Secondary packaging has its own three-stage core. A flat corrugated blank gets erected into a case. Product gets loaded into it. The case gets closed and sealed. Between the last labeler and the palletizer, that sequence is what stands between finished containers and a shippable unit load.
It’s also the part of the line most often still done by hand. Plenty of operations fill, cap, and label automatically, then put two people at the end of the line folding boxes and taping bottoms. That works until volume grows or labor gets scarce — and it’s usually the first place automation pays for itself, because case handling is repetitive, ergonomically punishing work with no product-quality judgment involved.
Used Packaging Equipment has supplied used end-of-line machinery since 1988. Here’s how the three stages work and what to evaluate when buying them used.
A case erector pulls a flat blank from a magazine, opens it into a square, folds the bottom flaps, and seals them — delivering an open-top case ready to load.
The mechanics are consistent across most machines. A magazine holds a stack of knocked-down blanks. Vacuum cups grip the outer face and pull one blank clear. A forming mechanism squares it against a mandrel or plow. Minor flaps fold first, then major flaps. A tape head or hot melt glue system closes the bottom.
Tape versus glue on the bottom seal is the main specification decision. Tape heads are simple, inexpensive to maintain, and forgiving. Hot melt glue produces a cleaner-looking case, uses no consumable tape roll changes, and holds better on heavy or refrigerated loads — but the glue system needs routine attention, and hot melt tanks char if adhesive sits at temperature.
Fixed versus random size matters if you run multiple case dimensions. Fixed-size machines change over mechanically between sizes. Random-capable machines handle a range without adjustment, at higher cost and complexity.
This is where the architectures diverge most, and where matching the machine to your product matters.
Containers accumulate above the case in a grid matching the case pattern, then drop into the erected case below. Mechanically straightforward, fast, and well suited to sturdy containers — cans, glass bottles, rigid jars.
The constraint is drop height and product durability. Lightweight PET, thin glass, and anything with a delicate label or closure may not tolerate the drop without damage.
Rather than loading into a pre-erected case, the machine collates the product and forms a flat blank around it. The result is a tighter pack with less board consumed, and no separate erector needed.
Wrap-around packers are efficient and produce a strong, compact case. They’re also more complex, more sensitive to corrugate quality, and less flexible if your case patterns vary widely.
Product loads horizontally through an open case end rather than dropping in from above. This eliminates drop damage and suits tall or unstable containers, cartoned product, and applications where orientation must be preserved.
An articulated or delta robot with end-of-arm tooling picks containers and places them into the case. Slower per-cycle than a drop packer, but far more flexible — pattern changes are software, not tooling, and delicate products get placed rather than dropped.
Robotic packers have become common in the used market as plants change product mix. The critical question when buying used is the end-of-arm tooling: it’s application-specific, and tooling built for someone else’s container may not suit yours.
The last stage closes the top flaps and seals them.
Semi-automatic sealers require an operator to fold the top flaps and push the case in. The machine tapes top and bottom as the case passes. Inexpensive, compact, and a large step up from hand-taping.
Fully automatic sealers fold the flaps themselves and require no operator. These integrate directly with a packer discharge.
Uniform versus random size is the same decision as with erectors. Uniform machines are set for one case size and changed over manually. Random sealers adjust automatically to each case as it arrives — valuable for co-packers and multi-SKU operations, unnecessary if you run one case size.
Top-and-bottom versus top-only. Most sealers tape both. If your erector glues or tapes the bottom, a top-only sealer may suffice.
Drive configuration. Side-belt drive grips the case sides and handles lightweight or partially filled cases better. Top-drive suits heavier cases. Some machines offer both.
Tape heads themselves are largely standardized and are wear items — blades, rollers, and springs are replaceable, and a tired tape head shouldn’t disqualify an otherwise sound machine.
The stages need to be balanced against each other and against the line.
Case rate is the governing number, and it’s lower than your container rate by whatever your pack count is — a line running containers at a high rate produces cases at a fraction of that. Size the erector and sealer with headroom above the packer, since the packer is nearly always the constraint.
Accumulation ahead of the packer is essential. Case packers work in batches — they collate a full case pattern, then load — so they consume containers in surges. Without a buffer upstream, that surging propagates backward into the labeler and filler.
Downstream, the sealer discharge feeds the palletizer, and that handoff needs the case to be square, sealed, and stable. Poorly formed cases cause more palletizer faults than palletizer problems do.
Vacuum system. On erectors and some packers, vacuum pulls the blank. Check cups for cracking and hardening, and confirm the pump or venturi generates adequate vacuum. Cups are cheap; a failing pump is not.
Blank magazine and feed. Look for wear at the pick point and confirm the magazine adjusts to your blank dimensions.
Forming section. Inspect mandrels, plows, and folding arms for bending or misalignment. This is what determines whether cases come out square.
Glue systems. Same caution as elsewhere — inspect hot melt tanks, hoses, and nozzles for charring and clogging.
Belts, chains, and drives. Standard wear evaluation.
Guarding and safety circuits. End-of-line machines have significant moving mass and pinch points. Confirm guarding is intact and interlocks function. Missing guarding is a real cost and a real liability.
Change parts and tooling. Confirm which case sizes and pack patterns are covered, and what the machine ran previously. For robotic packers, this means the end-of-arm tooling specifically.
Corrugate compatibility. Ask what board grade the machine was set up for. Machines tuned for heavy board sometimes struggle with lighter stock and vice versa.
Beverage, brewing, and canning operations pack the highest case volumes and typically use drop or wrap-around packers. Distilleries and wineries often need side-load or robotic packing to protect premium bottles and labels. Food and dairy operations vary widely by product format. Pharmaceutical, nutritional, household, and chemical producers frequently run multiple case sizes, making random-capable erectors and sealers more valuable.
End-of-line equipment reaches the used market steadily as plants change case formats, consolidate, or automate further. These machines are mechanically robust and often have long service lives remaining. Buying used delivers full end-of-line capability at a fraction of new cost, and financing is available.
Used Packaging Equipment has specialized exclusively in used bottling and packaging machinery since 1988, with inventory across case erectors, packers, sealers, palletizers, conveyance, and complete lines. Tell us your case dimensions, pack pattern, container type, and case rate, and our team can scope the right configuration.
Contact our team to discuss your end-of-line requirements and current inventory.
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