fool proof with a performance record of 100%. 

While the filling machines are various, liquid fillers are the most widely used. These liquid filling machines basically work on the mechanism of liquid pressure filling technology. With a comparatively high pressure, the liquid that has to be filled is made to flow into the bottle or any other suitable container by virtue of its own mass. Here, the process takes place only when the liquid pressure of the reservoir equalizes the amount of air that is present in the container. Technically these liquid fillers are effectively fortified with advanced filling mechanisms, through which easy control and regulation of the exact amount of the product or the liquid that has to be dispensed into suitable containers can be carried out. Further these machines do not have any necessity to replace parts frequently, thereby saving time and increasing efficiency. We have conveyor systems for drums, containers, pallets, etc...

Like in any other industry, there are manufacturers of filling machines and are considered as one of the highly advanced industrial sector. One among the pioneers in this area is the Feige Filling a consistent and leading manufacturer, seller with a dedicated and dynamic service team for filling machines. Having earned a reputation as the global leading manufacturer of filling machines and filling equipment Feigeasia manufactured filling machines are well known for their high speed, dependability and meticulousness especially in filling of a variety of products like liquids, pasty products and much more. Our liquid filling equipment, fillers, and filling plants are also available for hazardous area application (ATEX).

Different applications of filling machines and its types

 

In manufacturing units especially involved in the manufacturing of food, beverage, pharmaceuticals, and other similar products, a filling machine, which is, in other words, a kind of packing machine that can dependably fill a large volume of suitable containers with particular ingredients to a desired level, is a mandatory undertaking. While discussing filling machines, numerous kinds of filling machines are available. Based on the necessities of the manufacturing unit, which is best suited to meet the needs. The right filling machine must be chosen that can significantly improve the production rate and passively contribute to meeting market demands, thereby boosting sales and enabling the business to grow towards progress. While filling machines are basically classified according to their applications, like powders, liquids, granules, and pastes, filling machines that are used to fill larger containers are usually referred to as drum filling machines. Liquid Filling Machines are normally used in the soft drink and fruit juice manufacturing industries to dispense the desired quantity of the relevant liquid product into suitable bottles, cans, and cups that are capped. These machines are hence used to fill liquids, such as water, various kinds of beverages, carbonated drinks, sauces, and much more. Liquid filling machines are further classified as manual, automatic, and semi-automatic liquid filling machine varieties; they are quite versatile in performance.

While in-line liquid filling equipment fill containers that are placed and supplied in a line through conveyor systems, rotary filling machines are supplied for filling in circular stations and are used to fill bottles, where each station is set to perform a specific function like filling and capping. Piston fillers are used in cases where accuracy is required in pouring liquids into specific containers in a specific quantity, and hence they are used to fill liquid soaps and semi-liquid food products like sauces. Another type of filling machine is the powder filling machine; these fillers are designed and developed in such a way that they are enabled with a complex mechanism that ensures accuracy in their operation. Appropriate for filling free-flowing powdered products, these machines are most suitable for filling talcum powder, certain types of medicines used for external application and dusting, powdered beverages, and more.

Feige Filling is one of the leading manufacturers of filling machines, known for its high speed performance and accuracy. The company is also well known for providing fillers required to fill large pails, drums, and similar containers. Apart from this, Feige Asia has a consistent reputation for dealing with, supplying, and servicing filling machines that include vibratory weigh filling machines, capsule filling machines, and positive displacement pump filling machines that are widely in need in different sectors like the food and pharmaceutical industries.

Automated packaging systems and their impact on a manufacturing unit

 

Any manufacturing sector independent of the product of manufacture critically needs a packaging division for the efficient and safe storage and transportation of the manufactured end product. These packaging systems come in various kinds, depending on the nature of the product that is manufactured. Since the nature or state of the product varies with different industries, the packaging machines also vary along with them. Although the machinery that is used to pack the products is generally called filling machines, they are classified according to the utility and industry in which they are used.

Filling machines are usually determined by the category of product to be filled into which container, the filling speed that is required, quality, and other aspects like shelf life and so on. The manufactured products range from powders to liquids, from solids to semi-solids, from liquids to syrups, from warm to normal temperatures, and from free-flowing liquids to viscous products. Liquids and dry products are the most difficult types of products to be filled accurately, and hence they can either be rotary or inline.

Machines that are semi-automatic liquid filling machines or fully automatic liquid filling machines capable of filling various products are the most commonly used types of machines in this sector. Likewise, advanced filling technologies are needed to cater to a wide range of product variables and user requirements. Once the products are filled into the respective containers, they have to be transported to the warehouse or store. In the warehouse, the packed products have to be moved from one location to another depending on the requirements. In order to achieve this, a suitable conveyor system has to be made available. These conveyor systems are movable belts that are fixed on a specific track so that the packed products, especially those that are packed in bulk and enclosed in cardboard or corrugated boxes, can be easily transported to the desired locations. Palletizing systems are equipment that every manufacturing unit has. These are the systems that help stack packed-up boxes one above the other in a sequence, making it easier to load and unload the bulk packages.

Companies like Feige Filling manufacture filling machines for liquid and pasty products and much more. As a world-wide manufacturer and supplier of filling machines, the machines are known for their high speed, reliability, and precision. Being one of the leading manufacturers of filling equipment for various types of liquid and pasty products, the company provides apt filling technologies for various container sizes and volumes. Providing exceptionally fine-quality machines and equally flexible solutions to meet client needs, Feigeasia has a customised plan for its esteemed clientele.