Case Study: Scaling Up with a Custom Bottle Filler

Challenge:
Our client has a popular all natural mosquito repellent product and they were filling the bottles by hand. Demand was growing but the manual filling was slow, inconsistent, and exhausting. They faced a decision: outsource to a co-packer (losing control and margin), or find a way to scale production in-house without leaving their space. 

Solution:
Bucket Automation designed and built a custom compact filling machine tailored to our client’s workspace and product. The controller was deployed using a Raspberry PI and codesys automation software. A remote VPN connection was added to offer post-installation support and remote upgrades. 

Using off-the-shelf, accessible components, we created a semi-automated filler that:

• Aligned with their existing bottles and tray sizes
• Delivered precise, repeatable fills
• Fit onto a small footprint without requiring a facility move

Results:

• 10X increase in daily output compared to hand-filling
• Consistent fill volumes, improving product quality and customer satisfaction
• Labor hours freed up for marketing, sales, and product development
• Preserved margins by keeping production in-house, avoiding costly outsourcing