Can Filling Machine and Seaming Line Configuration Guide

Choosing a can filling machine starts with whether the product is a still liquid metered at ambient pressure or a carbonated beverage that must remain under counter-pressure until the liquid valve closes.

We integrate high-pressure isobaric filling with high-speed precision labeling on carbonated soft drink lines, developing the equipment configuration, tooling, and integration around your product, pack format, and production requirements.

For broader bottle and can liquid dosing comparisons across still and carbonated liquids, review our liquid filling lines pillar overview.

For still and low-carbonation craft beverages, open-air magnetic flowmeter fillers provide repeatable fill volume control using proprietary magnetic flowmeter technology capable of 1 ml precision input by the operator on the HMI, hygienic with no moving parts.

An open-air craft canning configuration provides continuous operation at speeds of up to 100 containers per minute (CPM) across a variable speed range of 30-100 CPM with twelve filling heads.

To limit oxygen pickup before closure on open-air lines, sanitary 316 stainless steel CO2 pre-purge nozzles located directly behind filling heads limit the distance of travel from pre-purge to filling to only 1 can body diameter for all heads, paired with a CO2 gassing tunnel between the filler discharge and lid application.

When carbonation levels require counter-pressure containment, an inline counter-pressure canning line features six individual heads utilizing magnetic flow meter technology capable of 1 ml precision paired with an inline single seamer rated for continuous operation at speeds up to 50 cpm.

At higher beverage outputs, rotary counter-pressure canning systems accomplish true isobarometric filling with an on-board product filler bowl ASME certified to 60 psi/4 bar.

The CBR family of craft beverage canning lines brings rotary counter-pressure filling together with rotary Angelus seaming in a compact footprint, operating at speeds up to 250 CPM in a 12/3 (12-head filler, 3-spindle seamer), 16/4 (16-head filler, 4-spindle seamer), or 24/4 (24-head filler, 4-spindle seamer) configuration.

Twelve-, sixteen-, or twenty four-head rotary counter pressure filling turrets coupled with a three- or four-spindle rotary seamer rated for up to 250 CPM provide quick change adjustments suitable for 200 to 206 can ends with no valve change required, 202 to 300 can body diameter, and 2-3/8" - 8" (60 mm - 203 mm) can height.

On open-top liquid can filling lines running juices, teas, or flax seed oil, a liquid nitrogen doser mounted immediately before capping or seaming pressurizes packaging for package rigidity and oxygen reduction.

Liquid nitrogen has a boiling temperature of -320°F (-196°C), and will rapidly boil away when exposed to room temperatures, so insulated equipment must be used to ensure efficiency and safety.

Documented extended shelf life studies show a 90-95% reduction in headspace oxygen content and a 59% reduction in total package oxygen when compared to a traditional gaseous nitrogen purge of headspace.

A Chart CryoDoser FleX system with a Siemens controller operates at 0.2 - 0.49 psi (0.014 - 0.03 bar) head pressure across two discrete dosing models: 750 cpm (45,000 cph) with 5 - 1000 ms duration in 1 ms intervals, and 2000+ cpm (120,000+ cph) with 1 - 1000 ms duration in 0.1 ms intervals.

A Vacuum Barrier NITRODOSE G3 Servodoser equipped with an Allen Bradley controller precisely delivers low-pressure liquid nitrogen at 2000 BPM with adjustable flow rate during discrete and continuous dosing without a nozzle change, a minimum dose duration of 5ms, and accuracy to ± 1% dose weight.

Travel time from the doser to the seamer or capper should be minimized to prevent excess boiling or loss of nitrogen, and shaking or bouncing containers on the conveyors can force nitrogen and product out of the package before closure.

A hermetic double seam depends on two sequential roll profiles that interlock the end curl under the body flange then compress the seam with sealing compound.

Palmer Beverage Systems' single-head seamer design is cam-actuated double 1st and 2nd operation rolls with a stainless steel gearbox and drive components.

In the second operation, a second seaming roll, with a flatter, tighter profile, applies pressure to compress and tighten the partially formed seam: the five layers of metal (two from the body flange, three from the end curl; additional layers are present at the side seam junction) are pressed tightly together, with sealing compound.

A reverse wrinkle is a non-tightness type of wrinkle that projects towards the can body wall or the center of the can, is formed in the first operation seam, and cannot be ironed out regardless of the tightness of the second operation seam.

For double-seam cans, each can should be examined for cutover or sharpness, skidding or deadheading, false seam, droop at the crossover or lap, and condition of inside of countersink wall for evidence of broken chuck at intervals not to exceed 30 minutes.

Teardown examinations for double-seam cans shall be performed by a qualified individual and the results therefrom shall be recorded at intervals of sufficient frequency on enough containers from each seaming station to ensure maintenance of seam integrity at intervals not to exceed 4 hours.

Under the micrometer measurement system, cover hook, body hook, width (length, height), tightness (observation for wrinkle), and thickness are required, while overlap (by calculation) and countersink are optional; under a seam scope or projector, body hook, overlap, tightness (observation for wrinkle), and thickness by micrometer are required, while width (length, height), cover hook, and countersink are optional.

Two measurements at different locations, excluding the side seam, shall be made for each double seam characteristic if a seam scope or seam projector is used, and when a micrometer is used, three measurements shall be made at points approximately 120° apart, excluding the side seam.