A friction feeder is the machine that puts a flat thing onto a moving thing: a card into a case, an insert into a tray, a coupon onto a pack, a sheet onto a stack. It is a small machine that solves a problem people otherwise solve with a person.
Marapack Services is the Pacific Northwest distributor for Altech labeling systems, and we quote, supply and commission Altech friction feeders as part of the lines we build. The feeders we quote come from the Altech range, on the same distributor price list as the labeling heads, conveyors and applicators.
Marapack Services is an independent company, not Altech S.r.l. and not ALTech US.
Wondering whether a feeder can put your card or insert where it needs to go? Book an equipment audit and have a sample of the stock ready.
What is a friction feeder used for?
A friction feeder places flat items onto or into something moving: recipe and care cards into a case, coupons onto a pack, inserts into a tray, liners and separator sheets between layers. It can also feed flat product itself past a labeling head, which makes it the product handling for a small labeling line.
- Recipe cards, care cards and instruction leaflets into a case, tray or carton.
- Coupons and promotional inserts onto a pack or into a shipper.
- Freshness cards, absorbent pads and desiccant sheets into a produce tray or clamshell.
- Product literature and warranty cards into a box.
- Pack liners and separator sheets between layers.
- Header cards and backing boards onto a pack before sealing.
- Feeding flat product into a labeling head where the product itself is the flat item, which is a real and less obvious use: the feeder becomes the product handling for a labeling line rather than an accessory to it.
That last one is worth pausing on. If your product is a card, a pouch, a flat pack or a sheet, a friction feeder plus a conveyor plus a labeling head is a complete labeling line for it. The head comes from our labeling heads and applicators, and where you want a complete machine with its own frame instead, from our labeling machine range.
How does a friction feeder work?
A friction feeder holds a stack of flat items in a hopper and separates them one at a time: a driven belt or roller pulls one item out of the stack, past a gate set to the thickness of one item, and releases it onto whatever is passing underneath or alongside.
That is the whole mechanism, and its simplicity is the point. There is no vacuum system, no pick and place arm, no programming beyond a rate and a trigger. On a line that is already moving, a feeder is one of the least complicated ways to add a component.
The three things it needs to work:
- Consistent stock. Items of the same thickness, stiffness and surface. A feeder separates by friction, so a mixed stack, a curled card or a glossy sheet that slides on the one below is a feeder problem before it is anything else.
- A stable target. Whatever the item is being placed onto has to be in a repeatable position when it arrives.
- A reliable trigger. The feeder has to know when to release, which is a sensor decision, not a speed setting.
Which friction feeders can we supply?
We quote, supply and commission two Altech friction feeders, the FF25 and the FF40, as part of the lines we build. They are listed on the Altech distributor price list at 250 mm and 400 mm, so a feeder can be ordered and commissioned with the rest of the line rather than sourced separately.
| Model | Figure on the Altech price list |
|---|---|
| FF25 | 250 mm (about 9.8 in) |
| FF40 | 400 mm (about 15.7 in) |
They are catalog items on the same distributor price list as everything else we sell from the range, which means a feeder can be quoted, ordered, delivered and commissioned as part of one line rather than sourced separately and integrated later.
Worth knowing: there is no page for these on altech.it, altech-us.com or altech-uk.com. We checked all three sitemaps on 2026-09-08 and they contain nothing for friction feeders. The product exists and is on the price list; it simply has not been marketed on those sites.
What is the difference between a feeder and a conveyor?
A conveyor carries product through the line at a known speed and in a known position. A feeder separates flat items from a stack one at a time and releases each onto the product the conveyor carries. The two work together: the conveyor sets where the target is, and the feeder times its release to it.
A friction feeder is rarely bought on its own. On a line, it sits alongside:
- A conveyor to carry the target product past it, at a known speed, in a known position, such as an Altech ALbelt conveyor.
- Product handling to make sure the target arrives square and gapped: spacers, timing screws, gates, guide rails. If product arrives nose to tail, a feeder cannot know where one ends.
- A labeling head, where the same line labels as well as inserts.
- A print and apply labeler, where the pack also needs a variable label such as a lot code, a date or a case barcode. See our variable-data print and apply systems.
- A coder, where the card or the pack needs a date or lot code printed directly rather than labeled.
- Detection, where a missing insert matters. A feeder that misfeeds silently produces a case that looks complete and is not, which is the same failure class as a missing label. Altech's label presence check and smart camera options cover the labeling side of that and are ordered with the machine.
How do you specify a friction feeder so it works on day one?
Specify the feeder from the stock, not the machine: item thickness and its consistency, surface finish, curl and flatness, static, hopper capacity against run length, and where the item has to land. Four of those six are properties of the item being fed, which is why a physical sample matters more than a data sheet.
Thickness consistency. The gate is set to let one item through. Items that vary in thickness, or that are printed on one side and curl, will double feed or misfeed. If the stock varies, say so before ordering.
Surface. A gloss varnished card slides on the card below it differently from an uncoated one. Feeders are tuned to the stock, and a stock change is a re-tune rather than a fault.
Curl and flatness. Cards that have been stored badly, or that have absorbed moisture in a cold room, curl. A curled stack is a common cause of a feeder that "stopped working" without anything changing on the machine.
Static. Dry air, plastic film inserts and a fast feed produce static, and statically charged sheets stick to each other.
Hopper capacity against run length. A hopper that has to be refilled every ten minutes puts a person back on the line, which is the thing the feeder was bought to avoid.
Placement accuracy. Where the item lands is a function of feeder position, product speed, trigger timing and the geometry of the target. If the item has to land inside a tray rather than on it, that is a real specification question and it is answered on the line rather than in a catalog.
Frequently asked questions
How is a friction feeder different from a pick and place? A friction feeder separates by friction and drops the item. It is simpler, cheaper and faster for flat stock, and it has no capability to orient or place precisely. Pick and place gives you placement accuracy and orientation, at considerably more cost and complexity.
Will it handle our card stock? It depends on thickness, stiffness, surface finish and flatness far more than on the machine. Send us a sample of the actual stock, not a specification of it. This is one of the few purchases where a physical sample beats a data sheet every time.
Can a feeder run more than one item type? Usually yes, with a changeover: the gate is set to the item thickness. What it does not do well is run mixed items in one stack.
How fast can it feed? It is a function of item size, stock and the line speed it has to match. We would rather get a real figure from Altech for your item than publish one here that turns out to be wrong for your stock.
How much does a friction feeder machine cost? It depends on the model, the item it feeds, the trigger and detection it needs, and how it mounts on the line. We quote it with the line it serves, once we have a sample of the stock and the line speed, because a feeder priced on its own is priced without the parts that make it work.
Can we add a feeder to an existing line? Frequently yes. The constraints are mounting space, a stable product path, a reliable trigger and enough gap between products. Those are the same constraints as adding a labeling head, and they get checked the same way.
Can you service a friction feeder? Yes, on the Altech FF25 and FF40: Altech is one of the brands we service, and a feeder we commission is covered by the same field service for labeling equipment as the rest of the line.
Why is there no Altech page for the FF25 and FF40? Altech has not published one. They are on the distributor price list, and there is no page for them on altech.it, altech-us.com or altech-uk.com. That is a marketing gap rather than a product gap, and it is the reason this page exists.
Send us a sample of the stock
For this machine more than most, a physical sample of the card, insert or sheet answers more questions than a conversation does. Tell us what it has to land on and how fast the line runs, and we will tell you whether a friction feeder is the answer.
Call 253-709-5566 to arrange a sample, or request an equipment audit and we will look at the stock and the line together.