Ever noticed how many bottle caps from different brands fit onto each other perfectly? Is this a clever standardization strategy, an overlooked design necessity, or a secret handshake between manufacturers?
Ever noticed how many bottle caps from different brands fit onto each other perfectly? Is this a clever standardization strategy, an overlooked design necessity, or a secret handshake between manufacturers?
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It’s likely done so manufacturers only have to produce one bottle cap, and sell it to anyone and this keeps the price low for the buyers.
Bottle cap – Wikipedia
“Commonly used with plastic screw caps. F-217 is a soft polyethylene foam core covered on top and bottom with solid, clear polyethylene supplied in 0.050-inch thickness. F217 has become the industry standard due to its all-purpose compatibility, resilient, compressible seal, cleanliness (no pulp dust) and economy. F217 liners have excellent chemical resistance and a low moisture transmission rate. F217 has good taste and odor resistance.”
It’s not hidden, it’s the opposite of that, it’s a standard
There’s an international standard for screws, bottle caps are apparently M28
Edit: it’s actually a different standard called PCO28
There are bottling plants that bottle all sorts of things. That’s why the standardization. And so a brand can switch / add bottling plants without changing the product. It all works out.
Most of these companies don’t bottle their stuff directly, much less produce their own bottles.
Everything is interchangeable because they get them from the same 1-3 global manufacturers like ball corp
Side note… have you ever seen the process for making soda bottles? It’s pretty cool.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=weR31x9HZDs
Fun fact: all of the attack submarines on Earth still have identically-sized torpedoes, because they built new torpedoes the same size as the old tubes and new tubes the same size as the old torpedoes, and the old ones are the same size as those imported or captured tubes or torpedoes from another country.
I think standardization isn’t as hard when no one is in a position to profit off of non-standard components (expensive accessories, evading patents, discouraging aftermarket modifications, etc.)
Practicality.
No restaurant, bar or other establishment is going to serve your drink if you do.
Can you imagine managing a restaurant or bar when every brand needs a different bottle openen?
Ever notice how normal light bulbs fit into any normal socket? How did they do that?
Bottles start their lives as plastic pellets, which are formed into a test tube looking thing with a bottle cap screw. The bottle blanks are then blown into a mold for a specific brand, wrapped with a label and filled (and capped of course).
What you are seeing is a product of a standardization. It makes no sense to ship a product that is mostly water all over the country, so bottling is done at a very local level.