Innovative molding process to create dazzling carton packaging

In all areas of business, innovation is one of the key factors for future success, but it is also important to distinguish innovation from simple redesign of existing technologies. This is especially important for brand owners who want to ensure that their products have a high visual appeal to consumers in each sales area.

The packaging that is novel in appearance, exquisite in decoration, and able to capture the eyes of consumers instantly appears more and more on supermarket shelves. To make the paper box more tactile and have strong visual impact is a major development in the current carton manufacturing technology.

Gruppo X uses a similar plastic molding technology to mold out paper packages and produce better textures. The company is located near Venice, Italy and spent several years cooperating with many paper companies to develop this new technology. The cartons manufactured using this technology are superior to the traditional embossing technology in the box type structure and effect.

Innovative process to expand application space

Founded in 1988, Gruppo X is not a simple manufacturer, but a company that wants to apply its own technological innovation in the commercial field. For this reason, it constantly creates new ideas and new processes. At present, this new technology has been used in Japan's packaging and other markets. Gruppo X teamed up with the company Cartiere Cariolaro to grant Japan's Nippon Paper Company a special license for the production and commercialization of this technology throughout the Far East region. The company is producing the product named after "WAVYWAVY". Gruppo X is currently actively working to provide licenses for other manufacturers in the world.

The key to this technology is to produce paper or paperboard materials with good stretchability and produce deeper embossing effects on the material through the use of specialized mold-forming systems. The material is placed in a mold of a certain shape and the material is "blown" into the precise shape to be molded by high pressure gas. This paper or paperboard material is more stretchable than conventional materials. The paper web has a ductility of more than 20% in the direction of the twist, and the transverse web has a ductility of at least 16%. This material has a very high breaking strength and is fully compliant with the US Food and Drug Administration's requirements for food packaging. In contrast, traditional paper and paperboard can only be stretched to a very small extent, with a recognized maximum stretch of 2% to 3%.

These molds can be manufactured according to various design patterns and can reach a very perfect design detail without any limitations. Its other big advantage is that the process of “molding” is instantaneous, so this technology can be applied to fast production lines to speed up production.

This is a versatile material. Depending on the requirements, polymeric coatings can be applied to this material or they can be composited with plastic films or metal foils. This material can be processed on any type of thermoforming machine and tube forming machine. In order to make a storage container or a preform mold, it can be molded by injecting a non-permeable resin material. It can also be combined with other cardboard and corrugated board, depending on the packaging needs. Paper or cardboard can be coated and uncoated, so it can be printed using conventional methods.

Single paper material packaging, in line with environmental protection requirements

This technology provides a huge space for the packaging market. Its application in pharmaceutical packaging is a good example. Many tablet packs are currently packaged in the form of a plastic tablet in a blow-molded plastic tray, followed by a layer of paper, aluminum foil, or plastic film. Finally, the individual packs are placed in the outer carton. in. In this way, a kit box uses three or four different materials, making it extremely difficult to recycle the materials. Today, using the Gruppo X system, pallets can be molded out of paper or cardboard instead of plastic so that the entire package can be completed with just one material. Today, as environmental awareness becomes more and more prominent, brand owners regard environmental protection as an important factor. This technology uses paper materials instead of plastics to meet the concept of environmental protection and sustainable development.

In the candy market, sales appeal is one of the most critical factors. The carton made by using this technology has a unique carving effect that can not be produced by the common process, and it can make the product stand out on the shelf and attract consumers' attention. The excellent performance of this material makes it possible to continuously tap into its potential for application. At present, this material has been accepted for use in Japan, and gradually replaced by relying on a variety of materials before packaging. As technology continues to improve, this material will become more common in the future.

Source: "Global Box Industry"