WO2011083322A9

WO2011083322A9 - Method of and apparatus for applying fitments to containers

Info

Publication number: WO2011083322A9
Application number: PCT/GB2011/000031
Authority: WO
Inventors: Morten Abrahamsen; Vegard Holm; Loren Budrow; Gert Lourens Jacobus Venter
Original assignee: Elopak Systems Ag; Burrow, Anthony, Gregory
Priority date: 2010-01-11
Filing date: 2011-01-11
Publication date: 2011-10-20
Also published as: EP2523861A1; WO2011083322A1

Abstract

A pour spout fitment holder device (12) includes a base arrangement (16) and a fitment holder (14) having a cavity and a forwardly extending lip (31) integrally formed with a cap engagement portion (32) configured to deflect partly a profiled surface (10) of a wall of a container (8) and urge a pour spout fitment (2) against the profiled surface (10), which encircles a dispensing opening (9). The lip is contoured to promote substantially continuous peripheral engagement of a flange (4) of the fitment (2) with the profiled (surface 10) during sealing of the fitment (2) to the container (8).

Description

METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR APPLYING FITMENTS TO

CONTAINERS

The present invention relates to a method of attaching a surface of a fitment to a surface of a flexible wall of a container and to apparatus for use in the method. The fitment may be, in particular, a pour spout fitment, such as a so-called cap, and the container may be a carton, particularly a packaging carton for flowable substance, particularly liquid.

In a known type of form-fill-seal packaging machine for fluid consumer products cap assemblies are applied to containers, especially cartons, at high speed. In a typical such machine, partially formed containers are indexed, e.g., by an endless chain conveyor, to a filling station where they are filled with predetermined amounts of the fluid product. Typically, for gable top cartons, each filled carton with an open top is then indexed to a top sealing station where top flaps are folded inward to form a gable shape and are sealed to each other with heat and/or adhesive before passing to a capping machine for attaching the cap assembly to the carton. Cap assemblies are pre-arranged in single file and various devices are employed to arrange the cap assemblies such that a top surface of each cap assembly faces in the same direction, e.g., such that a peripheral bonding surface faces the carton. These pre-arranged cap assemblies are sequentially fed to a capping mechanism by a suitable conventional system such as at least one gravity track with a cap escapement end adjacent to the capping machine. Remote heaters heat a bond surface of the cap assembly, and an outer surface of the carton around the zone of a product dispensing opening of the carton or the intended location of such opening. The capping mechanism typically applies the cap assembly to the heated carton surface to form a bond. Subsequent cooling a desired amount allows the cap assembly and the outer surface of the carton to become bonded together.

A common problem with known capping machines is that they do not accommodate containers having attachment area contours, e.g., a gable top carton having a profiled, especially curved, surface on at least part of a panel having the dispensing zone. Therefore, when successive cap assemblies are adhered to profiled surfaces of the containers by a capping mechanism of a conventional capping machine, the cap assemblies can be bonded partially raised, misaligned, unevenly or otherwise inconsistently, to the profiled surfaces, resulting in weak seals, and gaps between the cap assemblies and the profiled surfaces. This can cause weak, bad, or otherwise faulty closure seals, resulting in product leakage, as well as the introduction of oxygen into the container which adversely affects the product freshness and shelf life. As such, the resulting fault conditions common with use of conventional capping machines reduce productivity; reduce shelf life of product, and increase container, cap assembly, and consumer product scrap.

Another common problem with conventional capping machines is that the capping mechanism is not easily removable for replacement or maintenance, resulting in excessive downtime, loss in production, and increased costs. Another common problem is that conventional capping mechanisms do not accommodate line-side space constraints of the capping machine, resulting in increased line space allocation and/or a decreased number of capping mechanisms that can be used with the capping machine, thereby decreasing productivity.

Accordingly, there exists a need for an improved fitment holder device configured to hold the fitment relative to a container having a profiled surface with a contoured attachment area for affixing the fitment to the profiled surface to enable a substantially airtight closure.

According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of attaching a surface of a fitment to a surface of a flexible wall of a container, comprising, while applying that fitment surface to that wall surface, deflecting said wall surface to render said wall surface more complementary to said fitment surface, and affixing said fitment surface to said wall surface.

Advantageously, the deflecting comprises backing-up the fitment surface to varying degrees over the fitment surface, the backing-up to varying degrees being obtained by backing-up with a contoured surface having, at least initially, varying spacing from said fitment surface. The applying of the fitment to the container may be preceded by pre-deflecting the wall surface to a desired final shape, whilst, between the pre-deflecting and the applying, the wall surface and/or the fitment surface may be heated to render it or them tacky. In a particular embodiment, the fitment is a pour spout fitment and is applied to around a pouring hole zone of a roof panel of the container and the deflecting is of the roof panel and causes a forward edge region of the roof panel to bow downwards, whereby the forward edge region is in a downwardly bowed condition following the affixing.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided apparatus for use in that method and comprising a fitment holder device comprising: a base arrangement; and a fitment holder carried by said base arrangement and comprising a housing with a cavity adapted for receiving said fitment, said cavity having a mouth, and said housing including a fitment engaging arrangement around said mouth and adapted to deflect said wall surface to render said wall surface more complementary to said fitment surface.

A preferred embodiment of that apparatus comprises a cap holder device for a capping machine including a cap assembly holder adapted to compensate for container attachment region contours to fix a cap assembly to the profiled surface of the container, e.g., a gable-top carton having a profiled surface at the region of attachment. The cap holder is coupled to a base arrangement including a pivotable mounting member to bring the cap assembly, held by the cap holder, into contact with the predetermined profiled surface of the wall of the container. The cap holder can be formed as a substantially cylindrical housing having a cavity for receiving and holding the cap assembly as the cap assembly is brought into engagement with the container relative to the dispensing opening. The cap holder also has an integrally formed, forwardly extending lip with at least one cap engagement portion contoured, e.g., radially, axially, or multi-axially, to deflect the profiled surface of the container at least partly while urging the cap assembly, e.g., a flange of the cap assembly, against the profiled surface of the container. During engagement with the container, the flange is sandwiched between the container and the cap engagement portion(s) which is/are adapted to apply pressure to adhere the flange onto the profiled surface. If the profiled surface and the flange surface to be affixed thereto are of thermoplastics, applying localized heat to the profiled surface and the flange surface prior to applying the cap to the container enables a bond to form between the container wall and the flange. The cap engagement portion(s) is/are contoured to promote substantially continuous engagement of the flange of the cap assembly with the surface of the container, including any profiled areas of the surface, at a predetermined pressure during applying and cooling operations to enable a substantially airtight bond to form.

A plurality of such cap holder devices may be indexed linearly or rotarily in series through a number of stations. For example, there may be six stations, wherein:-

STATION 1 : a cap is received and held by one of the cap holders;

STATIONS 2 and 3: that cap and a gable-top carton are both heated to render tacky the respective thermoplastics surfaces, but before the carton is brought into the second station, a panel thereof to have the cap affixed thereto is pre-deflected by a pusher to substantially its desired final shape, for example so as to pre-break a score line bounding the panel;

STATION 4: the cap is applied to the container and, backed-up by the holder, deflects the panel into the desired final shape;

STATIONS 5 and 6: the holder and thus the cap are cooled to bond the cap to the container while the panel is maintained in the desired final shape, whereafter the cap may itself retain the panel in that shape.

In order that the invention may be clearly and completely disclosed, reference will now be made, by way of example, to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a cap holder device;

Figure 2 is a perspective view of a cap holder of the cap holder device; Figure 3 is a perspective view of a gable-top carton with a preformed dispensing opening and depicting a cap assembly to be applied to a roof panel with the carton being shown in its condition immediately prior to the application of the cap assembly thereto;

Figure 4a is a side elevation of the cap holder device and depicting a cap assembly retained by a cap holder of the device prior to applying to the roof panel;

Figure 4b is a side elevation of the cap holder device in an initial stage of a capping condition, in which the cap has just contacted the roof panel, the carton being shown in fragmentary, vertical, central section; Figure 4c is a view similar to Figure 4b, but showing the device in a final stage of the capping condition, in which the roof panel is in its finally desired shape;

Figure 5, is a perspective view of the final package of the carton and the cap assembly applied thereto;

Figure 6 is a perspective view of the cap holder device on a rotatable platform and adjacent to a cap assembly located in a cap delivery end of gravity feed track;

Figure 7 is a top plan of a plurality of cap holder devices on the rotatable platform; and

Figure 8 is an exploded view of the cap holder device;

Referring generally to Figure 3, a cap assembly, indicated generally at 2, has a flange 4 and a cylindrical spout that is externally threaded and is for dispensing product once a screw cap 6 has been removed. A container 8 is illustrated having a gable-top configuration; however, it is understood that alternative container configurations can be used. The cap assembly 2 is sized to be affixed to a roof panel 10 of the container 8 over a dispensing opening 9 that is preformed in the panel 10. The container 8 and the cap assembly 2 are sealed to each other using heat and/or adhesive. As illustrated in Figure 4b the flange 4 of the cap assembly 2 contacts the surface of the panel 10 surrounding the opening 9 for bonding the cap assembly 2 to the container 8. The cap assembly 2 is applied to the container 8 after the container has been filled and top- sealed. However, it is understood that, alternatively, the cap assembly 2 can be applied to the container 8 prior to top-sealing of the container 8. Referring to Figures 1 and 4a to 4c generally, a cap holder device, generally indicated at 12, is shown including a cap holder, indicated generally at 14, coupled to a base arrangement, indicated generally at 16. The base arrangement includes a base 18 for mounting a cap holder device 12 to a platform or the like surface, adjacent to a conveyor system that successively advances containers thereon, e.g., a single-indexing or double-indexing endless chain conveyor. The platform can be a rotatable platform A, illustrated in Figs. 6 and 7, having a top surface for fixedly mounting at least one cap holder device 10 thereon.

The base arrangement 18 also has a pivotable mounting member, indicated generally at 20, coupled to the cap holder 14 and the base 18 for oscillation of the cap holder 14. The member 20 oscillates the cap holder 12, e.g., in a generally downward and upward sense, between a receiving condition and a capping condition. As illustrated in Figure 6, the receiving condition is adjacent to a cap assembly delivery end 22 of a track arrangement, indicated generally at 24, e.g., a gravity feed track, for receiving a cap assembly 2 in the cap holder 14. The member 20 pivots the cap holder 14 and the cap assembly 2 generally downward to the capping condition wherein the cap assembly 2 is pressed against a respective container 8 round the dispensing opening for bonding to the container 8. The rotatable platform A can be elevated partly above, but adjacent to, the container 8 such that the container 8 is adjacent to and at least partly below the cap holder 14 when in the receiving condition. When the cap holder 14 is pivoted to the capping condition, the rotatable platform A can rotate indexingly as the container 8 indexes on the conveyor system, e.g., a single-indexing endless chain conveyor, as the cap assembly 2 is bonded to the container 8.

Figure 4a depicts one of the cap holder devices 12 with the cap holder 14 in the receiving condition and shows a cap assembly 2 located in the cap holder 14. Figure 4b depicts the cap holder device 12 with the cap holder 14 pivoted to press the cap assembly 2 against the panel 10 of the container 8 prior to deflecting the profiled surface 11 of the panel 10 for urging the cap assembly 2 against the profiled surface 11 round the opening 9. Figure 4c illustrates the cap holder 14 in a capping condition and pressing the cap assembly 2 firmly against the container 8. It is understood that the cap holder device 12 can be adjustable, e.g., for adjusting the pivot location and height of the cap holder 14 to suit differing container sizes and configurations, and the cap holder 14 can be interchangeable to suit a particular cap assembly 2 being applied.

In alternative embodiments, there can be dual or more indexing, whereby two or more cap holder devices 12 occupy each station in turn on the rotatable platform A, whereby two or more cap assemblies 2 and two or more containers 8 are acted upon at each of at least the later stations, to increase throughput of the capping machine. The rotatable platform A is preferably substantially circular in plan view, but could be of any other suitable shape, whilst the conveyor system for the container can at least partly extend around the outside perimeter of the rotatable platform A at a suitable distance, such that the cap holder 14 of each device 12 can be pivoted to press a respective cap assembly 2 to each container 8 for a predetermined period of time, e.g., a cycle time needed to adhere each cap assembly 2 to its container as its container is indexed along the conveyor system. Heat is applied for a predetermined period of time to the bottom surface of each cap assembly 2 and the profiled surface 1 1 of its container 8 to render those surfaces tacky as the rotatable platform A indexes, and the cap assembly 2 is also cooled for a predetermined time period to a predetermined temperature as the rotatable platform A indexes while the cap holder 14 is in the final stage of its capping condition. By way of non-limiting example, eight cap holder devices 12 can be used, such that at least one cap holder 14 can be in the receiving condition adjacent at least one cap delivery end 22 for receiving and holding at least one cap assembly 2 therein, at least three cap holders 14 can be associated with heat applied to the respective cap assemblies 2 and containers 8 while in the receiving condition position of the cycle, at least three cap holders 14 can be associated with cooling of the respective cap assemblies 2 while in the capping condition of the cycle, and at least one cap holder 14 can be pivoted away from the affixed cap assembly 2 on the container 8 to the receiving condition to receive at least one cap assembly 2.

Referring to Figures 1 , 2 and 8 in general, the cap holder 14 is formed of a housing 28 having a cavity 30 and an integrally formed forwardly extending lip 31 having a cap engagement portion 32 and surrounding a mouth 34 of the cavity 30. The cavity 30 is shaped and sized to receive part of the cap assembly 2, e.g., the screw cap 6 and any tamper-proof neck portion, or the like. . The axially outward surface of the cap engagement portion 32 extends approximately perpendicularly to the longitudinal axis X of the cavity 30 and is brought into abutting engagement with the flange 4. Thus, a top surface portion of the flange 4 abuts against the cap engagement portion 32 outside of the cavity 30 as the screw cap is held within the cavity 30. The dimensions of the cavity 30 are such as to maintain the cap assembly 2 against movement laterally and axially. The cavity 30 can be sloped, tapered, vary in circumference or be otherwise shaped depending on the outside shape and dimensions of the particular cap assembly 2. The depth of the cavity 30 is such that a desired amount of force is maintained when the flange 4 is pressed between the cap engagement portion 32 and the container 8.

The lip 31 surrounds the mouth 34 and is contoured to deflect at least partly the predetermined profiled surface 1 1 of the wall 10 of the container 8 while urging the flange 4 against the profiled surface 1 1 . During engagement with the container 8, the flange 4 is at least partly sandwiched between the container 8 and the cap engagement surface 32 which is adapted to apply pressure to the top surface of the flange 4 to adhere the tacky bottom surface of the flange 4 onto the profiled surface 11 round the opening 9. Applying localized heat to the surface 11 and the bottom surface of the cap assembly 2 enables a bond to be formed between those predetermined surfaces. The lip

31 is shaped and sized to accommodate particular contours of the surface of the wall 10 so that the entire bottom surface of the flange 4 can be pressed against and adhered to the container 8, at a predetermined pressure during heat-sealing and cooling operations to allow a substantially airtight closure or bond to form. By way of non-limiting example, the method of obtaining the final package shown in Figure 5 will now be described. A gable top carton blank having conventional score lines, except for a downwardly curved score line 13 intended to allow the roof panel 10 to have a larger area than conventional and thus a larger dispensing opening 9 than conventional is formed into a carton sleeve, bottom-sealed, filled and top-sealed. Afterwards, a pusher shaped complementarily to the desired final shape of the panel 10 as shown in Figure 5 presses against the external surface 11 of the panel 10 and brings it to the substantially planar shape shown in Figure 5. Subsequent heating of that surface 11 to render it tacky (which is at the same time as heating of the bottom surface of the flange 4) causes the panel 10 to return at least partly to its original shape, so that, when the cap holder 14 applies the flange 4 to the surface 11 , the surface has adopted a noticeably profiled shape at the front thereof, as shown in Figures 3 and 4b. If the flange 4 were to be fixed to the surface 11 in that condition, its front part would be spaced from the front part of the panel 10, whereby the seal there would be poor. However, continued turning of the holder 14 causes the engagement portion

32 to urge the front part of the flange 4 firmly downwards and so bring it and the front part of the panel 10 to the condition shown in Figure 4c, in which the surface 11 is substantially planar and which is maintained for a few cooling stations, whereafter the desired curve of the front edge 13' of the panel 10 is maintained by the cap assembly 2. The cap engagement portion 32 extends generally between 5 o'clock and 7 o'clock. Thus, when the profiled surface 11 is deflected, it creates a generally planar surface for the flange 4 to adhere to the container 8. We have found it advisable in the particular instance of the package shown in Figure 5 to give the lip 31 additional cap engagement portions 32' at 2 o'clock and 10 o'clock, respectively, to urge corresponding portions of the flange 4 against the surface 11. Of course, the actual contour of the lip 31 may vary from that shown depending upon the particular designs of the cap assembly and the carton and is chosen to make the final shape of the carton surface as complementary as possible to the cap assembly surface to be bonded thereto.

A bracket 36 is removably connected to the housing 28 and the member 20 by mounting block screws 38, bolts, or like fasteners, to couple the cap holder 14 to the base arrangement 16. This also allows the bracket 36 and the cap holder 14 to be selectively removed for maintenance and repair. In general, the mounting bracket 36 can be of inverted L-shape and secured by the mounting block screws 38 to the bottom of the housing 28 to be accessible for ease of removal and attachment. The bracket 36 and the cap holder 14 can come in various sizes and shapes to accommodate targeted cap assembly and container sizes and shapes, and profiled surfaces, and are interchangeable and dependent upon the cap assemblies 2 and containers 8 indexing through the capping machine.

The cavity 30 can have a back portion 40 opposite to the mouth 34 so that the cap assembly 2, e.g., screw cap 6 end, is in abutting engagement with this back portion 40 as the flange 4 is engaging the cap engagement portion 32. The back portion 40 can be a biasing arrangement having a generally planar abutting surface 42 that applies the biasing force, e.g., the load of a compression spring 41 , against the cap assembly 2. It is understood that the back portion 40 can alternatively be fixed.

At least one retention mechanism 44 extends through the side wall of the housing 28 and into the cavity 30 to engage the cap assembly 2 laterally, e.g., there is a plurality of such mechanisms distributed around the cap assembly 2. The retention mechanism(s) 44 maintain(s) each cap assembly 2 laterally and radially while the cap holder 14 presses the cap assembly 2 against the container 8 and also prevents the cap assembly 2 from jumping out of the cavity 30 when the cap holder 1 is pivoted toward the container 8. Typically, the retention mechanism 44, e.g., a spring ball plunger, compression spring bearing, snap-type plug or pin, biasing protrusion, or compression spring, extends through an aperture 46 extending through the housing 28 to contact the cap assembly 2 and help prevent undesired rotation thereof. Once the cap assembly 2 has been affixed to the container, the retention mechanism 44 does not prevent the cap holder 14 from retracting, i.e. pivoting away from the cap assembly 2 attached to the container 8. At least one cooling port 48, e.g., a boss or the like, is formed in the side of the housing 28 and coupled to a fluid flow conduit 50 to apply a cooling flow of fluid to decrease the temperature of the cap assembly 2 after heat sealing, to complete the bond of the cap assembly 2 to the container 8. The fluid can be air or liquid It is understood that, alternatively, the at least one cooling port 48 can be formed in the back of the housing 28 opposite to the cavity 30 to overcome space constraints.

Referring to Figure 6 in general, each track arrangement 24 can have an escapement including first and second plungers 67 and 66 which slide in and out of the track arrangement 24 in a reciprocating alternating pattern to control the advance of the assemblies 2 onto fixed elements 68 whence the cap assemblies 2 are pushed in turn into the holders 14. A fluid medium, e.g., air, can be used to propel the cap assembly 2 into the cavity 30. Alternatively, a reciprocating and/or rotating spigot assembly having at least one spigot for selectively carrying a cap assembly 2 can be used for loading the cap assembly 2 into the cavity 30.

Referring to Figures 7 and 8, the mounting member 20 can be generally U-shaped or V-shaped and has a cam follower 52 located on a distal end. The cam follower 52 is configured to roll or slide within an annular recess 54, such as a groove or slot, formed inside a fixed plate 56, or roll or slide on an outer surface of the plate 56, for moving the cap holder 14. That outer surface or recess 54 is configured such that, as the platform A rotates, the cam follower 52 translates to move the cap holder 14 from the receiving condition to the capping condition. A bolt arrangement 58 extends through opposing small base aperture 60 and large base aperture 61 of the base 18 and through a passage 62 formed through the bottom of the member 20. The bolt arrangement 58 extends generally transversely to the sense of pivoting of the cap holder 14 and a portion thereof remains outside the base 18 to fix the bolt arrangement 58 to the base 18, e.g., using washers and lock nuts 59 or the like. It is understood that the pivotal motion of the member 20 can alternatively be commanded by an electric, hydraulic, or pneumatic actuator, or combinations thereof.

Also, a bushing 64 can be used in the passage 62 in press fit engagement in the passage 62 to receive the bolt arrangement 58 and further facilitate rotation of the member 20 about the bolt arrangement 58.

Fig. 7 illustrates an example of eight cap holder devices 12 on the rotatable platform A adjacent to containers 8 and holding cap assemblies 2. The at least one track arrangement 24 and the container conveyor system are omitted for clarity. The cap holders 14 are pivoted between their receiving conditions and their capping conditions and the rotatable platform A indexes, as indicated by the arrow, in timed relationship with the containers 8 indexing in the same direction. For illustration, two cap holder devices 12 are depicted in their receiving conditions with respective cap assemblies 2 within the cavities 30 of the cap holder 14. The other six cap holder devices 12 are depicted pivoted down in the capping condition for pressing their respective cap assemblies 2 to containers 8 as the rotatable platform A rotates. One of the cap holders 14 is seen receiving an assembly 2. At least one of the cap holders 14, e.g., one cap holder 14 as shown, is associated with the application of heat to the respective cap assembly or assemblies 2 and container(s) 8 while in the receiving condition. One cap holder 14 serves to apply a cap assembly 2 to a container 8, and at least one cap holder, e.g. five as shown, is associated with cooling of the respective cap assembly or assemblies 2 and container(s) 8 while in the capping condition.

Claims

A method of attaching a surface of a fitment to a surface of a flexible wall of a container, comprising, while applying that fitment surface to that wall surface, deflecting said wall surface to render said wall surface more complementary to said fitment surface, and affixing said fitment surface to said wall surface.

A method according to claim 1 , wherein said deflecting comprises backing-up said fitment surface to varying degrees over said fitment surface.

A method according to claim 2, wherein said backing-up to varying degrees is obtained by backing-up with a contoured surface having, at least initially, varying spacing from said fitment surface.

A method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein said applying is preceded by pre-deflecting said wall surface to a desired final shape.

A method according to claim 4, and further comprising, between said pre-deflecting and said applying, heating said wall surface.

A method according to claim 4 or 5, and further comprising, between said pre-deflecting and said applying, heating said fitment surface.

7. A method according to any preceding claim, wherein said fitment is a pour spout fitment and is applied to around a pouring hole zone of said wall.

8. A method according to claim 7, wherein said pouring hole zone is of a roof panel of said container and said deflecting is of said roof panel and causes a forward edge region of said roof panel to bow downwards, whereby said forward edge region is in a downwardly bowed condition following said affixing.

9. Apparatus for use in a method according to any preceding claim, and comprising a fitment holder device comprising: a base arrangement; and a fitment holder carried by said base arrangement and comprising a housing with a cavity adapted for receiving said fitment, said cavity having a mouth, and said housing including a fitment engaging arrangement around said mouth and adapted to deflect said wall surface to render said wall surface more complementary to said fitment surface.

10. Apparatus according to claim 9, wherein said fitment engaging arrangement comprises a contoured surface.

11. Apparatus according to claim 10, wherein said contoured surface is contoured in a sense axially of said cavity.

12. Apparatus according to any one of claims 9 to 11 , and further comprising a cooling fluid conduit communicating with a cooling port in said housing to apply a cooling flow of fluid to decrease the temperature of said fitment after heat sealing, said port being rearwards from said cavity.

13. Apparatus according to any one of claims 9 to 12, wherein said device further comprises at least one retention mechanism coupled to said housing, wherein said retention mechanism extends through a wall portion of said housing into said cavity to retain said fitment releasably within said cavity.

14. Apparatus according to any one of claims 9 to 13 and further comprising a heating arrangement operably associated with said cap holder to apply heat to said fitment and to said container to enable bonding of said fitment surface to said wall surface.

15. Apparatus according to any one of claims 9 to 14, wherein said fitment holder further comprises a rear portion adapted to bear against said fitment when said fitment holder presses said fitment surface to said wall surface.

16. Apparatus according to claim 15, wherein said fitment holder further comprises a biasing arrangement to apply a forwardly biasing force to said rear portion.

17. Apparatus according to any one of claims 9 to 16, wherein said base arrangement comprises a mounting member coupled to said fitment holder for selectively pivoting said fitment holder between a fitment-receiving position and a fitment-applying position.

Apparatus according to any one of claims 9 to 17 and further comprising a bracket r releasably coupling said fitment holder to said base arrangement, and at least one mounting block screw allowing said fitment holder to be removed for maintenance or replacement.