Machine category
A stick pack is a narrow reel-fed pack whose product, lane pitch, film web, longitudinal seal, cross seal, registration, cut and code must work as one system. Select the dosing route first, then prove the final pack across every lane.
Product-led starting points
The machines below are verified products in the current source. Their suitability for a particular stick pack depends on representative product and film trials, approved dimensions and the required quality checks.
LU-FSMP8A multi-lane magnetic-pump VFFS platform to assess for compatible low-viscosity liquid stick packs, subject to the final film, lane pitch, dose and seal trial.
LU-FSFM6An independent-auger multi-lane platform to assess for compatible powder stick packs where flow, dust, lane balance and dose checks are proven with representative material.
LU-FSL12A high-lane-count VFFS route to assess for compatible free-flowing granules, with final stick-pack geometry and lane sampling confirmed during specification.
Web, pack and lane definition
Finished width alone does not define a multi-lane web. The design needs lane pitch, longitudinal seal allowance, cut or perforation, cross-seal pitch, artwork repeat and registration marks, together with the space needed for coding and opening features.
Provide reel width, core, winding direction, laminate, thickness, print repeat and eye-mark drawing. Registration correction, seal position and cut position should be checked against the approved artwork rather than judged from an unprinted trial film alone.
Each lane needs a defined dose path and a sampling identity. Pumps, augers or granule devices should be assessed for lane balance, refilling effects, product distribution and the risk of one lane drifting while the total average appears acceptable.
Locate the tear notch, code and cut so they do not weaken critical seals or interfere with opening. Confirm whether packs leave individually, in connected strips or perforated, and whether downstream counting or cartoning can accept that presentation.
Stick-pack project inputs
| Product and dosing | Physical properties, representative sample, nominal dose, tolerance, dosing method and the lane-specific sampling procedure. |
|---|---|
| Finished pack | Width, length, usable fill space, longitudinal and cross-seal geometry, tear notch, cut or perforation and the approved pack drawing. |
| Film web | Laminate, seal layer, thickness, reel width and core, winding direction, artwork repeat, registration mark, lane pitch and web drawing. |
| Coding and inspection | Code content and position, print-area limits, code check, registration check, seal or leak test and reject or segregation method. |
| Accepted output | State whether output is per lane or total accepted packs, the test duration, operating condition, product and film replenishment and treatment of stops and rejects. |
Buyer questions
A stick pack is normally a narrow, elongated roll-stock pack with a longitudinal seal and cross seals. The exact dimensions, seal pattern and opening feature still need to be defined on the approved pack drawing.
Start with the required accepted output, product dosing behaviour, web width, pack pitch, changeover and downstream handling. More lanes increase total potential output but also increase sampling, tooling and lane-balance requirements.
Provide laminate construction, thickness, reel width and core, winding direction, print repeat, registration-mark position, seal layer and an approved web and finished-pack drawing.
Use a sampling plan that identifies each lane and the operating condition. The plan should prevent acceptable averages from hiding a lane-specific dosing or feeding problem.
Coding can be considered, but content, orientation, position, available print area, web speed, lane arrangement and the method used to check code presence or readability must be agreed.
It should prove representative product and film handling, dose results by the agreed method, seal and cut quality, registration, coding, lane balance, accepted output and stable operation under recorded conditions.
Define the project around your product and pack
Provide the product, dose and tolerance, finished pack and web drawings, lane and output requirement, film, coding, opening feature, downstream presentation and acceptance checks. Lancing Ltd can define the correct multi-lane route without assuming that every narrow sachet is identical.
Plan changeover before tooling approval
A list of pack sizes does not show which formats can share a web layout, forming set or dosing arrangement. Ask the supplier to classify each product and stick-pack combination as a recipe change, a change-part set, a separate tooling or web configuration, or outside the proposed machine. That classification should be confirmed before artwork and production film are released.
| Format variable | What the supplier should classify | Evidence required before release |
|---|---|---|
| Product and dose | Whether the same pump, auger or granule device covers the required range, and which recipes, contact parts or dosing tools are needed. | Representative dose results at the lowest, highest and technically difficult declared cases. |
| Stick length | Whether length is handled by the proposed film advance and cross-seal cycle and whether the artwork repeat and code position remain valid. | Finished samples measured against the approved pack drawing at each required length. |
| Stick width and lane pitch | Whether the width shares the same forming and longitudinal-seal arrangement or needs a different web, lane layout, cutter or seal tooling. | An approved multi-lane web drawing showing total width, lane pitch, seals, trim, cut and registration marks. |
| Laminate and seal layer | Whether the material can run within a confirmed operating window without changing jaws, surface treatment, tension or other film-handling settings. | Identified film trial, settings record, seal and integrity results, plus retained filled packs. |
| Print repeat and eye mark | Whether every artwork repeat can be tracked within the correction range and remains aligned with seals, tear feature, code and cut. | Production-intent printed film or a clearly documented remaining validation step before approval. |
| Tear, cut and strip presentation | Whether packs leave as singles, perforated strips or another arrangement and which notch, perforation or cutter parts change. | Samples handled through the intended counting, collating, cartoning or manual packing process. |
Give each combination a unique reference and record product, dose, stick dimensions, film, lane count, code and downstream presentation. Link that reference to the trial result and to the included tooling in the quotation.
Use the film and seal guide and trial evidence guide before authorising production reels. Compare liquid, powder and granule platforms through the multi-lane machine hub.
Stick-pack engineering brief
A stick pack is not simply a sachet made narrower. Dose shape, longitudinal seal, lane pitch, print repeat, cut or perforation and downstream handling must work together.
Provide finished width and length, usable volume, longitudinal and transverse seal bands, tear feature, print repeat, eye mark, code area and whether sticks leave individually or in linked groups.
For multi-lane machinery, issue a numbered lane map. Confirm slit lines and how each finished stick is identified during dose, code and seal sampling.
Check that the dose can settle into the narrow format without entering the seal. Define product feed, lane dosing, accepted output, static or overlap behaviour at discharge, counting and secondary packing.
Use production-intent printed film for final registration and coding evidence. Include normal refill, reel change and stop/restart in the acceptance case.
Pack-format decision
A stick pack is a narrow sachet, but lane pitch, back-seal position, registration, lane-specific dosing and downstream collation make it a distinct machinery decision.
Use the three-format comparison to decide whether the customer task needs a conventional roll-stock sachet, a narrow stick or a converted pouch before the web and tooling are specified.