In the world of extracts, it’s no longer simply distillate; extractors must fill in their 510 carts or all-in-one devices. Today, extracts range from liquid diamonds to live rosin, live resin to sauce, and beyond. Because each of these extracts has a varying viscosity, adapting to these diverse extracts can quickly become a bottleneck for operations.
For extractors, streamlining the filling process is key to keeping up with production and eventually scaling exponentially. Hence, semi-automatic filling machines are popular for reducing human error and improving efficiency.
If you’re an extract company seeking to scale and wondering if semi-automatic can work for different types of concentrates, this is the guide for you. Here, we’ll cover all the basics of improving workflow with varying types of extract and review the best semi-automatic machine for concentrates to consider.
Challenges of Filling Different Concentrate Types
Even without experience or expertise, you can look at different types of concentrates and understand that challenges may arise from filling containers with sticky extracts. To make matters even more complicated, every batch of concentrate can vary in consistency, from strain to strain and phenotype to phenotype.
However, understanding these challenges helps you optimize production processes and find the best cart-filling machines for various concentrates. To help you do either, here are the top challenges facing extractors today in regard to filling 510 carts and all-in-one devices:
- Temperature-driven viscosity control: Concentrates like live resins and “sauces” undergo significant viscosity changes with temperature fluctuations. This requires maintaining optimal temperature throughout the filling process to prevent waste and ensure accurate dispensing. Another challenge is to balance the temperature so as not to affect the end product’s quality, as too warm of a temperature can degrade valuable terpenes.
- Terpene loss prevention: Speaking of terpenes, the compounds that contribute to flavor and effects are highly volatile and can quickly evaporate during filling. This becomes even more of a challenge with terpene-rich extracts like live rosin and resins or diamonds in the sauce. The key is to carefully control the environmental conditions while filling and minimizing exposure time for ultimate preservation.
- Managing cross-contamination: Moving from jar to filling machine and throughout the various filling steps can put your product at risk for cross-contamination. This is especially crucial when switching between products that promise consumers distinct terpene profiles or potency levels. On the same note, the sticky nature of extracts makes cleaning the equipment extraordinarily time-consuming and resource-intensive.
- Precise fills: When a material changes densities and textures throughout the process, achieving consistent fill weights becomes much more difficult. Accurately filling the appropriate weight is a significant challenge, affecting consumer perception, retention, and loyalty.
- Maintaining homogeneity: During the filling process, products like sugar concentrates and sauce can separate, so they need to be stirred constantly or mixed in a certain way to keep the cannabinoids and terpenes spread evenly throughout the batch. This becomes particularly challenging during large production runs.
How Semi-Automatic Filling Machines Handle Different Concentrates
So, how exactly can semi-automatic filling machines handle different types of concentrates for a quality end product? First, the best cart-filling machines will offer precise temperature controls. The temperature control system maintains optimal warmth throughout the filling process, ensuring thicker concentrates remain fluid enough to flow smoothly while preventing overheating that could degrade more delicate terpenes.
Many semi-automatic filling machines for sale also offer the ability to fine-tune adjustable pressure systems based on the specific properties of each concentrate, whether it’s a thick rosin or a more fluid distillate. Lastly, unique nozzle designs should keep them from clogging and ensure accurate dispensing, even with thicker than usual extracts. This way, the volumetric measurements can be kept accurate down to the milliliter.
Comparing Semi-Automatic Filling to Other Methods
Next up in our ultimate guide to finding the best cart-filling machine for your operation is comparing semi-automatic versions to the other two popular categories: manual filling and fully automated systems.
Manual Filling
For many start-up or emerging extract brands, using manual or hand-filling carts and all-in-one devices is a common practice. Unfortunately, operations usually quickly find out why other facilities invest in semi-automatic or fully automatic systems. Manual filling is highly labor-intensive and increases the risk associated with human error.
These systems typically consist of basic heated reservoirs and hand-operated syringes or plungers that allow operators to fill cartridges one at a time. While they require minimal initial investment and can be suitable for small batches, they have significant limitations.
The reliance on operator consistency can lead to volume variations between cartridges, which is notably time-consuming. Manual systems also require constant attention to temperature control to maintain proper viscosity, and operators must regularly monitor and adjust heating parameters.
Fully Automated Systems
Not surprisingly, fully automatic filling machines are the pinnacle of extract operations. They offer complete automation from cartridge loading to filling and capping. These sophisticated systems, like the Vape-Jet, offer AI-powered robotic handling mechanisms, and features that allow operators to skip the loading jig for ultimate efficiency.
Like semi-automatic filling machines, fully automatic machines come with advanced temperature control systems that maintain precise heating zones, also ensuring consistent viscosity and flow rates across different concentrate formulations.
The best fully automated machines will also have quality control systems built in. This way, weights can be checked automatically, and units that don’t meet specifications can be addressed. While these systems require substantial initial investment, they deliver unmatched efficiency and consistency for large-scale operations.
The best perk? Fully automated systems like Vape-Jet provide an interface that allows you to program and store multiple product SKUs, allowing for quick changeovers between different concentrate types while maintaining strict quality control standards throughout extended production runs.
Semi-Automatic Machines
Semi-automatic filling systems strike an optimal balance between efficiency and control, making them increasingly popular in mid-sized cannabis processing operations. These systems typically feature programmable controls for temperature and volume, multiple fill heads that can operate simultaneously, and automated dispensing mechanisms that ensure consistent dosing.
Operators load empty cartridges into designated stations and initiate the filling sequence, but the actual dispensing process is automated and precise. This hybrid approach significantly reduces human error while maintaining enough operator oversight to quickly adjust parameters when switching between different concentrate formulations.
These systems usually have precision heating controls and automatic nozzle cleaning cycles that keep the viscosity at the right level throughout the production run. This means that they can produce more at a faster rate than fully automatic systems while also needing less capital investment.
Best Semi-Automatic Filling Machine for Your Needs
The best semi-automatic filling machine for sale today is none other than Vape-Jet’s Jet Fueler. The Jet Fueler is considered one of the best cart-filling machines, even when working with different types of concentrates. Three independently programmable heat zones equip the Jet Fueler to accommodate various extracts.
More importantly, its proportional-integral-derivative (PID) algorithms eliminate any temperature variation and preserve the overall quality of your products. Whether filing distillate, rosin, CO2, or other extracts, the Jet Fueler’s low temperatures and nitrogen-modified atmosphere processing reduce oxidations, helping to dispense even highly viscous oils with a nitrogen-pressurized fluid-handling system.
Even better for operators, Vape-Jet prides itself on manufacturing the most innovative yet intuitive equipment that can operate seamlessly at any skill level.
Explore Vape-Jet Semi-Automatic Filling Machines Today
Now that you know more about the challenges of adapting to different types of concentrates and the best semi-automatic filling machine for the job…what are you waiting for? Prepare your business for take-off with the power of Vape-Jet today!
Vape-Jet is the leading manufacturer of AI-powered, fully automatic, and semi-automatic filling machines for 510 carts and all-in-one devices. Empower your brand with Vape-Jet’s first-class team for manufacturing innovation and ongoing support.
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