FEATURE Packaging & Labelling
Green packaging industry: how to achieve sustainable manufacturing
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n times of increasing sustainability eff orts it is essential to fi nd ways to develop more environmentally- friendly packaging, conserve resources
and rely on smart and more-effi cient production lines. Take coff ee capsules for example: On the one hand, consumers want a quick and easy way to prepare a fresh cup of coff ee in the morning, on the other, the popular disposable capsules are a huge environmental burden. Hence, new sustainable manufacturing approaches are necessary. Plastic production has increased exponentially in recent years – from 2.3m tonnes in 1950 to 448m in 2015, a fi gure expected to double again by 2050. Another problem is that plastics often contain additives that make them durable, stronger and more fl exible. However, many of these additives take at least 400 years to decompose. Therefore, the packaging industry is one of the main contributors to this plastic glut, which urgently needs to be minimised – and this is a mammoth task. First thing to address is to reduce packaging material – not only in terms of virgin plastics content in primary packaging, but also in the amount of protective secondary and fi nal packaging. Another point is to eliminate single-use packaging. Some strategies to tackle this issue start with using reusable and refi llable systems, redesigning the packages with alternative materials that facilitate recycling, are biodegradable and compostable, or have lower impact on the environment if they end up in landfi ll.
Monomaterials have better recyclability, but migrating to them could be a challenging
40 July/August 2022 | Automation
process that requires strict process control as, often, packaging equipment needs to be customised. All these eff orts must be accompanied with a collecting infrastructure that enables a waste-free or low-waste future, along with an urgent behaviour change from consumers, industry, retailers and the entire circular system.
New requirements A key tactic to becoming sustainable, and especially when tackling virgin plastics, is to shift from rigid to fl exible packaging. Thinner walls, smaller sizes, narrower seams and lighter weights help. Added to this are the use of monomaterials, paper-based and biopolymers, as well increased proportion of recycled material in the main packaging, as well as protective and transport packaging. If more sustainable materials are used in packaging, it is still of the highest importance to ensure the quality of the end product. At the manufacturing line changing to
more sustainable materials means avoiding typical problems in the primary package like material jams or tears, poor-quality seal or incorrect labelling. For example, paper- based materials have a diff erent tear and puncture resistance, which implies a more precise control in package forming, shrink- fi lm made from recycled plastic has very diff erent shrink properties compared to fi lm made from virgin materials, demanding versatile but accurate shrinking temperature control. Also, there are other aspects to consider in secondary packaging that are are getting more traction lately. Reducing the melting points of adhesives when erecting and sealing cartons, implementing material reduction strategies, including lightweight
corrugated materials, or unpacking and repacking the contents of a pallet with cartons made from more sustainable cardboard and alternative materials are some of them. All these strategies require careful analysis to identify the point along the line that would need to be updated to ensure the quality and safety of the product. What is needed is future-proof manufacturing with automation and robotics technology that can work fl exibly with diff erent materials. The following examples show what companies should specifi cally look for:
1. Film jamming Thinner, recycled fi lms are more sustainable, but can also tangle more quickly. Even slight changes in fi lm thickness lead to uneven winding and unwinding and increase the tension on the fi lm. Uneven tension, in turn, causes defects during pouch forming or sealing, such as curling, ripping, folding, or a sideways shifting or misalignment. Correct handling with maximum throughput and minimum fi lm consumption is key to overall Original Equipment Eff ectiveness, therefore, if creases are forming in the seal, operators should check for machine errors that are contributing to the fi lm not being fed correctly. Examples include misaligned rollers, diff erent feeding devices, or stuck rollers that do not rotate freely. Omron‘s Film Tension Control System provides synchronised control of tension, feed and cut. This is complemented by (colour) mark
automationmagazine.co.uk
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