To fulfill growing demand from the food and nutraceuticals industries, the contract manufacturer and co-packer SternMaid America has installed a modern double-head system to increase the capacity of its can filling line.

The double head auger filler dispenses powders into as many as 50 cans per minute per head. Thus, up to 6,000 cans per hour can be filled with a broad range of powdered products – from instant cocoa to dietary supplements. Changeover for different pack sizes is easy, and the machine is able to fill cans of up to six inches in diameter and three to ten inches in height. Filling weight depends on the can size and the product’s bulk volume.

Including further peripheral plant components, the company has invested some 300,000 USD in this capacity extension. Can filling and sealing is now fully automated, but there is potential for future investment as packing and palletizing is still done by hand.

Aside from increasing the capacity of its composite can line, SternMaid America’s investment has delivered additional benefits: the single head auger filler, which is now redundant on this line, can be used for filling items such as screw-capped plastic cans, which enables the company to offer a new type of packaging.