Everything About Automatic Capsule Filling Machine

Finding cGMP-certified automatic capsule filling solutions that meet your business need is a critical investment. You should invest in a capsule filler that guarantee scalability, high filling precision, and optimal production.

This can only be possible if you have the right information. A reason this guide explores all the vital information about fully automatic capsule filling machines – from the target market, benefits, classification criteria to working principle.

Therefore, before you invest in your next pharmaceutical capsule filler, read this guide:

Why Invest in Automatic Capsule Filler Machine

Ideally, these high-speed capsule filling machines offer many benefits in both pharmaceutical and supplements industry. By focusing on industry-leading capsule filling efficiency, your factory will:

• Attain high production with filling speed of over 100,000 capsules per hour
• High precision due to accurate capsule dosing thereby reducing product wastage and capsule rejection rate, while optimizing the entire process
• Fully automated capsule fillers reduce production cost in terms of labor requirements and filling accuracy
• Handle different product formulations from powder, pellets or granules

Who Can Invest in Automatic Capsule Fillers

Unlike manual capsule filling machine and semi-automatic capsule fillers, these are industrial capsule filling equipment designed for large scale capsule filling processes. Among the key industries that have benefited from high speed capsule fillers include:

• Pharmaceutical industry – With pharmaceutical capsule filler, you can package drug excipients, or active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) inform of powder, pellets or small tablets in capsules.
• Beauty and Cosmetic Industry – There are many cosmetics products inform of creams, liquid or creams you can fill in empty capsules.
• Nutraceutical industry– Many supplements, and herbal extracts are available in capsules which offer a reliable packaging solution.

Although there could be other areas where you can use fully automatic capsules fillers, these are the three main industries that benefit from these machines. But more importantly, you must work with a reliable automatic capsule filling machine manufacturer if you want quality.

At SaintyCo, all our fully automated capsule fillers feature modern technology and are fully compliant with the FDA 21 CFR Part 11 and conform to the cGMP requirements. Trusted by global pharmaceutical companies, our capsule fillers guarantee high precision even in large scale products.

For more information, check SaintyCo capsule filling machine models’ catalogue.

Types of Automatic Capsule Fillers

Fully automatic capsule filling machines come in many configurations and designs. From turret-based capsule filling to rotary die encapsulation process, you can choose from a wide range of technologies available.

Remember, all these variables will ultimately determine the final price of capsule filler machines. Broadly, we can classify the fully automatic capsule fillers based on production capacity, types of capsules and filling technology.

Let’s explore these three pillars so that you get this classification right:

· Based on Production Capacity

This is quite straightforward – you must determine the capsule filling machine output capacity. That is, the filling speed in terms of capsules per hour.

Now, even as you evaluate the capsule filling capacity, it is critical to remember that there are few variable that determines the machine’s capability. That is, you must clearly outline:

• Intended production capacity – In case you are planning to expand your production in future, scalability will be an important variable here.
• Machine design – It focuses on the capsule filling machines parts that directly affect the rate of production. These include the dosing station, capsule filling technology and degree of automation.
• External variables – Here, you will consider the type of material to fill in the capsule and the size of your capsules

With this in mind, you can therefore classify different types of capsule filling machines having fully automated systems as:

Even as you focus on the production capacity, the type of material you will in the empty capsules also plays an important role here. Take for example:

• SaintyCo AdvantaFill CF75–Output for powder is 36,000 to 75,000 capsules/hour while for pellet is 18,000 to 57,000 capsules/hour.
• SaintyCo PrimafillCF48 – Pellet filling output is 9,000 to 34,000 capsules/hour while powder filling output is 18,000 to 50,000 capsules/hour.

Therefore, even as you choose your capsule filler based on production capacity, you must consider the variables we have mentioned above.

· Types of Capsules

In most cases, the focus is always on empty capsule filling machines. But this, we are only referring to two-piece capsules or hard gelatin capsules. These are capsules you can separate into two.

That is, your capsule filler will rectify, then filly empty capsules after which the two sections are joined together.

If these are the types of capsules you will fill, then there are specific machines to handle such operations based on their designs. They are mainly turret and dosing disc capsule filling machines.

Alternatively, we have the Softgel capsules. These hermetically sealed capsules require a unique capsule filling technology. They use rotary die encapsulation technology. That is, as the die rotates, the machine fills and cuts Softgel capsules.

Here, you will require special Softgel encapsulation machines alongside other vital accessories such as tumbler dryers and try dryers before processing the capsules further. The critical part here is to dry Softgel capsules before additional processing. A good example is SaintyCo Aprila SG100 for Softgel capsules encapsulation.

But this is not all – capsule sizes also matter. Capsules sizes vary which may also require unique automatic capsule fillers. Empty capsule sizes may vary from #000, #0, all the way to #3.

At times, you may require micro-dosing which will require mainlydosator capsule filling machine. A uniquely designed dosator system can handle as low as < 50 mg. This is critical when you want to handle granulated powder.

In short, the types of automatic capsule filler also depends on the type and size of capsules.

· Capsule Filling Technology

Whenever you are buying automatic capsule filling machine, it is also important to focus on the technology. Whether it is the encapsulation technology or just the normal tamping pin, all these will affect the overall machine design.

Furthermore, the capsule filling machine parts will also vary depending on the dosing technology. This also applies to the changeover parts and tooling kits for the capsule filling machines.

The most common types of fully automatic capsule filling machine based on technology include:

· Powder or Granules Capsule Filling Technologies

If you plan to use two piece capsules, hard gelatin capsules or empty vegetarian capsules, then your capsule filler feature:

• Automatic dosator capsule filling technology
• Automatic tamping pin capsule filling technology.

Dosator Capsule Filling Machines

In dosator capsule filling systems, the machine will force the “dosator tooling system” into the powder. Once in the powder, the cavity in the dosator will be filled with the right quantity of material.

Depending on the design, the dosator fills the cavity either through suction or compression. Next, what follows is the retraction stage where the dosator tool moves upwards.

With the powder in the cavity, the machine removes excess powder. Lastly, it will eject the powder in an empty capsule ready for other processes.

But when exactly should you choose an automatic dosator capsule filling machine?

• Whenever you’re focusing on microdosing applications
• You intend to achieve high precision
• Working with free-flowing materials (powder or granules)

Tamping Pin Capsule Filling Machines

Alternatively, you may choose fully automatic capsule filling machines with a tamping pin capsule filling technology.

Here, the tooling system compacts powder or granules in different stages. The stages may range from 1 to 5.

As the capsule filling machine dosing plate rotates, the first tamping pinwill compress material at a specified depth. This varies depending on the machine design.

In a sequential manner, as the dosing disc rotates, the other pins will keep compressing material to a predetermined depth. The result is a fully compacted material, where the machine scraps excess powder or granules. Finally, it will eject compressed powder into an empty capsule.

But, having said that, it is important to note that fully automatic tamping pin capsule filling machines are suitable for:

• Materials that are either fluffy, or sticky, with known non-free flowing properties
• Best for high capsule filling speeds
• Offer improved densification especially for light powder

· Liquid Capsule Filling Technology

In case you are starting or expanding Softgel capsules factory, then choose machine with the ability to fill liquid or semi-liquid substances.

Unlike the other two automated capsule filling machines, the technology here is slightly different. That is, these machines use what we call rotary die encapsulation process.

In Softgel capsule filling, there are three critical stages:

• Forming ribbon – Unlike the two-piece capsules, here you will have hermetically sealed capsules. That is, the molten gelatin spread to form continuous ribbon which flows over a rotating die tooling system.
• Ejecting fill material – As the gelatin ribbon passes between the rotating die system, the encapsulation machine ejects the fill material that is then trapped in the die cavity. At this stage, the machine encapsulates, seals and ejects capsules for other processes. It is also worth noting that the shape of soft gelatin capsules will resemble the patterns in the die cavities.
• Drying – The encapsulated capsules move to the drying chamber to remove excess moisture before packaging.

In short, whenever you are shopping for any capsules filling machine, you must know:

• Your intended production capacity (number of capsules per hour)
• Types of capsules you want to use
• Material you would like to fill in empty capsules

Key Parts and Components

For these fully automatic systems to function, it requires careful coordination of many parts and components. Although capsule filling machine parts vary from every piece of equipment, the main types include:

How Automatic Capsule Filling Machine Works

At this juncture, you already have an idea of how automatic capsule filling machines work. Therefore, to put all that into perspective, we will have a quick summaryof the working principle of capsule filler.

Broadly, we have capsule fillers for liquid or paster products. Then one that can fill powder or granules. Well, the two machines have unique working principles as you will see below:

How Two-piece Capsule Filler Work

Ideally, the fundamental principle here involves separating the empty capsules, filling, sealing then ejecting for other processes. We can summarize the entire process as:

• Load capsules and material to fill in the machine hopper
• Power ON the machine & set system parameters (If possible, you can run some software checks to ensure the machine operated optimally)
• Empty capsules orientations and rectification – the machine orients empty capsules, ready for separation. This ensures the capsule body and capsule cap are in the right position.
• Separating empty capsules – It separates capsule body from capsule cap, leaving a cavity to fill your products.
• Filling empty capsules with the right material – Using either dosator filling technology or tamping pin technology, with the help of turret and dosing disc, the machine compresses material then ejects in empty capsule.
• Rejoin filled capsules – Fully filled capsules are then joined together (Fixing capsule cap to the body and tightly “locking”).
• Eject filled capsules ready for secondary operations – Filled capsules leave through the discharge chute for other processes such as capsule polishing and capsules packaging.

How Softgel Encapsulation Machine Works

According to pharmaceutical manufacturing standards, these capsule fillers adopt unique technology. Technology makes them a perfect choice for liquid capsule filling.

By the end of the process, you get one-piece gelatin capsules with either pure liquid or liquid with semi-solid composition. It is one of the most common capsule filling technologies in the nutraceutical and pharmaceutical industries.

But how exactly does these automatic capsule fillers work?

• Machine formulates, conditions and forms a continuous gelatin ribbon
• Most of these machines use servo-driven piston fillers as part of the dosing system.
• As the two gelatin ribbon pass through the two rolling die systems, the machine doses fill material between the ribbon.
• Remember, the two ribbons converge at the die roll system. These die molds have specific shapes that determine the final design of Softgel capsule.
• With the help of vacuum pressure, the machine pushes gelatin into the die cavity, while the dosing system dispenses fill material in the cavities.
• Once filled, the rotary cutter removes excess material as the fully sealed Softgel capsules move to multi-stage drying tunnels.
• Depending on Softgel capsule formulation, it can take about 16 to 24 hours to remove excess moisture.

Choosing the Right Capsule Filler Based Technical Specifications

The knowledge on how fully automatic capsule filler machine works, parts and technology must not be ultimate basis for choosing the machine. You must understand the technical parameters that will ensure your capsule filler achieves the desired output.

More importantly, the capsule filling machine price entirely depends on the technical specifications. In the table below, we summarize all possible technical information to look for when choosing a fully automatic capsule filler.

Note: These specifications will vary depending on the machine model. It is to give you an overview of what to expect in capsule fillers. Consequently, you may choose a combination of parameters that meet your production requirements.

Even with all these always ensure you get the product manual, and it must comply with your user requirement specification (URS). Besides, you must conduct factory acceptance test (FAT).

Additionally, always get trained personnel to install the machines for you.

Why Choose SaintyCo Capsule Fillers

Supported by years of R&D, SaintyCo capsule filling machines are designed, and assembled to meet high performance standards. Our fully automatic capsule filling machines are designed for different production capacities depending on the fill materials.

Whether you want to achieve 10,000 capsules/hour or 300,000 capsules/hour, SaintyCo offers the right technological design in the nutraceutical and pharmaceutical industries. We are trusted by top pharmaceutical brands in Europe, Asia and America.

With a complete turnkey solution, we commit to give you practical solution for all your pharmaceutical filling needs – contact us now for more information.

More resources:

Compliance & Regulatory Information – Source: FDA

Capsules – Source: PHARMLABS

Pharmaceutica Cleanroom Design – Source: PHARMACEUTICAL ENGINEERING