What equipment do I need to start a zipper factory?

It depends on which zipper type you make. Every line shares a finishing section — gapping, slider/head mounting, top and bottom stops, cutting and testing. What differs is how the teeth are made: nylon zippers use a coiling machine, resin (plastic) zippers use an injection-moulding machine plus separate plastic-stop machines, and metal zippers use teeth-forming and a metal gapping machine plus metal-stop machines. Most new factories start with one zipper type and add others later.

Which zipper type should a new factory start with?

Nylon (coil) zippers are usually the best starting point: they have the widest demand across apparel, bags and home textiles, the lowest entry cost, and the simplest line. Resin (plastic) zippers suit sportswear and outerwear, and metal zippers suit jeans and jackets. A common path is to launch with nylon, then add resin and metal lines as orders grow.

Can I start small and expand later?

Yes. A low-cost entry is to buy long-chain zipper rolls and invest only in the finishing machines (gapping, slider mounting, stops, cutting, testing), which gets you producing finished zippers quickly. Later you can add weaving, teeth-making and dyeing to control quality and cost end to end. Zipper lines are modular by design.

What should a one-stop zipper machine supplier provide?

Beyond the machines, a factory-direct supplier should provide moulds, sliders and raw materials, plus installation, operator training and ongoing technical support and spare parts. Buying matched machines from one factory keeps the line consistent and gives you a single point of contact for after-sales — important when you are setting up production for the first time.

How to Start a Zipper Factory: Equipment Checklist

Zippers are a high-volume, repeat-order product, which makes zipper manufacturing an attractive business — but the right machine list depends entirely on which zippers you plan to make. This guide breaks the equipment down by zipper type, shows how to phase your investment, and explains what a one-stop supplier should give you. It is written by Jeso (Primo Zipper Group), a factory with 40+ years building complete zipper production lines.

Step 1 — Decide what you will make

Three zipper materials cover almost the entire market, each suited to different end products:

Type	Best for	How the teeth are made
Nylon (coil)	Apparel, bags, luggage, home textiles	Monofilament coiled into teeth on a coiling machine
Resin (plastic)	Sportswear, outerwear, children's wear	POM injection-moulded onto the tape
Metal	Jeans, jackets, workwear	Teeth formed/stamped from metal wire

For a deeper comparison see nylon vs metal vs plastic zipper machines. Most new factories start with one type and add others later, because the finishing machines and operator skills carry across all three.

Step 2 — Understand the two sections of every line

Whatever the material, a zipper line has two parts:

Chain making — produces the long, continuous zipper chain. This is the part that differs by material (coiling for nylon, injection moulding for resin, teeth-forming for metal), plus tape weaving and dyeing.
Finishing — turns the chain into finished zippers. This part is broadly the same for all types: gapping, slider/head mounting, top and bottom stops, cutting and testing.

That shared finishing section is why adding a second material later is far cheaper than starting from zero.

Step 3 — The machine checklist by type

Nylon (coil) zipper line

Tape weaving → nylon teeth coiling → dyeing → long-chain winding → gapping → slider mounting → top & bottom stops → cutting → testing. This is the most common and lowest-cost line; the full walkthrough is in our complete nylon zipper production line guide.

Resin (plastic) zipper line

Tape weaving → colour-mixing the POM resin → injection moulding the teeth → scrap recycling → dyeing/winding → gapping → slider mounting → plastic stops (moulded on separate stop machines) → cutting → testing. The injection-moulding machine and its long-chain mould are the core of this line.

Metal zipper line

Tape weaving → metal teeth forming → gapping → slider mounting → metal top stops (aluminium wire or U-shape) → metal bottom stops, including pin & box for open-end zippers → cutting → testing. Open-end metal zippers also need a hole-punching step to fit the pin & box.

Step 4 — Phase your investment

You rarely need everything on day one. Three sensible stages:

Stage	You buy	Trade-off
1. Finishing only	Gapping, slider mounting, stops, cutting, testing — and buy long-chain rolls	Lowest cost, fastest to running; you depend on others for chain
2. Full single-material line	Add weaving, teeth-making and dyeing for one zipper type	Control quality, colour and cost end to end
3. Multi-material factory	Add a second and third material line	Serve the whole apparel market; reuse finishing & skills

Step 5 — Don't forget the non-machine essentials

Moulds and tooling — especially for resin teeth and stops; the mould defines tooth size and shape.
Sliders and pulls — sourced or assembled in-house; finishing machines mount the complete slider.
Raw materials — polyester tape yarn, nylon monofilament, POM resin, metal wire, dyes.
Installation, training & support — for a first-time factory this is as important as the machines themselves.

When choosing who to buy from, see how to choose a zipper machine supplier. A factory-direct maker that supplies machines, moulds, sliders and materials — and installs and trains on site — removes most of the risk of setting up your first line.

Setting up a zipper factory?

Jeso (Primo Zipper Group) supplies complete nylon, metal and resin zipper lines plus moulds, sliders and raw materials, with installation, operator training and lifelong support — and has equipped factories across Russia, Latin America, the Middle East, Southeast Asia and Africa. Tell us your target market and output and we will build your machine checklist.

Jeso is the zipper-machinery brand of Primo Zipper Group, a Wenzhou, China factory established 1984. Equipment lists are described in general terms and are configured to each customer's products, output and budget.