The vitamin & nutritional supplement industry in the US generates approximately $39 billion in revenue each year. This large and mature industry grows at approximately 1% annually, as people consume multivitamins to boost their immune systems and supplement their daily nutrition.
Softgels are among the most popular delivery systems for oral dietary supplements. Softgel encapsulation machines use actuators to control filling pumps and to control the movement of the equipment that makes the softgel capsules.
Application Description:
There are 6 primary steps in the softgel manufacturing process:
1.
Gelatin Preparation: forms the animal- or plant-based gelatin shell.
2.
Fill Material Preparation: mixes the liquids, oils or semi-solid “fill materials” and transfers them to service tanks for encapsulation.
3.
Encapsulation: This is where HKP’s motion solutions are utilized. The process is explained in detail below.
4.
Drying: removes excess moisture from softgel capsules.
5.
Inspection & Sorting: removes undersized, oversized or leaking softgels.
6.
Cleaning & Polishing: removes any oil residue or debris from the softgel surface.
Details on the Encapsulation Process:
Making softgel capsules is a critical part of the process. Here’s how they’re made.
Animal or plant-based gel is pumped into spreader boxes, which create two ribbons of gelatin that will be used to create the softgel capsule. The liquid gel solidifies as it cools. A set of rollers feed the two ribbons into an injection wedge, where lubricant is applied to aid the release of the formed softgel. Pumps deliver the fill material (vitamins or medicines) into a hopper.
The ribbons are fed between two die rolls to form both halves of the softgel shell. The injection wedge injects the fill material into the shell using dosing channels, and the two sides are sealed together using heat and pressure.
As the die rotates, the newly-sealed softgel capsules are separated from the ribbon. The ribbon passes through a pair of stripper rollers, where the softgel capsules are ejected. The remainder of the ribbon is removed and separated from the process.
HKP linear actuators are used to control the spreader box height to maintain a consistent ribbon thickness. The ribbon forming stage requires extreme precision to control the ribbon thickness, seam width and fill quantity.
Ribbon thickness for softgel capsules is typically around 0.7~1.0mm, and controlled within +/-0.05mm. More importantly, the thickness for both sides of the ribbon must be consistent, to prevent poor seal quality, which could negatively impact production efficiency. HKP actuators solve this challenge by delivering consistent accuracy to the production process.
Application Challenges:
• Compact size
• Accuracy & precision
• Durability & reliability
Motion Solutions for Encapsulation:
Linear Stepper Actuators:
Haydon Kerk Motion Solutions’ hybrid stepper motor linear actuators drive a rotor nut on a stainless steel precision lead screw. This patented interface reduces tolerances and noise while increasing efficiency and durability. Available in captive, non-captive and external linear configurations, these actuators are specifically designed for high performance and exceptional endurance in a small package. To learn more about compact & precise actuator solutions for Softgel Capsule Manufacturing, contact us today.