A Coesia Company brand R.A Jones, has developed new material handling technology to allow the company to run a variety of different recyclable-ready flexible films using their high-speed Pouch King Form/Fill/Seal pouching system, to help food manufacturers transition to more environmentally friendly packaging machines.
As sustainable packaging emerges as a top priority for consumers, alongside growing pressure from global governing bodies such as the European Union currently mandating that all plastic packaging is reusable or recyclable by 2030, R.A Jones has said it is making it easier for consumer packaged goods (CPGs) companies to meet these green initiatives with innovative equipment solutions.
In order to achieve 100% recyclability, new film structures are being developed to ensure green solutions can fulfil the same requirements as legacy packaging materials. Many of traditional flexible packaging film structures are made up of multiple layers and dissimilar materials, which provide barrier qualities and enhance machinability.
These same multi-layered films, however, have low recyclability capabilities due to the combination of materials, which means this packaging can end up in landfills.
New flexible packaging films are not always easy to run on form fill seal systems, particularly in high-speed machines which R.A Jones compares to their Pouch King line. One of the biggest challenges with these new materials is their decreased heat tolerance.
In order to produce a seal, applying heat and pressure to a film is required; in the case of eco-friendly packaging alternatives, they can stretch, shrink or distort when exposed to heat, which can lead to material waste and costly equipment downtime. As a result, R.A Jones has invested “substantially”, it said, in developing new sealing technology, to manage the sealing process and avoid damaging the sustainable packaging films.
“Consumer Packaged Goods suppliers are faced with meeting increasing demand for sustainable packaging while ensuring they can operate machinery at the same performance level,” explained Robert Kalany, Senior Manager of Research and Development at R.A Jones. “Our current Pouch King line is one of the fastest form, fill and seal pouch machines in the world with speeds of 2,000 pouches per minute. Now with this new sealing technology, customers will be able to run sustainable flexible materials on their Pouch King machinery while still meeting their output goals.”
The company is in the process of evaluating different materials that can be used to package a variety of products include foods, drink mixes and snacks. Needed hardware and software upgrades will be available in the second quarter of 2023 for any new R.A Jones Pouch King PCU-2000.
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Caitlin Gittins
Editor, International Confectionery
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