EnglishViews: 73 Author: Hunan Grand packing machinery Publish Time: 2026-01-04 Origin: Hunan Grand Packing Machinery
In the complexion category, packaging is a critical interface between product integrity, user experience, and brand equity. The flexible squeeze tube (a stand-up, pump-less container with a screw-on closure) has emerged as a significant packaging format for foundations, concealers, and primers. This report analyzes its rationale, production logic, and line design considerations for industry stakeholders.
The flexible squeeze tube occupies a strategic middle ground between traditional collapsible tubes and rigid bottles. Its adoption is driven by a balance of functional and market-driven factors:
Superior Dosage Control & Hygiene vs. Traditional Tubes: It eliminates the issue of product oxidation and residue buildup at the orifice common in laminate tubes. The controlled squeeze mechanism and product recoil minimize air intake, enhancing preservation. Compared to jars, it prevents finger contamination and allows for more precise application.
Enhanced User Experience & Perception vs. Basic Packaging: Its stand-up format offers better shelf stability and a more premium visual presentation than lay-flat tubes. It avoids clogging issues sometimes associated with pumps, especially for higher-viscosity, silicone-heavy, or high-pigment formulas common in this category.
Formula & Marketing Versatility: It competently handles a wide viscosity range, from fluid primers to thicker concealers. The typically opaque or tinted body provides excellent light protection for photo-sensitive formulations. The surface can be finished with matte, pearlized, or soft-touch coatings to elevate brand perception at a cost point often below that of a pump system.
Key Takeaway: The flexible squeeze tube is selected for products targeting a step-up market position—demanding better hygiene than a jar, superior aesthetics to a basic tube, and reliable functionality without the cost or complexity of a pump.
The choice of a bottle filling and capping line, as opposed to a tube filling and sealing system, is dictated by the container's fundamental architecture and the paramount need for product stability.
Structural Design Dictates Process: This package is, in essence, a bottle with a flexible body. It features a pre-formed neck and thread, requiring a screw-on closure. Its production flow is inherently aligned with standard bottle handling, not the tail-sealing process of laminate tubes.
The Critical Advantage of Cold-Sealing (Capping): This is the primary technical driver. Tube sealers typically use heat or ultrasonic energy to fuse the tail.
Heat Sealing Risks: The applied heat (120-200°C) can conduct through the laminate layers, potentially degrading heat-sensitive actives (e.g., vitamins, peptides), destabilizing emulsions, or altering the viscosity of the product near the seal.
Ultrasonic Sealing Limitations: While more localized, this method can be slower than heat sealing, impacting line efficiency. It also has specific material compatibility requirements for multilayer tubes.
Screw-Capping Superiority: Mechanical capping is a cold process. It imposes zero thermal stress on the product, guaranteeing formula stability from filling through sealing. Torque-controlled capping ensures consistent seal integrity and allows for resealability.
Key Takeaway: The bottle line is selected not by convenience, but by necessity to protect the formula. Capping provides a safe, reliable, and non-invasive sealing method critical for preserving product efficacy and shelf life.
| FAT Video of Foundation Filling Machine for Handstand Soft Squeeze Vial | FAT Video of Perfume Irregularly shaped bottle filling capping machine |
Integrating this package into production requires adapting standard liquid filling lines to address the unique challenges of a deformable container.
Core Design Principle: Achieve high-speed, accurate filling and capping while preventing container deformation, contamination, or seal failure.
Critical Station Adaptations:
Unscrambling & Handling:
Gentle Conveyance: Utilize low-pressure belt systems or soft-gripping star wheels to avoid surface marring or denting.
Positive Orientation: Implement vision systems or non-contact sensors to ensure precise neck alignment for filling and capping heads.
Filling Station:
Clean-Cut Filling Valves: Employ piston or timed-pressure fillers with positive shut-off to prevent stringing or dripping, crucial for neat application and preventing gum-up of the neck threads.
Container Support: Mandatory use of internal support mandrels or external nesting sleeves during filling to stabilize the flexible body against the force of the filling nozzle and the weight of the product.
Capping Station:
Precision Torque Control: The centerpiece of the line. Servo-driven cappers with closed-loop feedback on both torque and angle are essential. Incorrect torque can lead to leaks (under-tightening) or severe body distortion (over-tightening).
Cap Tooling Versatility: Tooling must be designed to accommodate various cap profiles without scratching the often delicate finish of the tube body.
Downstream Integration:
Exterior Cleaning: Ionized air knives or soft-cloth wipers to remove dust, static, or minor fill splashes.
In-Line Inspection: Integrated checkweighers (for fill volume), vision systems (for cap alignment, seal presence, label placement), and leak detection (e.g., vacuum decay testing) are standard for quality assurance.
Simplified Line Flow:
Unscramble & Orient → Clean → (Nitrogen Purging, optional) → Fill with Support → Neck Wipe → Torque-Controlled Cap → Leak Test → Exterior Clean → Label/Code → Final Vision Inspection → Case Packing.
The rise of the flexible squeeze tube reflects an industry shift towards packaging that prioritizes holistic performance—preservation, experience, and brand expression. The associated production strategy is clear and deliberate:
For Brands: It represents a tangible upgrade, offering a compelling balance of premium feel, functional hygiene, and cost-effectiveness for mid-to-high tier complexion products.
For Manufacturers: The use of adapted bottle capping technology is a non-negotiable standard to ensure formula integrity and production reliability, eliminating the risks associated with thermal sealing methods.
For Engineers: Successful line integration hinges on solving the "flex" challenge, with a focus on gentle handling, precise support, and controlled closure application.
Selecting this format is more than a packaging choice; it is a strategic decision impacting supply chain, production engineering, and end-user perception. As material science advances, the flexible squeeze tube is poised to solidify its role as a versatile and intelligent packaging solution within the cosmetics industry.
More details,pls contact us.
Hunan Grand Packing Machine
Ava Duan
Mobile/Wechat/Whatsapp: 0086-13706885851
Email: sales@grand-packing.com
