Pizza Box Folding Machine

Pizza Box Folding Machine

A pizza box folding machine converts box blanks into sealed-bottom, open-top pizza boxes for following pizza loading.

As shown in the following figure:

If your box looks like a twin to the box above or your box die-cut design is the same as the diagram below:

Contact us to customize your dreamy pizza box folding machine.

Email: info@sirosilo.com

WhatsApp: +8617312124727

Workflow

In June 2024, we tested a pizza box folding sealing machine customized for a domestic customer in China.

The test video is as follows:

Its workflow covers the following steps:

1. A vacuum suction grabber picks up a box blank and transfers it to the top of the forming station;
2. A punch presses the box blank downwards to form it into a three-dimensional box;
3. Two plows fold the side bottom inside flaps onto the side bottom flaps and insert overlapped side flaps into the slot;
4. A pusher pushes out the formed box with an open top;
5. Another pusher pushes the formed box onto the pizza-loading conveyor;
6. An operator demonstrates the manual loading of pizza into a top-open pizza box using an iron rod;
7. The pizza box forwards to the next top closing station;
8. A punch head presses the top cover of the pizza box to fold the side top flaps;
9. A cylinder-controlled push plate pushes the top cover down, a tucker presses the front flap down, and a pressing piece presses the front flap into the box;
10. Closed pizza boxes go out via a conveyor.

Photo Show

• Front View

• Left View

• Right View

• Box Blank Magazine

• Punch Forming Head

• Forming Station

• Siemens Touchscreen

Features

Automatic pizza box folding, and sealing;

Manual pizza loading station, automatic pizza loader customizable;

Siemens graphic touchscreen HMI, easy operation;

Delta PLC control to ensure stable & smooth running;

Photoelectric eye detection for each essential motion;

Real-time status monitoring, automatic shutdown for failure;

Box blanks refilling without machine downtime;

Current & cumulative output count;

Quick & easy size changeover, averaging 15-20 mins;

Safety cover protects the operator.

Configurations

Item	Brand	Place of Origin
PLC	Delta	Taiwan, China
Servo Motor	YICHUAN	China
Servo Drive	YICHUAN	China
Vacuum Generator	SMC	Japan
Air Cylinder	AirTAC	Taiwan, China
Photoelectric Sensor	QZQ	China
Touch Screen	Siemens	Germany
Speed Regulation Motor	CHEEMING	China
Electrical Switch	CHINT	China
Power	MEANWELL	Taiwan, China

Price

The photo below shows the Chinese market’s reference price for automatic pizza box folding machines.

Its price will be higher if your mailer/pizza/postal box is non-standard and adopts hot melt glue to attach dust flaps to the side panel.

In addition, some customers may request additional features or particular parts, which can drive up the final price.

Manufacturers

If you search “pizza box folder machine” on Google, you will be disappointed to find just a few suppliers.

Many manufacturers usually use the keyword “tray former” to broadcast this type of machine.

The following tray former manufacturers are key players in this niche:

• adco
• combi
• ipak/wexxar
• kliklok
• swf

As a Chinese supplier, our greatest advantages are flexible customized services.

Please feel free to tell us your customization requirements via Email or WhatsApp.

Email: info@sirosilo.com

WhatsApp: +8617312124727

Pizza Box Former Choice

Almost all Chinese box folding machine manufacturers produce formers for mailer/postal or lid &  base boxes.

Namely, if your pizza box doesn’t share the same design as the mailer box, you should discuss customization possibilities with these manufacturers.

After confirming the customization possibility, you must clarify your requirements from the following aspects.

Types of Box

Determining your box type is the priority.

• Mailer/Postal Box
• Pizza Box
• Lid & Base Box
• Bliss Box

For pizza boxes, sometimes, only the front panel needs to be locked;

Other times, the pizza box shares the same design as postal/mailer boxes, it needs to lock the left & right side panels;

Moreover, some pizza boxes need to lock the left & right side panels plus the front panel.

The folding machine price varies for different box types.

Box Sizes

After you communicate all your box sizes to the manufacturer, they will recommend the most suitable model.

Ideally, all your box sizes will be within the compatible range of standard machines.

If not, please discuss it with the manufacturer and confirm the possibility of customization.

Speed

If your requirements for output are not high, we suggest you choose a moderate-speed intermittent motion machine, 700-1200 boxes per hour.

Such an intermittent machine has good stability, and a long service life, and brings sustainable benefits.

If you prefer high-speed, the mailer box folding machine in the video below can meet your requirement, it integrates a conveyor to achieve simultaneous folding of multiple boxes, leading to a speed of 25-30 boxes per minute.

Please comprehensively consider your existing output requirements & possible future increases, and choose a reasonable speed.

Footprint

It is crucial to measure the space available for your box folding machine.

A distance of 0.6-1m should be around the machine to facilitate future operation & maintenance.

Customized Components

Some customers will specify the brand of components (such as PLC, inverter, touch screen, air cylinder, etc.).

These requirements are achievable, but the price will be higher than the standard.

In addition to the high price of branded components, manufacturers have to rewrite software codes for different brands, which consumes more manpower & time.

Optional Hot Melt Glue Applicator

Some mail/postal boxes require hot melt glue to seal dust flaps to the side panels.

In this case, you must use a hot melt glue applicator.

Robatech or Nordson hot melt adhesive applicators are expensive and have good effects;

Chinese hot melt glue applicators cost less, and the effect is not as good as Robatech or Nordson.

Mailer Box Folding Machine

The photo above shows a standard mailer/postal box, it is made of kraft cardboard or corrugated paper and is popular in express packaging.

Processes

It absorbs a box blank with vacuum cups first;

Then, the vacuum cups absorb the blank to the folding station with a servo motor drive;

A folding station in the following photo:

Thirdly, this folding station finishes the mailer box forming & side panel insertion step by step;

Finally, the rear box pushes the front box out.

Schematic

It includes the common components listed below according to the above schematic:

• Box Blanks Magazine
• Control Cabinet
• Drive Chain
• Folding Station
• Lifting Motor
• Servo Motor
• Side Panel Folder & Inserter
• Touch Screen
• Tower Light
• Vacuum Grabber

Box Blanks Magazine

It pre-stores the box blanks and automatically lifts or lowers with a motor drive.

Its size is adjustable according to your box size.

Vacuum Grabber

It comprises guide rails, aluminum profile brackets, vacuum suction cups, etc.

Servo Motor

This servo motor drives the vacuum grabber forth and back between the blank magazine and the folding station.

Folding Station (Optional Hot Melt Glue Spraying)

A stamping & forming punch compresses the blank into the box shape.

If the side panels of your box adopt glue sealing, a hot melt glue applicator is available for your choice.

Side Panel Folder & Inserter

The cylinder drives four pushers & two plows to fold and insert the side panels, thus the box bottom is sealed.

Box Outlet

Formed boxes come out from the machine through this outlet.

Please watch the video below to review the entire operation.

Pros

Simple structure, compact footprint;

Touch screen HMI, easy parameters setting & operation control;

Real-time status monitoring, automatic shutdown for failure;

PLC control to ensure stable & smooth operation;

Box blanks refilling without machine downtime;

Photoelectric eye detection for each essential motion;

Quick & easy size changeover, averaging 15-20 mins;

Current & cumulative output count;

Safety cover protects the operator;

High-quality components.

Hamburger Box Making Machine

A hamburger box making machine completes the box blank feeding, conveying, gluing, and punch forming in one stop, converting the box blanks into three-dimensional hamburger boxes, hot dog boxes, French fries boxes, take-out food pail boxes, etc.

Two types are available for your choice:

Automatic

Automatic burger box making machine has 2 types:

1. Continuous Motion
2. Intermittent Motion

Let’s start with continuous motion one first.

Schematic

This photo shows the core components of such machines:

1. Box Blank Feeder
2. Box Blank Conveyor
3. Glue Applicator
4. Box Punch Former
5. Formed Box Collector
6. Control Cabinet & Touchscreen

Workflow

An operator places burger box blanks into the magazine first;

Then the box blank feeder feeds box blanks one by one;

Thirdly, these box blanks pass through the blank conveyor one by one;

Fourthly, each box blank passes through the glue applicator for flaps gluing;

Then, the glued box blanks are converted to burger boxes by punching the former;

At last, the formed burger boxes are collected in the collector below:

The video below clearly covers the steps mentioned above.

Features

Small footprint;

PLC control, automatic shutdown due to box jam or shortage;

Automatic recipes save;

Humanized buttons & touch panel for easy control;

Servo motor driven forming mold (punching mold), high precision & efficiency;

Pinewood mold, faster mold changeover for different box types;

Food-grade water-based glue applicator, efficient & accurate;

High-quality sealed bearings prevent dust & liquid from entering, long life & superb stability;

High-quality synchronous chain drive ensures stable running;

Automatically collect, stack, and count formed boxes.

Parameters

Item	Hamburger Box Making Machine
Speed	60-160 CPM
Box Material	200-600gsm Cardboard
Compatible Boxes	Hot Dog, French Fries, Take-out Food Pail
Box Size	L100-450mm | 3.94″-17.7″ W100-500mm | 3.94″-19.7″ H15-200mm | 0.6″-7.9″
Degree	5-45°
Power	6kW
Voltage	110/220/380V, 50/60Hz
Air Pressure	0.6Mpa-0.8Mpa | 6-8 Bar

After introducing the continuous type, let’s dive deep into the intermittent motion one.

Overview

This intermittent hamburger box machine integrates a hot air generator inside, which can convert a single PE-coated paper box blank into a three-dimensional hamburger box without glue application.

It completes the following four steps smoothly in one stop with Inovance PLC control:

• Automatic Box Blank Feeding & Conveying
• Box Blank Heating (Inside Air Generator)
• Hot Press Forming (Four Corners Pasting)
• Automatic Box Counting & Collecting

Parameters

Item	Intermittent Motion Burger Box Machine
Speed	40-50 pcs/min.
Box Material	200-400gsm PE-coated Paper
Compatible Boxes	Burger, Hot Dog, French Fries, Take-out Food Pail
Max. Blank Size	L480mm x W480mm
Weight	800Kg
Power	5kW
Voltage	220/380V, 50/60Hz
Air Pressure	0.6-0.8Mpa | 6-8 Bar | 87-116 Psi

Configurations

Item	Brand	Place of Origin
PLC	Inovance	China
Touchscreen	Inovance	China
Frequency Converter	Inovance	China
Motor	WVT	China
Air Cylinder	AirTAC	Taiwan
Photoelectric Sensor	Autonics	South Korea
Relay	Schneider	France
Contactor	Schneider	France
Temperature Controller	Autonics	South Korea
Start/Stop Buttons	Autonics	France
Bearing	HRB	China

Manual

An operator places the box blank under the punching mold, then steps on the foot switch for 1-2 seconds, and a three-dimensional hamburger box appears in front of your eyes.

Archive Box & Lid Assembly Machine

On 7/23/2024, we received an inquiry from a potential client Mr. Jon, he is looking for an archive box & an archive box lid assembly machine.

Archive Box Assembly Machine

Mr. Jon provides the following photos of the archive box blank below:

As you can see from the above photo, the archive box assembly steps are printed clearly on the box blank:

You can also watch the video below to understand archive box assembly processes better:

After evaluating the above reference photo & video, our engineering team confirms the customization possibility and draws the design diagram below:
We will keep following up with Mr. Jon, and update the customization progress on this page.

Archive Box Lid Assembly Machine

Mr. Jon also shared his archive box lid blank with us:

Once our engineering team saw this image, they shared the following video with me:

The archive box lid assembly machine in this video is exactly what Mr. Jon needs.

Lid & Base Box Former

The standard lid & base box are very simple, including a top lid and bottom base, as shown in the figure below:

Lid & base boxes can be automatically folded and formed by the machine in the video below, the formed boxes are suitable for packaging various products such as clothes, fruits, gifts, mobiles, shoes, underwear, etc.

In the above video, the lid & base boxes are interlocked from the side panel to the bottom panel to erect.

Another type of lid & base box requires hot melt glue to seal the side panels to form it:

If your lid & base box are made of white cardboard, please choose the folding machine in the video below:

Some customers favor high speed and choose a duplex folding machine:

Our lid & base box folding machines share the same design as the mailer box erector, as shown in the photo below:

Tuck End Box Erector

In addition to pizza box folding machines, the following folding carton erectors are also popular.

• Tuck End Box Erector
• 123 Bottom Box Erector

Let’s dive deep into tuck end box erector first.

Tuck end box erectors can form both straight & reverse tuck end cartons.

And it has 2 types for your choice.

Intermittent Motion

Parts

This intermittent motion small box erector consists of the following parts:

• Alarm Indicator
• Aluminum Profile Frame
• Box Blank Magazine
• Carton Forming Station
• Control Cabinet
• Leveling Feet
• Pneumatic Components (Air Cylinder)
• Touchscreen
• Universal Wheel
• Vacuum Generator
• Vacuum Suction Cups

Processes

1. Box Blank Picking-up & Placing
2. Box Framing
3. Dust Flaps Folding
4. Closure Panel Folding
5. Tuck Flap Folding & Holding
6. Tuck Flap Inserting
7. Carton Blowing Out

Please watch the operation guidance video for a better understanding.

Selling Points

1. Compact structure, small footprint;
2. Simple & convenient touchscreen control;
3. Photoelectric eye detection ensures stable & smooth running;
4. Low power cuts electricity bills;
5. Safety cover protects the operator;
6. Easy shifting with universal wheels.

In addition, a pneumatically controlled top pressure plate is added to the carton framing device.

With this dedicated design, the tuck flap insertion effect gets much better.

HMI

• Startup Screen (Your Logo & Native Language)

• Home Interface

• Cylinder Control

• Output Signal

Continuous Motion

Composition

The following schematic shows its structure.

It consists of the components below:

• Touch Screen

Convenient control.

• Box Blank Magazine

It pre-stores max. 400 pcs box blanks in advance (depending on blank thickness), and blank restocking is achievable without machine downtime.

• Transmission Chain

It sits inside the machine and connects to a row of lugs outside.

The cartons are placed between neighborhood lugs one by one, and then the chain conveyor drives the row of lugs forward.

• Folder & Former

During the forward movement, the folder & former complete the bottom closure panel & dust flaps folding and insert the bottom tuck flap into the carton.

• Closed Carton Outlet

The chain conveyor finally carries the closed carton to the outlet.

Most customers will place a collection container under the carton outlet, and the closed cartons directly enter the container for downstream packaging.

• Control Cabinet

It is equivalent to the continuous tuck end box erector’s brain.

The PLC inside issues instructions for smooth & stable running.

Workflow

Tuck end box forming includes the following steps:

1. Carton Blank Pickup
2. Bottom Dust Flap Folding
3. Bottom Closing Panel Folding
4. Bottom Tuck Flap Insertion
5. Closed Carton Outputting

Please watch the video below to digest these steps.

Parameters

Speed	40-60 CPM
Size Range	L(30mm-120mm | 1.18″-4.72″) W(30mm-80mm | 1.18″-3.15″) H(70mm-165mm | 2.75″-6.5″)
Compatible Box	Straight/Reverse Tuck End
Power	1500W
Voltage	110/220/380V, 50/60Hz
Air Pressure	0.6-0.8Mpa | 6-8 Bar | 87-116 Psi
Dimension/Weight	L1.66m x W0.96m x H1.5m 450Kg
Size Changeover Time	15-20 Mins

123 Bottom Box Erector

The 123 bottom box erector is another hot-selling type of folding carton erector, it folds & forms the 1-2-3 bottom box (also called snap lock bottom carton) as shown in the photo below:

There are also 2 types of such erectors available.

Intermittent Motion

Components

Intermittent 1-2-3 bottom box erector consists of the following parts:

• Control Console
• Electric Cabinet
• Alarm Light
• Carton Blank Magazine
• Carton Erecting Unit
• Bottom Locking Unit
• Carton Outlet

Workflow

• Box Blank Grabbing & Conveying

Two vacuum suction cups suck a box blank from the blank magazine and then convey the blank to the carton erecting unit.

• Carton Erecting

A photoelectric eye detects the coming box blank and sends a signal to the PLC.

Then, the PLC sends a command to the other two vacuum suction cups to absorb the box blank, generating a reverse pulling force.

Two reverse pulling forces erect the box blank into a square shape.

• Bottom Interlocking

Now it’s the bottom locking unit’s turn.

It folds the female bottom closure panel first, then folds the two dust flaps, and finally tucks the male bottom closure panel into the female bottom closure panel.

• Closed Box Outputting

Compressed air blows the closed box out, and the closed boxes with open tops drop into the pre-placed collection container.

Its workflow is clear in the video below.

Non-pre-creased 123 bottom boxes are foldable on the erector below:

Continuous Motion

Continuous 123 bottom box erectors share the same design as the continuous tuck end box erectors mentioned above.

The only difference between them is their different carton folder & former unit.

A vacuum cup sucks a 1-2-3 bottom box blank from the magazine;

Secondly, the vacuum cup places the squared box on the lug chain conveyor, the lug chain conveyor carries the 1-2-3 bottom box forward;

Thirdly, a tucker folds the bottom female closure panel;

Fourthly, two folders fold the bottom dust flaps of the 1-2-3 bottom box;

Fifthly, one holder holds the bottom dust flaps & female closure panel, the other holds the bottom male closure panel, then a tucker inserts the bottom male closure panel into the female closure panel.

Finally, the lug chain conveyor conveys the erected 1-2-3 bottom box to the outlet.

You have read this far, so why not contact us to enjoy worry-free sourcing services like our American customer Mr. Bob?

Email: info@sirosilo.com

WhatsApp: +8617312124727