How Glass Cups Are Made?

Glass is a solid-like, transparent material that has many applications in our daily lives. Made from naturally abundant raw materials (sand, soda ash and limestone), glass is melted at very high temperatures to form a new material: glass. At high temperatures, glass resembles a liquid in structure, but at ambient temperatures it behaves like a solid. As a result, glass can be poured, blown, pressed and moulded into many shapes.

Glass manufacture has a long tradition dating back to around 3500 BC when it is thought that glass was first produced artificially in Egypt and Mesopotamia for use as jewellery and later as vessels. Since then, the process has continued to evolve from craft to the high-tech industrial processes of today, and the number of glass types and applications has increased exponentially.

Glass has shaped European cultural heritage, regions, industries, living conditions, technological deployment, etc. like no other substance. Think of glass masterpieces such as Bohemian crystal, the island of Murano in Italy, the Milos Gallery in Versailles or the stained glass of cathedrals.

Today, glass is everywhere and continues to offer state-of-the-art solutions, either on its own or in combination with other materials for high-tech applications; a trend that is likely to continue in the future.

Creating glass containers can be done by one of two different processes - the blow and blow, or the press and blow process. Each process is chosen according to the type of glass bottle being made. All glass bottles start with raw materials. Silicon dioxide (sand), soda ash, limestone and crushed glass (recycled glass that can be used in the furnace) are combined into a specific mixture depending on the desired characteristics of the bottle.

The mixture is then melted in a furnace at high temperatures until it becomes a molten material, ready for moulding. This mixture will produce a type of glass called soda lime glass, which is the most popular food and beverage glass.

Glass Forming Method

The molten glass droplets are cut by a perfectly timed blade to ensure that each droplet has the same weight before entering the forming machine. The weight of the droplets is important to the moulding process of each glass container being made. Moulded glass is made by gravity by feeding drops of molten glass into the forming machine where pressure forms the neck and basic shape of the bottle. Once the neck and general shape of the glass bottle is completed, it is called a type blank. To obtain the final container shape, one of two processes is used.

The press-blowing process

The press-blow process is the most common method used in the manufacture of glass bottles. It uses an individual section (IS) machine which is divided into different sections to produce several containers of the same size at the same time. The molten glass is cut to a specific drop size using shear blades. The droplets are dropped into the machine by gravity.

A metal plunger is used to push the drop down into the mould, where it starts to form and becomes a billet. The billet is then transferred to the blow mould and reheated so that the billet is soft enough to complete the glass size. Once the blank has been reheated to blowing temperature, air is injected to blow the container into shape. The press-blow method is commonly used to make wide-mouth bottles and jars because their dimensions allow the plunger to enter the billet.

Blow and Blow Process

The Blow and Blow process is used to manufacture narrow containers. It also requires an IS machine in which drops of molten glass are fed into the mould by gravity. The blanks are made by using compressed air to form the neck and the basic shape of the bottle. The blanks are then turned over 180 degrees and reheated, and the container is blown into its final shape by filling it again with air. Blow and Blow methods are best suited to the manufacture of glass bottles that require different neck thicknesses.

The Finishing Process

Regardless of the process used, once the bottle is fully formed, it is removed from the mould and transferred to the annealing furnace. The annealing furnace reheats the bottles to a temperature of approximately 1,050 degrees Fahrenheit and then gradually cools them to approximately 390 degrees Fahrenheit. This process allows the glass to cool at a uniform rate - removing internal stresses in the glass that could lead to breakage or shattering. The bottles are then carefully inspected to ensure they meet quality control guidelines. Any defective bottles, including bubbles, cracks or misshapen areas, are removed from the line and used as broken glass. All remaining bottles are sorted according to size and type. The bottles are then packed on pallets and prepared for transport.

Today, glass is everywhere and Dingmu continues to offer state-of-the-art glassware solutions. At present, Xi’an Dingmu deals in glassware design, product research, glassware production, product customization(ODM & OEM), glassware design and manufacture.

There are more things, which we also design and manufacture of outer packaging, inventory and sales records will be computerized, pay attention to the application of material of new-style environmental protection and much more. Furthermore, Dingmu puts a great deal of emphasis on sustainability and customer service as well. Dingmu has been accredited the coveted FSC and ISO certification. Welcome to contact us.