How many types of pocket spring assembly machines are there? How do I choose one?

Transforming Mattress Production with Pocket Spring Assembly Machines

Pocket spring mattresses are regarded as premium bedding products due to their personalized support, motion isolation, and superior comfort. But have you ever wondered how thousands of individual pocket springs are neatly encased and bonded together to create the stable, supportive mattress core?

The answer lies in the pocket spring assembly machine—a specialized piece of mattress manufacturing equipment designed to streamline the production of pocket spring units. By automatically bonding spring rows according to pre-set mattress specifications, these machines enable mass production of spring units with exceptional speed, precision, and consistency.

LianRou, the world’s largest supplier of pocket spring coilers and pocket spring assembly machines, offers the most diverse product range in the market. Each assembly machine can be linked to one to three pocket spring coilers, forming a fully automated mattress production line. Today, LianRou’s pocket spring machinery is exported to the U.S., Europe, Australia, South Africa, and other regions, earning widespread recognition for its efficiency and reliability.

In this guide, we will explore how pocket spring assembly machines work, the different types available, their bonding methods, fabric compatibility, and how they integrate with other mattress machinery to create fully automated production lines.

What Is Pocket Spring Assembly? What Types of Machines Are Available?

In general, pocket spring assembly refers to bonding individual springs, edge foam strips, and upper and lower padding layers into a mattress core. Depending on the production process, the main types include

• Pocket spring gluing machines
• Six-side integrated assembly machines for foam-encased mattresses
• Fully automatic cotton layer gluing and spraying machines

Traditionally, pocket spring assembly machines were referred to as gluing machines, but with the growing diversity of mattress products and materials, modern assembly machines now support multiple bonding methods, including hot-melt adhesive, ultrasonic welding, and sewing.

How Do Pocket Spring Assembly Machines Work?

Role in Mattress Production

Pocket spring assembly machines connect individual spring rows into a unified mattress core, which is essential for both hybrid and innerspring mattresses. Manual gluing often leads to inconsistencies and alignment errors, while automated machines deliver uniform bonding, precise edges, and significantly faster production speeds.

Types of Pocket Spring Assembly Machines

Pocket spring assembly machines are classified by:

• Automation level: Manual, semi-automatic, hybrid (manual + automatic), and fully automatic
• Bonding technology: Hot-melt adhesive, ultrasonic welding, or stitching

Manual, Semi-Automatic, and Fully Automatic Machines: What’s the Difference?

Fully Automatic Pocket Spring Assembly Machines

Key Features:

• Complete automation from feeding to finished output
• Servo-driven cutting, precision hot-melt gluing, and heat-press sealing
• Human-machine interface for flexible production settings
• Ideal for high-volume, large-scale manufacturing

Workflow:

1. Feeding and cutting—Spring rows are fed into the machine and cut to the specified length using servo motors.
2. Hot-melt gluing—Glue is applied along the edge of nonwoven fabric, with modes such as point-spray or continuous-spray.
3. Heat-press bonding—Upper and lower layers of nonwoven fabric are heat-pressed for secure sealing.
4. Automatic stacking—Completed spring units are automatically conveyed and stacked.

Example Models:

Lianrou has a variety of fully automatic pocket spring assembly machines, and customers can choose according to the different gluing speeds and production capacity. To help customers understand Lianrou's mattress assembly machine models, the following is a brief introduction:

LR-PSA-99EX—Fastest speed

The fully automatic pocket spring assembly machine is LR-PSA-99EX. This mattress assembly machine has double-row feeding, patented double-cutting technology, and borderless shearing and covering functions, with a production speed of up to 27-30 rows/minute; it has multiple gluing modes, such as spot spraying and continuous spraying, helping mattress manufacturers save glue; and it uses a powerful servo motor, which allows for precise and fast cutting and high production efficiency.

LR-PSA-A1 —— Lowest price

The fully automatic pocket spring assembly machine is LR-PSA-A1. This mattress assembly machine is the latest model launched by Lianrou in 2025. Its production speed can reach up to 18 rows/minute, and it uses multiple gluing modes such as spot spraying and continuous spraying and a powerful servo motor and has a borderless shearing and covering function. Compared with other assembly machines, it is unique in two aspects: its structure is very compact, and it has the smallest footprint in the industry, which can save factory space; it has a breakthrough in the upper and lower fabric cutting technology, and the edge of the bed mesh fabric does not exceed 20 mm after cutting, which effectively saves fabric materials.

Semi-Automatic Pocket Spring Assembly Machines

Semi-automatic models, like LR-PSA-75P, feature automated cutting and gluing systems but require manual loading, positioning, and unloading. These machines are cost-effective and well-suited for small- to medium-scale manufacturers or specific product lines.

Hybrid Pocket Spring Assembly Machines

Hybrid systems combine the efficiency of full automation with the flexibility of manual operation. For example, the LR-PSA-97P supports both fully automatic and manual spring placement, making it ideal for manufacturers handling both bulk production and custom orders.

Bonding Methods: Hot-Melt, Ultrasonic Welding, and Sewing

Hot-Melt Adhesive

• How it works: Heated glue is sprayed or rolled onto the bonding area and solidifies upon cooling.
• Advantages: High bonding strength, wide material compatibility (nonwoven, fabric), low cost, and easy integration into automated production.

Ultrasonic Welding

• How it works: High-frequency vibrations generate heat at the interface of two fabrics, creating a strong bond without glue.
• Advantages: 100% adhesive-free, odorless, environmentally friendly, and compliant with strict EU and North American VOC regulations.

Sewing

• How it works: High-strength thread is used to stitch spring rows together.
• Advantages: Maximum durability, flexible connection, chemical-free, and breathable.

Pocket Spring Fabric Types: Which Is the Most Durable?

Choosing the right fabric is crucial for compatibility and durability. Common materials include:

• Polypropylene (PP) Nonwoven Fabric—Economical, widely used, strong, and cost-effective.
• Polyethylene (PE) Nonwoven / Tyvek – Superior tear resistance, moisture resistance, and soft texture.
• Composite Nonwoven – Enhanced antibacterial or moisture-resistant features through coatings or additives.
• Cotton Fabric – Natural, biodegradable, and preferred for premium or organic mattresses.

Durability Ranking:

• Tear & abrasion resistance: PE > PP > composite > cotton
• Aging resistance: synthetic fabrics (PP, PE) > natural fibers
• Moisture resistance: PE > composite > PP > cotton

How Pocket Spring Assembly Machines Integrate with Other Mattress Machinery

A pocket spring assembly machine is only one part of a modern mattress production line. After spring units are assembled, they can be integrated with:

Full-Automatic Mattress Cotton Layer Integrated Machine for Glue Rolling & Spraying

This mattress machine integrates glue rolling and spraying. Using advanced robotic arms for intelligent material handling, AI-powered automatic calibration, and intelligent vision capabilities, it precisely bonds the top and bottom fabrics of pocket spring units, with an average daily production capacity of 600 mattresses. Its intelligent glue control system reduces glue usage by over 30-40%. The machine supports most commercially available materials and features automatic flipping, an intelligent double-layer recirculation system, and recirculating cotton layer assembly. It supports both front and back application, and the number of layers and material type can be customized.

Pocket Spring Unit Integrated Assembly Machine for Cube

This mattress machine enables the integrated production of pocket spring mattresses, including foam boxes, and automates the assembly of the four side foam strips and the top and bottom ply materials. Equipped with a spring strip input channel and a foam strip storage rack, the machine is compatible with mattresses of various sizes and thicknesses, meeting diverse production needs. High-precision positioning ensures perfect alignment of the foam and pocket spring layers, minimizing errors. An intelligent control system completes mattress assembly in one go, reducing labor and saving costs.

TAPE EDGE MACHINE (Automatic Tape Edge Sewing Machine)

The LianRou automatic tape edge sewing machine is the industry's first to feature one-touch automatic feeding and cutting technology for tape edge tape. This mattress machine utilizes a PLC servo control system and full touchscreen operation. The sewing head features one-touch mattress height adjustment, automatic alignment, and edge switching, and supports a choice of imported or shuttleless high-speed sewing heads. Utilizing advanced sewing technology, the machine automatically sews tape edges, resulting in even and precise stitches. The conveyor platform automatically moves the mattress and automatically tilts downwards to facilitate the sewing of the tape edge on the top and bottom of the mattress. The automatic roll-to-edge taping machine is a compact device that saves factory space. Its automatic adjustment and edge-changing capabilities are highly efficient, resulting in a smooth, full edge, making it an ideal choice for producing high-quality mattresses.

AUTOMATIC MATTRESS ROLL-PACKING MACHINE

Lianrou's fully automatic mattress roll-packing machine is a leading-edge, next-generation mattress packaging machine. Integrating innovative technology and superior performance, this cutting-edge device is designed to revolutionize mattress packaging and logistics, offering unprecedented efficiency and cost advantages.

· Simple Structure, Stable and Efficient: Its simplified roll-to-edge structure and unique 45° pressure angle design make operation intuitive and easy, significantly reducing learning curves. It also ensures exceptionally stable operation and easy, convenient daily maintenance, effectively ensuring continuous and reliable production.

· Widely Compatible, Ultimate Compression: Its innovative roll-to-edge core structure transcends size limitations, offering a wide range of compatibility and the flexibility to handle mattresses of various sizes. Its exceptional compression capacity is particularly impressive, enabling mattresses to be rolled down to a minimum diameter of 150mm, significantly reducing storage space and significantly lowering logistics and transportation costs.

· Active Lamination for Perfect Shaping: Through innovative active lamination technology, the machine successfully utilizes ultra-thin (0.04mm) PE film, further reducing packaging material costs. A newly added revolving door mechanism precisely constrains and shapes the mattress during the rolling process, ensuring the final product maintains a near-perfect cylindrical shape, creating a neat and aesthetically pleasing appearance and enhancing brand image.

· Optional Stretch Film Mechanism for Further Cost Optimization: The machine also offers an advanced stretch film mechanism compatible with thinner 0.02mm high-performance PE stretch film. This provides you with a more cost-effective packaging solution while ensuring packaging strength and minimizing packaging material consumption.

This integration enables full automation—from spring production to packaging—reducing labor costs and improving consistency.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q1: Can assembly machines handle different spring sizes?

A: Yes, most modern pocket spring assembly machines can accommodate various heights and diameters with simple parameter adjustments or mold changes.

Q2: Which bonding method is better—gluing or ultrasonic?

A: Hot-melt gluing is versatile and widely used, while ultrasonic welding is more eco-friendly and suitable for markets with strict environmental standards.

Q3: What is the production capacity of a fully automatic assembly machine?

A: High-performance models can produce up to 27–30 rows per minute or 600 mattresses per day.

Q4: Can they work with other machines automatically?

A: Yes, advanced models integrate seamlessly with spring coilers, tape edge machines, and roll-packing equipment.

Q5: Is on-site installation support necessary?

A: Many manufacturers, including LianRou, provide remote guidance, installation manuals, or optional on-site technician services.

Conclusion

As the mattress manufacturing industry moves toward higher efficiency, eco-friendly production, and flexible customization, selecting the right pocket spring assembly machine has become a strategic decision rather than a single purchase. Whether you are a traditional factory, a custom mattress brand, or an OEM exporter, investing in a high-quality assembly machine will bring long-term production advantages and market competitiveness.

Future-oriented mattress manufacturing requires forward planning in automation and bonding technologies. From hot-melt adhesive systems to ultrasonic welding machines, the choice of the right assembly solution determines the speed, quality, and sustainability of your production line.