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Edging toward the top of the packaging industry's more than billion-unit market for disk- top dispensing closures is no snap. It might seem so, given the "snap-fit" in-mold assembly (IMA) launched by Stull Technologies, which for 60 years has supplied globally known companies with cutting-edge closure solutions to lift their products above the competition.

But behind the final snap-fit of two-component disk-top closures—widely popular for the functional dispensing of personal and health care products such as shampoos, gels, lotions and the like—is a highly automated system that innovatively molds and assembles the closure in a single process instead of three.

This disk-top cap evolution began with Stull Technologies' partnership in launching Foboha's TwinCube technology This advancement allows production of a fully assembled, two-color-option disk top on one machine and one mold system. In traditional injection molding, two molds and two machines are required—one for the base cap, another for the cover disk. Additionally, a secondary assembly machine is required to snap those parts together.

Now with two rotating cube molds in one IMA injection molding machine, the base cap is injection- molded on one side, the cover disk on the opposite side. As the cubes are rotated 90 degrees, the components are cooled. With another rotation, the components come face-to-face and are snap- fitted together—while at the same time the system is sequentially molding and cooling new base and cover caps.

"So you're doing basically three processes now at the same time," says Jason Stull, senior director of marketing and administration. "You're reducing the time it takes to produce the finished good, and you're reducing costs by reducing the labor." Further, the process eliminates scrap that results from misaligned parts as the caps are moved into a traditional assembly machine. What's more, there's a sizable savings in floor space. "All those factors allow us to keep our part price to our customer at a more competitive level," Stull says.

Stull Technologies has launched its IMA manufacturing cells to produce new 20-millimeter disk- tops, and to add capacity for its 24mm closures. The mold technology allows Stull to produce disk-top closures (Inset) more efficiently. The new cell also includes new equipment for induction heat inner seals. (Stull Technologies will also provide this as a service for companies requiring lining for their closures.) All told, this has increased its disk-top capacity to several hundred million units.

At the bottom of this top-of the-package innovation is Stull Technologies' commitment to advanced technology, value- added product design and lean manufacturing. Its success rests on those two pillars, providing engineering that minimizes waste and drives cost out of production systems. Bottom line for Stull's customers is top quality and a competitive part price.

"We saw a need to control costs for the customer," Stull says. "And this allows our disk-top customers to gain a savings by utilizing new technology" RD P