What must be handled?
Dimensions, filled weight, material, closure, label position, stability and any required orientation.
Prepare a clearer quotation
Bottle cartoning machine specification checklist
Bring the right information together before you ask for a quotation. A clear specification helps suppliers assess handling risk, compare machine formats and identify the interfaces your production line will need.
01
Start with the four decisions that shape the machine
What pack must be produced?
Dieline, board grade, closure, insert, bottle count, pack pattern and presentation standard.
What rate is genuinely required?
Sustainable finished cartons per minute, format mix, shifts, peaks and expected efficiency.
Where must it fit and connect?
Infeed condition, conveyor height, footprint, access, utilities, controls and downstream discharge.
02
Bottle and closure data
Prepare one line of data for every approved bottle format, including low-volume or difficult products. The least stable or most easily marked format may determine the handling concept.
- Overall height, body width or diameter, base profile and filled weight.
- Bottle material, wall rigidity, centre of gravity and surface finish.
- Closure type, cap or pump overhang, tamper band and acceptable contact areas.
- Label dimensions, seam position, print orientation and scuff sensitivity.
- Required bottle orientation and the feature available for detection.
- Samples from normal production, including realistic manufacturing variation.
03
Carton, insert and pack-pattern data
Supply the approved dieline whenever possible. A finished carton alone does not define crease positions, glue areas or the way flat blanks are packed in the magazine.
| Item | Information |
|---|---|
| Blank | Dieline, board grade, caliper, grain direction, coatings and print-critical surfaces. |
| Closure | Tuck, glue, lock or other method, plus the evidence required to confirm a good close. |
| Pack pattern | Bottles per carton, row arrangement, orientation, partitions, dividers and inserts. |
| Coding | Code area, print technology, barcode quiet zones and verification requirement. |
| Quality range | Approved tolerances and samples from more than one production batch where possible. |
04
Production rate and changeover expectations
- Normal finished-carton rate and the short-term peak the line must absorb.
- Bottles per carton and the resulting bottle infeed rate for every format.
- Format mix by volume, campaign length and expected number of changeovers per shift.
- Maximum acceptable changeover time and who will perform it.
- Recipe, change-part, tool and verification requirements.
- Expected recovery after an empty magazine, product gap, jam or emergency stop.
Use the changeover planning guide to turn these expectations into measurable quotation questions.
05
Line layout, controls and utilities
Mark the available machine envelope rather than only the nominal floor area. Include guarding, door swing, maintenance access, carton loading, product changeover and removal routes.
- Conveyor direction, transfer points, heights, speeds and accumulation available.
- Upstream stop response and the back-pressure the bottle can tolerate.
- Downstream equipment, reject destination and blocked-line strategy.
- PLC, HMI and network standards, line signals and production-data requirements.
- Electrical supply, compressed air, extraction and environmental constraints.
- Operator positions, cleaning access, noise limits and safe maintenance access.
06
Acceptance criteria before purchase
Agree how the machine will be demonstrated before the order is placed. The acceptance plan should state the approved materials, run duration, output calculation, quality checks, allowed stoppages, fault challenges and evidence needed for sign-off.
Useful next step
Send your bottle schedule, carton dieline, target rate and a marked-up layout. We can use those items to identify the likely cartoner format and the questions that still need resolving.
Request an application reviewFAQ
Specification checklist questions
Do I need physical bottle and carton samples?
Yes. Drawings and dimensions are useful, but samples reveal stability, surface finish, crease quality, board stiffness, closure behaviour and batch variation that cannot be judged from dimensions alone.
What if the final carton dieline is not ready?
Provide the latest concept, the expected bottle count and the design constraints, then identify the dieline as provisional. Final machine tooling and acceptance should use an approved production dieline and representative board.
How should output be stated?
State sustainable finished cartons per minute, bottles per carton, normal line rate, short-term peak, shift pattern and expected format mix. Avoid relying only on a theoretical maximum machine speed.
Is a simple line drawing useful?
Yes. A marked-up layout showing conveyor direction, heights, available space, operator access, utilities and nearby equipment can expose integration constraints early.
A clearer starting point
Get a cartoner recommendation based on your actual pack
Send the bottle, carton, output and line information you already have. We will identify the likely machine format and the remaining application risks.