Supplier Side
Clamshell Alternative Is Friendly to Environment
MeadWestvaco Corp. (Stamford, CT) has introduced Natralock, a new package that the firm calls an environmentally friendly alternative to the traditional clamshell. Unlike all-plastic clamshells, Natralock is a paperboard-blister hybrid, and the bulk of its packaging is derived from trees. “While plastic clamshell solutions have decreased theft, they have raised environmental concerns,” says Don Hodapp, security packaging business development manager for MeadWestvaco.
To create Natralock, MeadWestvaco runs its kraft paperboard through a patented coating process. This process applies a heat-seal material and can also apply an optional material that makes the package more tear resistant. Graphics are then printed on the clay-coated surface, which is receptive to printing. “This process makes more surface area available for printing than traditional clamshells do,” says Michael Wade, consumer packaging project engineer for MeadWestvaco. “The copy is now directly visible to the consumer, not distorted through clamshell packaging.”
Natralock’s clear amorphous polyester (APET) “bubble” is designed to contain a marketer’s product. According to MeadWestvaco, the APET used to make the bubble falls under today’s acceptable requirements for recycling. MeadWestvaco says that, in comparison, certain plastic clamshells offer limited recycling ability. For instance, PVC clamshells meet EU/CEN energy and materials recycling standards only on a limited basis, causing many European and Asian countries to levy additional taxes and other restrictive policies on the use of the material. For this reason, says MeadWestvaco, industry leaders such as Microsoft, Johnson & Johnson, and Kaiser Permanente have discontinued using PVC clamshells.
In other MeadWestvaco news, the company announced that it is realigning its packaging business and establishing a new headquarters in Richmond, VA. The company’s six divisions in its packaging segment will be reorganized into two packaging groups: the new Packaging Resources Group, which will serve customers of the firm’s paperboard businesses, and the new Consumer Solutions Group, which will focus on providing a full range of consumer packaging solutions.
Crown Risdon Supplies Package for Avon Mascara
Crown Risdon (Watertown, CT) provided the stock package for Tattoo Lash, a new product from Avon’s mark. brand.
The package features a high-gloss white PVC bottle hot stamped in black and a polypropylene cap. The mascara applicator features an acetyl wand, a low-density polyethylene wiper, and a double-tapered wire brush.
World Wide Betting on Oval One-Piece Tubes
World Wide Packaging (Florham Park, NJ) has introduced new decorative versions of its patented one-piece seamless oval polyethylene tube.
A 35-mm version will showcase color printing that gradates from the tube’s shoulder to the middle of the tube. A greenish-blue 25-mm tube will feature 100% offset printing coverage, hot stamping, and unique registration. A 50-mm multicolor version with a bold, striped pattern and a 16-mm version with a rose lace pattern will also be on display.
According to the supplier, the new tubes demonstrate its ability to create a range of visual effects, including gradated colors, holographic effects, foil printing, and over-the-shoulder tube printing.
Global Closure Systems Makes Its Debut
New firm Global Closure Systems (GCS) has entered the marketplace as a supplier of closures to the personal care and other industries. The firm is composed of several established brands, including Astra Plastique, Bender, Massmould, Obrist, UCP, and Zeller. The GCS line includes many patented and patent-pending products, including an all-plastic trigger-style pump, integrated valve systems for closures, snap-hinge closures, and child-resistant closures.
Cosmopak Launches New Powder Packaging
Cosmopak Corp. (Port Washington, NY) has launched two new packaging components suited for powder cosmetics.
The Auto Blusher is a unique container ideal for blush products. The package dispenses powder through a porous sponge that can be directly applied to the skin for easy application. A locking system prevents powder from dispensing when the container is not in use. Instead of a sponge applicator, the Brush Pot compact, another new introduction, features a brush dispenser.”
TricorBraun Acquires Fenton, Weber & Jones
Packaging distributor TricorBraun (St. Louis) has acquired Fenton, Weber & Jones Packaging Inc. (Buffalo, NY), a supplier of components such as bottles and tottles.
Fenton, Weber & Jones’s design and engineering facility became TricorBraun’s third design and engineering center. Other centers are located in Chicago and Los Angeles. “We are particularly excited about the depth and breadth of engineering capabilities that Fenton, Weber & Jones brings,” says Keith Strope, president and CEO of TricorBraun
Alpha Packaging Offers Bottles with Flair
Alpha Packaging (St. Louis) has introduced its new Vanity Flair PET bottle line. Available in two sizes, the bottles feature an elegant, tapered shape that was custom designed by package designer Terry Allen.
Both the 4- and 8-oz bottles feature a 24-410 neck finish. Alpha’s standard PET colors of dark green, cobalt blue, light amber, clear, and white are available with no minimum order requirement. Color matching is also possible.
MeadWestvaco Acquires Saint-Gobain Calmar
MeadWestvaco Corp. (Stamford, CT) announced it has signed a definitive agreement with Compagnie de Saint-Gobain to acquire Saint-Gobain Calmar, a leading manufacturer of dispensing systems.
The transaction has been approved by the board of directors of MeadWestvaco and is expected to close in the summer of 2006.
Sonic Introduces New Unit-Dose Design
Unit-dose package supplier Sonic Packaging (Westwood, NJ) has launched a package called Twist ‘n’ Do. The package delivers a premetered dose of liquid, cream, or gel and can be supplied with a variety of applicators.
According to Sonic Packaging, the new package is ideal for topical and oral products such as acne treatments and tooth whiteners.
Heavy Metal
Supplier Impressions Packaging (Peachtree City, GA) has introduced its Metals Collection of heavy-walled PET bottles. The bottles are available in colors including Aluminum, Brass, Copper, Pewter, and Blue Steel.
According to the supplier, the bottles offer the high-end look of metal while retaining the lightweight aspects of PET. The company adds that because the bottles are virtually non-squeezable, they further emulate the feeling of metal containers.
Impressions specializes in producing heavy-walled PET bottles for the beauty market.
New PLA Carton, Shrink Sleeve Are Made from Corn
For years, NatureWorks PLA, a corn-based polylactide polymer, has been touted in the packaging industry as a 100% renewable, environmentally sustainable material. However, many packaging suppliers have yet to incorporate PLA in their packaging. Recently, two packaging suppliers, AGI/Klearfold (New York City) and Gilbreth (Croydon, PA), announced the launch of new PLA packaging. AGI/Klearfold has introduced a PLA plastic folding carton and Gilbreth now offers a PLA shrink sleeve.
AGI/Klearfold calls its carton NatureSource Visual Packaging. According to the company, NatureSource is the first commercially viable PLA plastic carton to market in North America.
“This is an exciting, historic moment in packaging technology development,” says Patrick McGee, director of marketing at AGI/Klearfold. “[NatureSource Visual Packaging] clearly has the power to influence consumer choice and to support consumer products companies’ environmental packaging objectives.”
It took almost 18 months for AGI/Klearfold to bring the PLA carton to market. According to AGI/Klearfold, challenges included researching and developing a PLA sheet that could withstand the rigors of carton manufacturing and decorating, building a supply chain, and developing converting processes and ink and adhesive systems tailored to the unique requirements of the substrate. NatureWorks LLC (Minneapolis) makes the PLA resin. In an exclusive agreement with AGI/Klearfold, Ontario, Canada– based supplier BI-AX International Inc. manufactures the box-grade PLA substrate that AGI/Klearfold converts into folding cartons. AGI/Klearfold says that the cartons are priced competitively with traditional plastic cartons because corn has maintained its price stability despite rising energy costs.
According to AGI/Klearfold, NatureSource cartons are durable, offer exceptional stiffness, and crease cleanly. Techniques such as offset, flexographic, and silk-screen printing can be applied, as well as foil stamping and embossing.
The raw material for NatureWorks PLA is dextrose, a natural sugar derived from the starch in kernels of corn. The dextrose is fermented and distilled into lactic acid, which is transformed into PLA resin pellets. As a nature-based product, NatureSource is compatible with local waste management systems and can accommodate both mechanical and chemical recycling processes. AGI/Klearfold adds that because PLA is relatively new, a system for collecting consumer cartons for recycling has not yet been developed.NatureWorks PLA was also used to create the new PLA shrink sleeves and tamper-evident bands offered by shrink sleeve converter Gilbreth. To create the shrink sleeves and bands, Gilbreth worked with supplier Plastic Suppliers Inc. Plastic Suppliers provided its EarthFirst PLA film, a film that is made using NatureWorks PLA.
Gilbreth says that the film is an alternative to oil-based films. According to Gilbreth, labels made with EarthFirst PLA film offer better performance than petroleum-based polymers.
“Because PLA is derived from a natural, renewable resource, availability and pricing should be more predictable than materials derived from oil,” says Theresa Sykes, Gilbreth’s new product manager.