Allot Tech
Filling machine changeover: from the last good pack to a verified restart
A saved recipe is only one part of a changeover. Use the actual product, bottle, cap and label transition to identify parts, cleaning, settings and release checks. Measure the first accepted new pack separately from stable production so a quick adjustment is not confused with recovered output.
Define the exact A-to-B transition
Name the outgoing and incoming SKU revisions, machine configuration and trained crew. A bottle-size change with the same liquid is different from a formulation change requiring a reviewed cleaning route. Record B-to-A separately if it uses different parts or steps. Work outside the approved product or package envelope needs engineering review rather than a routine recipe change. Follow the machine manual and the site's approved isolation and cleaning procedures; this planning sheet does not authorize access to moving equipment.
Build a station-by-station change matrix
| Station | What may change | Evidence before release |
|---|---|---|
| Bottle handling | Guides, supports, indexing parts, sensors and transfers | Approved format parts and stable bottle transport |
| Product path | Hoses, seals, residual liquid and cleaning route | Material compatibility and the site's cleaning release |
| Filling | Nozzle position, dose basis, feed condition and recipe revision | Individual-head results with the actual product and bottle |
| Closure | Cap supply, guides, tooling and approved application settings | Correct closure fit and the agreed integrity checks |
| Label and code | Artwork, batch data, label position and inspection settings | Complete new pack checked; old materials accounted for |
| Line controls | Recipe revision, station states and interface permissions | Matching configuration across stations, including reject handling |
Prepare the next run before the stop
- Confirm both SKU revisions, drawings and the permitted transition.
- Stage identified, inspected change parts and the approved settings sheet.
- Assign station owners, the restart approver and an escalation contact.
- Prepare product and packaging; separate old labels, caps and work in progress.
- Confirm the cleaning route and release evidence for this product pair.
- Prepare checked measuring equipment and a timed observation sheet.
Release the restart through five checks
- Account for the outgoing material and confirm the required cleaning release.
- Verify installed parts, connections and recipe revisions against the approved setup.
- Confirm guards, tools and station readiness under the authorized restart procedure.
- Check ordered startup samples by filling head, then closure, label, code and pack.
- Release through the designated role; confirm the agreed stable-output window and record rejects and stops.
Measure elapsed time, not added task minutes
Use one clock and one named output point. Record the last accepted outgoing pack, first accepted incoming pack and start of the agreed stable-output window. Define the observation duration and acceptance basis before the trial. Task durations can overlap only where the approved work sequence permits; their sum is not automatically elapsed downtime. Labour minutes and production-loss minutes answer different questions.
Illustrative example: the first accepted new pack arrives 35 minutes after the last good outgoing pack; stable output begins at minute 50. Time to first accepted pack is 35 minutes, the additional stabilization interval is 15 minutes, and the total elapsed interval is 50 minutes. These values are not equipment promises. Do not deduct the same stabilization interval again in a shift calculation.
Resolve the restart symptom before changing more settings
| Observed symptom | Record first | Next decision |
|---|---|---|
| Wrong or drifting fill after loading a recipe | SKU, head identity, recipe revision, product temperature and feed condition | Hold release; review the approved setup and repeat the defined sample check |
| Bottle jams after a format change | Container dimensions, installed parts and the exact transfer point | Stop through the approved procedure; review format fit and handling evidence |
| Drips or foam after a stop | Stop duration, sample order, nozzle behavior and product state | Agree a product-specific restart trial; avoid an arbitrary discard count |
| Correct fill but wrong finished pack | Cap, artwork, printer data and inspection recipe | Keep affected packs separate and verify the whole pack before release |
Put changeover evidence in the equipment quotation
Ask the supplier to demonstrate a named difficult transition with the intended product and packs. State the crew, parts supplied, cleaning boundary, timing points and acceptance window. Keep all repeated runs, including slower ones. A video showing a fast nozzle adjustment is not a complete line changeover record.
- Specify both directions if their procedures differ.
- List change parts, storage, drawings and training in the quoted scope.
- Retain times, individual results, rejects, deviations and action owners.
- Connect the transition trial to the FAT plan and repeat relevant checks after site installation.
Download and complete the changeover record
The editable CSV is a planning and evidence record, not a validated operating procedure. Complete the old and new SKU, revision, evidence, owner and status columns for each applicable task. Mark exclusions explicitly instead of leaving them ambiguous.
Changeover time, not just adjustment time
How long does a filling line changeover actually take?
A defensible quotation states the two formats being changed, the crew size, cleaning scope and when the clock starts and stops. A five-minute filler adjustment does not establish a five-minute changeover for the complete bottling line.
For a timed trial, agree to measure from the final accepted bottle of format A at the specified operating rate to accepted production of format B at its specified rate. Also record how long stable production must continue before the restart is accepted. This avoids treating one good bottle during repeated adjustments as completion.
Separate preparation that can safely happen outside the stopped interval from work that requires stopped and isolated equipment. This distinction follows the SMED changeover framework described by Vorne. Preparing a labelled change-parts trolley is different from reaching inside a running machine. Energy isolation, guarding and the approved cleaning procedure remain mandatory boundaries, not time-saving opportunities.
A 42-minute example for a bottle-format change
Illustrative planning example, not an Allot Tech performance guarantee: the same beverage changes from a 500 ml bottle to a 1 litre bottle. The following activities are sequential; no product-cleaning cycle is included. Actual measurements must come from the proposed machine, formats and trained crew.
| Activity | Minutes | Completion evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Clear the previous format and isolate as required | 5 | Remaining bottles accounted for; equipment released for the approved change procedure. |
| Change and set guides and format parts | 14 | Part numbers, guide settings and fasteners checked against the new format record. |
| Set filling and capping recipes | 6 | Recipe revision, fill quantity and closure settings verified. |
| Set label, code and packing format | 7 | Correct artwork, date code, label position and pack count confirmed. |
| Restart, inspect and demonstrate stable output | 10 | Agreed first-good-product and sustained-rate checks passed. |
Total stopped interval: 5 + 14 + 6 + 7 + 10 = 42 minutes. In an eight-hour shift with 30 minutes of other planned stops and two such changeovers, the remaining production window is 480 – 30 – (2 × 42) = 366 minutes.
If the measured accepted-output rate during that window is 40 bottles/minute, the planning output is 366 × 40 = 14,640 accepted bottles. This is not the same as multiplying 480 minutes by the machine nameplate speed. Any additional unplanned downtime lowers the result. A measured accepted-output rate already includes the quality losses in that measurement; do not subtract them again.
Where two teams work safely in parallel, use the elapsed critical path rather than adding both teams’ labour minutes. Where product change requires cleaning, cooling or sanitation release, include that complete sequence separately. A label-only change and an allergen-related product change must not share one assumed duration.
The format matrix
Which changes must the supplier demonstrate?
| Transition | Items to identify | Evidence before release |
|---|---|---|
| Bottle diameter or height | Guides, handling parts, nozzle height, sensors and conveyor transfer points. | Stable transport, no bottle damage, repeatable settings and correct filling position. |
| Cap or neck finish | Cap feed, chute, chuck and change parts; compatibility cannot be assumed. | Closure fit, application quality and agreed leak or torque checks. |
| Liquid or formulation | Contact parts, residue, seals, cleaning sequence and restart product condition. | Approved cleaning release and real-product filling checks; water trials alone may be insufficient. |
| Label, code or pack count | Artwork version, printer data, inspection recipe, collator and pack settings. | Correct finished pack and controlled removal of previous-format materials. |
What should a repeatable changeover record contain?
Record the A-to-B format pair, product, operator count, start/end times, task times, change-part list, recipe revision, cleaning release, startup rejects and accepted-output observations. Record B-to-A separately if the procedure differs. Preserve slower trials as well as the best run, so the production plan is based on repeatability.
For procurement, connect this timed record to the FAT evidence plan, the filling-head calculation and the comparable filling-machine quotation. Include format tooling, training and cleaning-related parts explicitly in the quoted scope.
Planning examples prepared by Allot Tech. Updated .