Which is Right for Your Product?

Mechanical blowing and manual blowing each have their own unique advantages and applicable scenarios. Mechanical blowing is known for its high efficiency, low cost and large-scale production, while manual blowing wins with its flexibility, uniqueness and artistic value. The choice of which process depends on the product demand, market positioning and cost budget.

Mechanical blowing

Mechanical blowing is a highly automated production process that mainly relies on mechanical equipment to complete the molding of glass bottles. The process flow is as follows:

Step 1:Raw material melting

quartz sand, limestone and other materials are fired at high temperature to become liquid glass.

Step 2:Dripping

The machine cuts the liquid glass into small balls of uniform size (like cutting dough).

Step 3:Initial mold forming

The small glass balls are placed in the first mold, and the initial shape of the bottle is blown out with high-pressure air (similar to blowing a balloon).

Step 4:Final mold forming

The bottle with the initial shape is transferred to the final mold and further blown into the final shape.

Step 5:Annealing

The glass bottle is slowly cooled down in the annealing furnace to eliminate the internal “tightness” and become stronger.

Step 6:Cooling and quality inspection

Quality inspection is carried out after cooling, and qualified products are packaged and shipped.

Its advantages are as follows:

Massive production:

such as standardized glass bottles in the food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic industries.

Complex shapes:

such as odd-shaped perfume bottles and bottles with partitions, as long as the mold is fine enough, the machine can blow them out.

Low-cost demand:

industries that are cost-sensitive and have high demand.

Artificial Blowing

This is the traditional method of making glass bottles by craftsmen. Each step is done manually and requires high technical content, making it suitable for making exquisite and special things.

Step 1: Melting raw materials

Burn the glass raw materials at high temperature into a pot of “glass syrup”.

Step 2: Dipping glass liquid

The craftsman uses a blowpipe to roll out an appropriate amount of glass liquid from the furnace.

Step 3: Blowing out the basic shape

The craftsman blows air (like blowing bubbles) while turning the tube with his hands, and uses tools to pinch out the rough embryo of the bottle.

Step 4: Mold shaping

Put the rough embryo into a wooden or metal mold, blow and turn it, so that the bottle is close to the inner wall of the mold, and make details (such as patterns and bottle mouth).

Step 5: Annealing and cooling

The finished bottles are placed in an insulated furnace to slowly cool down, eliminating the “invisible cracks” inside the glass and making it more durable.

Step 6: Inspection and completion

After complete cooling, the craftsman checks whether it is perfect, and finally trims the edges and corners to complete the production.

What is the strength of this craft?

High-end customization:

unique, such as artworks, luxury packaging, limited edition perfume bottles, и т. д..

Small batch production:

small workshops can also do it without large machinery, such as handicrafts, souvenirs, и т. д..

Special needs:

such as products with difficult shapes or personalized designs such as engraving and coloring.

Future development trends

With the advancement of technology, the precision and flexibility of mechanical blowing are constantly improving, and it may compete with manual blowing in the field of high-end customization in the future. On the other hand, manual blowing will continue to occupy an important position in the high-end market and handicraft field due to its unique artistic value. The combination of the two (such as semi-automatic production) may also become a future development direction.