Form-fill-seal machines
A form-fill-seal machine forms a bag or pouch from flat film, fills it with product and seals it in one continuous cycle. Form-fill-seal machines sit at the heart of the packaging station. On a snack or frozen food line the product is portioned by a multihead weigher, auger filler or volumetric doser mounted directly above or beside the machine, the machine makes and seals the pack, and the finished packs move on to checkweighing, metal detection and case packing. Because the pack is made from a reel of film on the machine, form-fill-seal packaging avoids buying and storing pre-made bags. There are two main families. Vertical form-fill-seal machines pull film over a forming collar and around a vertical tube, seal it along its length, and then seal and cut across the bottom and top of each bag as product drops through the tube. They make pillow bags, gusseted bags, block-bottom and quad-seal bags, and are the standard for chips, snacks, frozen vegetables, coffee, powders and grains. Horizontal form-fill-seal machines work with film running horizontally and include flow wrappers and machines that make stand-up and shaped pouches, often with zippers or spouts. Thermoforming form-fill-seal machines heat a bottom film, form it into trays, fill them and seal a lid film on top, and are common for meat, cheese and ready meals. Machines may run intermittent motion, where the film stops for each seal, or continuous motion, where the film keeps moving and the sealing jaws travel with it, allowing higher speeds. Many lines add gas flushing with nitrogen or a gas mix to protect product from oxygen, as well as date coding, labelling and seal inspection. Cost and performance are driven by speed, the range of bag sizes and styles, the film types the machine can seal reliably, changeover time, seal quality and leak rate, gas-flush capability and integration with the weigher or filler. Film is a large running cost, so a machine that uses film efficiently and makes few rejects saves money every shift.
Where it sits in the line
Featured Partner slot · open
Be the maker buyers see first on this page
Compare models
No sourced models yet. Makers: list yours.
Buying criteria
Define the packs first: bag or pouch style, size range, film structure, gas flushing and features such as zippers or hang holes. The pack decides between vertical, horizontal and thermoforming machines. Check speed on your own product and film. Rated speeds depend on product, bag length and film; ask for trials with your weigher or filler. Focus on seal quality. Leaking seals waste product and shorten shelf life. Ask how the machine controls sealing temperature, pressure and time, and how it handles product in the seal area. Compare changeover time between bag sizes and films, film waste on start-up, operator access, hygiene and the supplier's local service and spare parts support. Ask too how easily the forming set can be changed for a new bag width, and whether the machine can run the recyclable films your customers may ask for in future.
Buyers ask
How much does a form-fill-seal machine cost?
It depends on whether it is vertical, horizontal or thermoforming, the speed, the bag styles it makes and the options fitted. Continuous-motion machines, gas flushing, zipper applicators, quick-change forming sets and integrated coding and inspection all raise the price. The weigher or filler above the machine is usually a separate cost.
What is the difference between vertical and horizontal form-fill-seal?
A vertical form-fill-seal machine makes bags around a vertical tube and fills them by gravity as product drops through, which suits free-flowing products like chips and frozen vegetables. A horizontal machine runs film horizontally and suits individual items, stand-up pouches and products that cannot be dropped.
What is gas flushing in packaging?
Gas flushing replaces the air in a pack with nitrogen or a gas mix before sealing. Removing oxygen slows oxidation and staling, and the gas cushion protects fragile products like chips. It is often called modified atmosphere packaging.
Why do form-fill-seal bags leak?
Common causes are product caught in the seal area, the wrong sealing temperature, pressure or time for the film, worn or dirty sealing jaws, film quality problems and poor film tracking. Seal inspection and regular jaw maintenance help catch and prevent leaks.