A cup plant is a chain: resin → sheet → forming → rim/stack/pack → scrap return. If one station is small, the expensive press sits idle. This is the sequence on AMT turnkey projects.
The five gates with numbers
| Gate | What you freeze | Typical range |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Product | Rim, volume, resin, cases/hour | Sets cavities and cpm |
| 2. Former | FS / HSS / LS + forming area | See machine pages (780–850 mm class) |
| 3. Sheet | kg/h = cups + skeleton + 10–15% | Skeleton often 30–50% of web |
| 4. Utilities | 380 V, water, 0.6–0.8 MPa air | Former air 2.5–4.0 m³/min on our cup pages |
| 5. Downstream | Stack, curl, pack, online crusher | Same drawing as the press |
Worked layout — one FS-7856 PP cup line
24 cavities × 32 cpm × 60 × 0.85 ≈ 39,000 cups/h. Sheet ~450–500 kg/h. Hall: former + unwind + stacker + online crusher in one row; chiller and compressor in a utility room. After drawing freeze, machine lead time is typically 35–45 days plus mold schedule. Do not pour the air trench after the press arrives.
Do not pour concrete around a missing utility
Mark pits for the former, a 0.6–0.8 MPa air header sized for 2.5–4.0 m³/min plus leak, and a closed chilled-water pair (rolls vs molds) before the press lands. A 35–45 day machine lead is wasted if the trench is cut after uncrating. Spare heaters and a 12-month wear list ship in the same crate as the turnkey — put them on a shelf, not in the office.
Lock CAD on the mold page before steel. Read capacity math first, then quote with hall length and monthly cups.
Fault map — what the line is telling you
| Symptom | Likely cause | First check |
|---|---|---|
| Press lands; no air trench, no chiller pads | Civil work frozen after the crate | Mark pits and 0.6–0.8 MPa header before the 35–45 day lead ends |
| Former idle; buying roll stock at a premium | Extruder deferred “until next year” with no width match | Price sheet line in the same pack even if you stage payment |
| Compressor in the yard eats filters in a month | Dust and heat on an outdoor skid | Utility room, not the metal roof |
| Commissioning overruns with no cpm target | Open-ended training visit | Write a cycle-time and scrap target in the contract |
| Spare heaters missing on night shift | Wear kit left in the office | 12-month list on a hall shelf, not in a drawer |
RFQ checklist — send this in one email
Fill what you know; blank is better than a guess. Attach it on Get a Quote with photos of resin or flake.
- Hall length × width and a rough floor sketch (doors, truck, offices)
- Monthly cups and SKU count; resin mix
- kVA available, water source, and whether a utility room exists
- Which stations you already own (extruder, former, stacker, crusher)
- Mold status: CAD freeze date vs machine 35–45 day lead
- Language for commissioning and the written cpm / scrap target
Frequently asked questions
How much hall length do I need?
One balanced cup line is often 25–40 m including unwind and stacker. Send a floor sketch; we mark pits and air.
Can I buy the former now and the extruder next year?
Yes, but you will buy roll stock. Price the sheet line in the same pack so widths match.
What spare kit ships with a turnkey?
Heaters, seals, and a 12-month wear list. Hydraulic lines add oil and filter SKUs.
Who trains the operators?
Commissioning crew on site. Budget a written cycle-time target, not an open-ended visit.