Page 43 - Plastics News September 2023

FEATURE

cost of expertise as a barrier. ongoing relevance of testing equip- prove valuable to gather a wider sam-
Limited testing facilities: About half ment and methods. “Despite per- ple more quickly.
(50%) noted limited access to testing ceptions, the testing equipment and “Also, the equipment available today
facilities. methods are still as applicable today. is often so automated that profession-
Lack of In-house expertise: A further There are instances, for example in als do not need to have a highly spe-
44% lamented the absence of in- the case of recycled polymers where cialised knowledge base to conduct
house expertise. materials will behave differently and a the testing required,” he added.
new bank of data will need to be built,
Lane concluded by highlighting the however, industry collaboration can

The evolution of flexible packaging paper in a changing world

because of its exceptional ability to
prevent moisture penetration. It is
commonly employed in fields includ-
ing food packaging, medical packaging
and consumer goods packaging.
In contrast, polypropylene is re-
nowned for its tensile strength and
durability. It finds its applications in
heavy duty packaging scenarios such
as packaging and shipping sacks.
Polyester on the hand offers versa-
tility as a type of flexible packaging
paper with attributes like high clar-
ity, dimensional stability and excellent
printability. Its usage spans, across do-
mains including snack packaging, pet
food packaging and pharmaceutical
packaging.
n today’s paced society, the role of consumers are willing to pay more for Advantages of flexible packaging
Ipackaging is extremely important products that’re sustainable. So let’s paper
in preserving and delivering products explore the evolving world of flexible Flexible packaging paper offers sever-
while also minimizing harm to the en- packaging paper including its current al benefits compared to conventional
vironment. trends and potential, for growth. packaging materials. One significant
As both consumers and manufactur- What is flexible packaging paper advantage is its capacity to safeguard
ers become more environmentally and its types? products from elements like mois-
conscious, there is a growing demand Flexible packaging paper is a material ture, light and air. Consequently, it
for packaging solutions that are sus- that offers both efficiency and cost becomes an option for preserving
tainable. One interesting response to effectiveness when it comes to pack- product freshness and preventing
this demand is packaging paper, which aging products. It is crafted using ma- contamination.
is a versatile material that can be eas- terials such as polyethylene, polypro- Firstly, the lightweight nature of pack-
ily moulded and shaped to fit various pylene and polyester. The adaptability aging paper makes it convenient to
products. of this material enables its use, in ap- transport and store. This not helps
This makes it an excellent choice for plications spanning from food packag- in reducing shipping costs but also
manufacturers who want to create ing to medical packaging. makes it more manageable for con-
visually appealing packaging designs. Polyethylene is a used and favoured sumers to handle the products.
Recent statistics indicate that 75% of material for flexible packaging paper Secondly, it offers cost effectiveness

PLASTICS NEWS 4343
September 2023 PLASTICS NEWS