What Does a Hollow Tube Maker Do in a Cigarette Line?

If you're new to cigarette manufacturing, "hollow tube maker" isn't always self-explanatory. It sounds like it makes something simple, and in a sense it does, but understanding exactly what that tube is for, and why it matters to the rest of your line, helps you plan a factory setup that actually works end to end. Here's what a hollow tube maker does, and where it fits into a complete cigarette filter making process.

What a Hollow Tube Maker Actually Produces

A hollow tube maker produces the paper tubes used to build cigarette filters. These tubes, sometimes made as plain hollow tubes and sometimes as specialty filter tubes, form part of the plug that eventually gets attached to the tobacco rod. Rather than a filter being one solid piece, many filter designs rely on these hollow tube sections combined with other filter material to build the final plug.

In short, this machine doesn't make the finished filter. It makes a key component that feeds into filter assembly further down the line.

Where It Fits in the Filter Production Process

Filter production typically happens in stages before a finished cigarette ever comes together:

1. Filter material (such as cellulose acetate tow) is prepared and formed into rod sections
2. A hollow tube maker produces the paper tube sections needed for certain filter designs
3. These components are combined and cut into finished filter plugs
4. The finished filter plugs are attached to tobacco rods on the cigarette making machine, such as a Molins Mark 8 Post 64 or Mark 8D MAX 15

If your factory produces filter designs that rely on hollow tube sections, this machine sits early in that chain, well before anything reaches the cigarette maker itself.

Speed and Output

A hollow tube maker like the one in our range runs at up to 2,100 cigarettes per minute, with a rod speed range of 140 to 175 metres per minute and a cut-off speed of up to 2,500 rods per minute. These numbers matter because the hollow tube maker needs to keep pace with the rest of your filter production line. If it's running significantly slower than your filter assembly or making machine, it becomes the constraint that limits how much you can actually produce downstream.

Power and Footprint

The machine itself weighs approximately 3,050 kg, with an additional plug assembler weighing around 1,800 kg. Combined, the setup draws 14 kW of power, split between 6.5 kW for the maker and 7.5 kW for the plug assembler. As with any equipment in this weight and power range, confirm your factory's electrical capacity and floor space before installation, rather than after the machine has already arrived.

Who Actually Needs This Machine

Not every cigarette manufacturer needs a hollow tube maker. If you're buying finished filter rods from a third-party supplier rather than producing your own filter components in-house, you may not need this stage of production at all. It becomes relevant specifically when:

• You're producing your own filters rather than sourcing them pre-made
• Your filter designs include hollow tube or specialty tube sections, not just standard solid filter material
• You're aiming for high-volume filter production and want that stage under your own control rather than dependent on a supplier

Talk to Us About Your Filter Line

Filter production is one of the more overlooked parts of setting up a cigarette factory, and getting the sequencing right, from tube making through to plug assembly, matters as much as picking the right cigarette maker. At Civic Tobacco Machinery, we help manufacturers plan out a complete filter and manufacturing line, not just individual machines in isolation. Reach out to us and we'll walk through what your setup actually needs.