From Sachets to Stand-up Pouches: Choosing the Right Automatic Pouch Filling Machine

Author : DBAO PACKAGING
09/12/2025
09:14

In today’s fast-paced manufacturing environment, choosing the right automatic pouch filling machine is critical for maintaining production efficiency, packaging consistency, and product quality. Whether you’re filling granular powder, liquids, or viscous products, selecting the right equipment depends heavily on your packaging format—be it small sachets or large stand-up pouches.

This guide outlines key considerations for selecting the ideal pouch filling machine based on pouch types, product characteristics, and production requirements.

Understanding Pouch Formats: Sachets vs. Stand-up Pouches

Sachets are single-use, flat pouches typically used for small doses of powders, gels, or liquids in industries like pharmaceuticals, personal care, and food service. These require high-speed, precision dosing and often benefit from multi-lane or vertical form-fill-seal (VFFS) machines.

Stand-up pouches (Doypacks), on the other hand, are larger and more robust, commonly used for snacks, juice, sauces, detergents, and pet food. They typically require spout or zipper options and benefit from horizontal or rotary pouch packing machines for better integration of filling and sealing functions.

Types of Automatic Pouch Filling Machines

Vertical Form-Fill-Seal (VFFS) Machines
Ideal for granular, powder, and liquid products packed into sachets or pillow bags. VFFS machines form the pouch from a film roll, fill it, and seal it vertically. They offer high-speed and compact design.
Horizontal Form-Fill-Seal (HFFS) Machines
Commonly used for flat and shaped pouches, HFFS machines are ideal for thicker pastes or larger volume products. They can be equipped with multiple filling stations and are adaptable to add zippers or spouts.
Pre-made Pouch Filling Machines
These machines are used for filling and sealing pre-formed pouches, especially stand-up pouches with zippers or spouts. Rotary pouch machines are a popular type in this category, known for flexibility and cleanliness.
Multi-lane Sachet Packing Machines
Best for high-speed production of stick packs or sachets, particularly in the pharmaceutical, food, and cosmetic industries. These machines fill multiple sachets simultaneously and offer excellent production output in limited space.

Key Factors When Choosing a Pouch Filling Machine

Product Type: Viscosity, particle size, and chemical reactivity all influence the filling system (e.g., piston, pump, auger, gravity).
Packaging Format: Flat sachets, stick packs, stand-up pouches, or spouted bags require different forming and sealing technologies.
Speed and Volume Requirements: Multi-lane machines are ideal for high throughput, while single-lane options suit smaller production runs.
Automation Level: Consider fully automatic systems with integrated weight checking, date coding, and packaging inspection for streamlined operations.
Hygiene and Compliance: For food and pharma products, machines must support easy cleaning, stainless steel construction, and GMP-compliant designs.

Customization Options

Modern pouch filling machines support a wide range of customizations to meet unique product or branding needs, including:

Custom pouch sizes and shapes
Zipper, spout, and valve additions
Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP)
Intelligent HMI with multilingual support
Integration with upstream or downstream automation

Conclusion

Choosing the right automatic pouch filling machine—from sachet to stand-up pouch—requires careful evaluation of your product characteristics, packaging format, and production goals. Investing in the right technology ensures operational efficiency, product integrity, and long-term cost savings.

For tailored packaging machine solutions and expert guidance, contact DBAO Packaging Machinery. Our engineers are ready to help you find or customize the ideal machine for your application.

Email: steven@dbaopack.com