Capping equipment applies and secures the closure that seals a pharmaceutical bottle or vial, a step that carries as much quality weight as the fill itself, since a poorly applied closure can undo an otherwise perfect fill through leakage, contamination, or a tamper-evident seal that fails to do its job. Pharmaceutical manufacturers, contract packaging organisations, and sterile injectable producers all rely on capping equipment matched precisely to their closure type, since a chuck capper, a spindle capper, and a vial crimper solve genuinely different mechanical problems. Browse new and used capping equipment from verified sellers on Machinery Masters.

What Is Capping Equipment?

Capping equipment covers the machinery that applies a closure to a filled container, and the right machine depends entirely on what kind of closure is going on and how the container moves through the line. Chuck cappers grip a cap from above and rotate it onto a threaded bottle neck, a precise and controllable method well suited to lower and mid-range production speeds.

Spindle cappers take a different approach entirely, using angled rotating belts or spindles to tighten caps continuously as bottles pass beneath them without ever stopping, which is how high-speed lines achieve their throughput. Snap, or press-on, cappers solve a third problem again, pressing a snap-fit cap straight down into place with no rotation involved at all.

Vials introduce their own closure logic that bottle capping doesn't cover. A vial crimper applies and crimps an aluminium seal, often a flip-off-style cap, over a rubber stopper already seated in the vial neck, a method used throughout injectable and parenteral packaging rather than the screw-on or snap-on closures a bottle uses.

ROPP, or roll-on pilfer-proof, capping solves yet another problem: rolling threads directly into a soft, pre-slit aluminium shell onto the bottle's own neck threads rather than screwing on a cap that was pre-threaded at the factory, producing a custom-fit, genuinely tamper-evident closure formed in place.

Capping Brands

Zalkin, known for its chuck and spindle capping machines and cap-handling systems for pharmaceutical and cosmetics applications
Genesis Packaging Technologies, known for its RW Westcapper and Aptus rotary vial crimping systems
Kaps-All Packaging Systems, known for its spindle and press-on capping machines
Pneumatic Scale Angelus, known for its turret-capping and vial-sealing systems
Groninger, known for its filling, capping, and crimping systems for vials and bottles
Bausch+Ströbel, known for its pharmaceutical filling and closing equipment, including vial capping systems

Please verify this brand list against current Machinery Masters marketplace inventory before publishing, as available stock changes over time.

Capping Product Types

Capping equipment divides into a handful of formats depending on the closure type and the mechanism used to apply it.

Chuck Cappers

Chuck cappers grip a cap from above using a rotating chuck head and thread it onto a bottle neck, giving precise, controllable torque application well suited to lower and mid-range production speeds and products where closure consistency matters more than raw throughput.

Spindle Cappers

Spindle cappers use angled rotating belts or spindles to tighten caps continuously as bottles pass beneath them without stopping, making this format the standard choice for high-speed bottling lines that need sustained throughput rather than the stop-start motion a chuck capper uses.

Snap (Press-On) Cappers

Snap cappers press a snap-fit cap straight down into place with no rotation involved, a simpler mechanical action suited to closures designed to click into place rather than screw on.

ROPP Capping Machines

ROPP, or roll-on pilfer-proof, capping machines roll threads directly into a soft, pre-slit aluminium shell onto the bottle's own neck, forming a custom-fit, tamper-evident closure in place rather than applying a pre-threaded cap. This format is standard wherever a highly tamper-evident, product-specific seal matters.

Vial Crimping and Stoppering Machines

Vial crimping machines apply and crimp an aluminium seal, commonly a flip-off style closure, over a rubber stopper already seated in a vial neck, the standard closure method throughout injectable and parenteral pharmaceutical packaging rather than a screw-on or snap-on bottle closure.

Capping Applications and Uses

Capping equipment supports closure application across solid oral dosage, liquid, and injectable pharmaceutical packaging.

Solid Oral Dosage and OTC Bottle Closure

Chuck and spindle cappers apply screw-on closures, including child-resistant designs, to bottled tablets, capsules, and over-the-counter liquid products, matched to production speed and closure complexity.

Injectable and Parenteral Vial Sealing

Vial crimping machines seal injectable and parenteral products with an aluminium flip-off closure over a rubber stopper, a sterile packaging step performed under validated aseptic conditions in cleanroom environments.

Tamper-Evident Closure Application

ROPP capping machines and tamper-evident chuck or spindle systems apply closures that show clear evidence of prior opening, a requirement for many over-the-counter and prescription products under packaging safety regulations.

Cap Torque Verification and Quality Control

Pharmaceutical manufacturers use torque testers to verify that applied caps meet a specified torque range, checking that closures are neither under-torqued, risking leakage, nor over-torqued, risking a cracked closure or one a patient struggles to open.

Contract Packaging and Pharmacy Repackaging

Contract packaging organisations and pharmacy repackaging operations use smaller-scale capping equipment to close bottles and vials as part of repackaging bulk product into retail, hospital, or care home-ready formats.

How to Choose Capping Equipment

A handful of practical factors determine which capping equipment suits a manufacturing or packaging operation.

Match the capper mechanism to your closure type, choosing a chuck or spindle capper for screw-on bottle caps, a snap capper for press-fit closures, and a vial crimper for aluminium seals over rubber stoppers.
Choose spindle over chuck capping where sustained high-speed throughput matters more than the stop-start precision a chuck capper offers.
Confirm torque control and verification capability meets your quality requirements, particularly for child-resistant or tamper-evident closures where both under- and over-torquing are quality failures.
Consider ROPP capping specifically where a highly tamper-evident, product-specific closure matters more than using an off-the-shelf pre-threaded cap.
For used equipment, request full qualification history; confirm change parts for your specific cap and closure sizes are included or available; and verify torque accuracy on a test run before relying on the equipment for production.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between a chuck capper and a spindle capper?

A chuck capper grips a cap from above and rotates it onto a bottleneck, giving precise, controllable torque suited to lower and mid-range speeds, while a spindle capper uses angled rotating belts to tighten caps continuously as bottles pass beneath without stopping, making it the standard choice for high-speed lines. The choice generally comes down to whether production speed or closure precision matters more for a given product.

What is ROPP capping?

ROPP, or roll-on pilfer-proof, capping rolls threads directly into a soft, pre-slit aluminium shell onto the bottle's own neck threads, forming a custom-fit closure in place rather than screwing on a cap that was pre-threaded at the factory. This produces a highly tamper-evident seal that shows clear evidence of any prior opening.

How is a vial crimped and sealed for injectable products?

A vial crimping machine applies an aluminium seal, commonly a flip-off-style closure, over a rubber stopper already seated in the vial neck, then crimps the aluminium tightly around the vial's neck to hold the stopper securely in place. This process is validated to confirm consistent residual seal force across every vial, since an inconsistent crimp risks compromising the container closure integrity of a sterile product.

How is cap torque verified during production?

Cap torque is verified using a torque tester that measures the force required to remove or further tighten a sample of capped containers, checked against a specified target range during routine in-process quality control. Both under-torqued and over-torqued caps count as quality failures, since under-torquing risks leakage and over-torquing can crack the closure or make it too difficult for a patient to open.

How can I find capping equipment on Machinery Masters?

Browse the Machinery Masters marketplace for new and used capping equipment from verified sellers, and use the filters to narrow results by brand, mechanism, and closure type. Contact a seller directly to confirm specifications, service history, and pricing before you buy.