WP1001

Weigh filling Vs Volumetric filling system

ystem
Author : Mayank Shekhar
Shekhar Brothers
Email: mayank@munky.in

Introduction
Packaging forms a very important aspect of todays retail packed food. There are a variety of machines
available to perform various kinds of packing solutions. This article delves into the different types of filling
methodologies available, their application and advantages and disadvantages.
A packaging
kaging system comprises of three major components. Broadly Filling system, Pouch Forming
system and Sealing system. The filling system ensures that the correct quantity of material is filled in the
packing. The packing may be a pouch or a carton or a plastic
plastic container. Traditionally volumetric filling
systems have been used for a variety of filling machines. The forming and sealing systems are out of the
scope of this article.
Volumetric Filling System
Volumetric filling system is for filling liquids which are sold by volume. They comprise of a pistion filling
arrangement where the displacement of the piston governs the volume dispensed. This ensures the
same volume to be dispensed in every cycle.
cycle The volumetric
lumetric filling can also be used for granules and
powders, such system comprises of cups / cavities of uniform volume. The material is made to fall inside
the cup by gravity and the top is levelled using a leveller. The volume of each cup is calibrated to match
the final weight to be packed. The cups are made on a circular disc and as the disc rotates about its axis
at one end the cups get filled and at the other end the filled cups get discharged. The basic principle is
that each drop of the machine gives the same volumetric output. The volume is in turn calibrated to the
weight and hence the same weight is theoretically outputted by the machine.
Weigh Filling System
The weigh filling system weighs material and drops it into the packing machine. The material
mater is weighed
using electronic transducers (Load Cells) to sense the weight, sophisticated electronic hardware and
software converts the output of the load cell into weight. This information of weight is used to sample the
product for its weight before dispensing
spensing it to the packing system. These systems work on the basis of the
nett weight to be packed and not on the volume of the material. Typically the weigh filler system
comprises of a hopper that contains the material, the material is made to flow forward
forwa through a vibratory
feeder.
Performance of Volumetric Filling System
The weight of the quantity dispensed depends on the volume of the cup in which the product is
measured. This system gives reasonable
reaso
accuracy in weight for powdery products that have a consistent
bulk density. The flow characteristics of the material also play a vital role. For sticky materials the
accuracy in weight is not good. Products which are susceptible to breaking eg chips, corn puffs cannot be
run in volumetric machines, as when
hen the disc carrying the material rotates it tends to break the product.
The materials which are free flowing but have irregular shape also give inconsistent weight. The
machines utilizing the volumetric filling systems are not very versatile and cannot run different products
on the same machine. Also for each weight setting different cups are required. There is a provision of
adjusting the height of the cups for filling
filling so there can be some degree of adjustment in the volume to
compensate for the variation in density. However in practice it is difficult for the machine operators to
continuously monitor the output weight and then readjust the cup height for achieving the
t
correct nett

weight. As a result of this either material in excess falls into each packet or it results in short fills, in both
the conditions it is not good for the end consumer and the manufacturer.
Performance of Weigh Filling System
Weigh Filling system weighs the material before dispensing so a variation in density does not pose any
difficulty in achieving consistency in the packed weight. To a certain extent sticky materials can be run.
Many types of materials can be run on the same machine. The same machine can be configured to run
different nett weights. The handling of materials is soft and they do not get damaged. Materials with
irregular shapes can be run without any difficulty. These systems give a much higher accuracy in the nett
weight of the final packing as compared to volumetric filling systems.
Construction and Operation of Weigh filling system
Material is stored in the hopper of the machine. From the hopper the material moves forward through a
vibratory feeder. The vibratory feeder controls the rate of flow of material into the weighing pan. Weighing
pan is mounted on the load cell and electronic hardware continuously samples the weight in the pan and
controls the feed rate of the vibrator. At the start of the cycle the feed rate is high, once nearly 80-90% of
the material falls into the weighing pan the vibration enters the trickle mode and the material flows slowly
to reach the target weight. As soon as the set weight is attained the vibration stops and then the material
can be dispensed in the pouch/ bottle/ carton as the case may be either automatically or manually. The
sealing can be done in semi automatic machines or in fully automatic form fill and seal machines. The
weigh filling systems have much lesser parts which are prone to wear and tear. The electronics is all
mounted in a single control unit and can be easily serviced.
Applications of Weigh Filling System
Granular Material :

Tea, Coffee beans, Namkeen Mixture, Rice, Suji, Rye, Spices- Pepper,
Cardamom, , Flour, Besan, Chips, Corn Puffs, ,

Tablets

Ayurvedic Medicines,

Powders

Spices such as Dhania, Zeera, Sambar Powder, Rice powder, zeera, Wheat
Flour, Besan, Desiccated Coconut Powder, Ayurvedic Medicinal powders, Animal
feed mineral mixtures

Conclusion
Volumetric fillers have inconsistent weight output, weigh fillers dispense the material accurately by
weight. Owing to the above factors there is a continuous shift from volumetric filling systems towards
weigh filling systems. Till a few years back the price of the weigh filling systems were exorbitant and
technology for low end weigh fillers was not very well developed. Today the weigh fillers are available at
a very reasonable cost for machines with low to high production speeds.
The author is the director of business development at Shekhar Brothers, a company that manufactures
state of the art weigh filling and packing equipment from low end to high end segment. Contact us at
email : sales@munky.in to enable us suggest you the right solution for your product packing.
For more information visit www.munky.in
Shekhar Brothers
No. 58, Sector 6, Faridabad, Haryana, India
Ph: +91-129-2241089, 2240858
e-mail: sales@munky.in