Cartoning machines
A cartoning machine takes flat carton blanks, erects them into cartons, loads product into them and closes them with tucks or glue. Cartoning sits in the packaging station after primary packaging. It takes wrapped bars, bags, pouches, bottles, trays, cups or loose products and puts them into retail cartons, such as a cereal box, a pack of biscuits, a carton of yoghurt pots or a multipack of snack bars. After cartoning, cartons are coded, checkweighed and passed to case packing. A carton protects the product, carries branding and legal information, and often makes the product easier to stack on a shelf. There are three main types. Horizontal end-load cartoners push product into the open end of a carton lying on its side, then close the ends; they are the most common type for food items such as bags, pouches, bars and trays. Vertical top-load cartoners drop product into a carton from above, which suits products that cannot be pushed sideways, such as bottles, cups and heavy or loose items. Wrap-around cartoners fold a flat blank around the product, producing a tight, strong pack, often for cans and bottles. Cartoners may run intermittent motion, where cartons stop at each station, or continuous motion for higher outputs. Robotic loading is increasingly common for mixed or fragile products and for complex pack patterns. Cartoning machines are used for breakfast cereals, biscuits and crackers, confectionery, frozen foods such as pizzas and ready meals, tea, dairy multipacks, snack bars and beverages. Cost and performance depend on speed, the range of carton sizes and styles, how product is fed and loaded, closing method, changeover time, carton board quality and its variation, and integration with upstream machines. Carton blanks vary in stiffness and dimensions, so a machine that runs reliably with real board as delivered, not only with perfect samples, is worth more than its headline speed suggests.
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Buying criteria
Define the product and carton range. Carton sizes, styles, board grades and the way product enters the carton decide between end-load, top-load and wrap-around machines. Check the product infeed. Most stoppages happen where product is collated and loaded. Ask for trials with your product and carton board. Compare changeover time. Tool-free changes, recipe settings and fewer format parts matter if you run many sizes. Consider the closing method. Tuck closures, hot-melt glue and tamper-evident closures affect cost, speed and pack appearance. Look at uptime, access for jam clearing, operator safety, hygiene where product is exposed, and the supplier's service coverage. Ask how the machine copes with carton board from more than one supplier, since variation in board is a common source of stoppages, and what spare parts should be kept on site.
Buyers ask
How much does a cartoning machine cost?
It depends on the cartoner type, speed, carton size range, loading method and closing system. Intermittent-motion end-load cartoners generally cost less than continuous-motion or robotic cartoners. Product collation and feeding systems, glue systems, quick-change features and integrated coding or inspection can add substantially to the price.
What is the difference between end-load and top-load cartoning?
End-load cartoners push product into the open end of a carton lying on its side and suit items that can slide, such as bags, bars and trays. Top-load cartoners drop product into a carton open at the top and suit bottles, cups, heavy or loose products that should not be pushed sideways.
What is a wrap-around cartoner?
A wrap-around cartoner folds a flat carton blank around a group of products and glues it closed. The carton fits tightly, which gives a strong, stable pack and uses board efficiently. It is often used for multipacks of cans, bottles and jars.
Why do cartoning machines jam?
Common causes are variation in carton board stiffness or dimensions, poor carton storage, product arriving out of position, worn suction cups or guides, and incorrect settings after a changeover. Consistent board quality and a well-designed product infeed reduce stoppages.