The Importance of Packaging and Joined Up Thinking! Ever wondered why cap and foil sealing on certain products is generally accepted by the manufacturing industry as part of the packaging process and yet other products are rejected? It is important that the manufacturer evaluates on a regular basis their product lines that are to be considered for this process, along with the benefits and cost savings that can be achieved, such as:
- Reducing pack weight
- Product Freshness
- Tamper evidence
- Colour retention
- Limit anti-bacterial contamination
- Extended shelf-life
- Improving transportation & storage capability
- Product Design
The Product Design element is one of the most important considerations for the manufacturer and their design agency. They must ensure that packaging clearly identifies the brand, communicates the brand to the consumer and presents an image that distinguishes the product from the competition not only in design, but colour and shape. At the same time achieving the check list above.
Packaging Planning
All too often the sealing process question is brought into the equation at the end of the communication line and the explanation would be --
if the current system of delivering the product to the consumer has worked for years -- don't fix it!
Overall a good job is done by the Product Owners, including their commitment to reducing carbon footprint -- but technology moves on and so much more could be done!
By allowing all parties in the system to communicate with each other it would be so much more productive than it is now
Successful Communication
Here is an example that demonstrates how communicating and working with all the groups involved in launching a new pack that includes an induction sealing process can give you the flexibility and creativity with your clients' brands, whilst maintaining the image, recognition and functionality of getting the product to the retailer and onto the shelf.
When Horlicks launched the oval shape cap for their powdered drink product, it created a challenge because induction sealing eddy currents travel in a circular path. The snap-on cap lacks the torque required for the conventional induction sealing process.
So Why induction? Keith Marriage, Director, Nutritional Healthcare for GlaxoSmithKline, said "We needed to create an airtight seal to prevent product exposure to moisture. We discussed it with Enercon UK and we worked with them to find a solution."
The Solution: Enercon Super Seal™ Max with a customized coil, coupled with a Top Belt Sealer was used to ensure that the caps apply pressure on the foil during process that 'sealed the deal'.
Your clients future business only lives if innovation packaging works alongside the good practical ideas and best practice methods of production. And ultimately for the benefit of their customer.
The cost effectiveness and practical production benefits of induction foil sealing are enormous, proven and well established.
Today there is constant pressure on the manufacturing industry, throughout Europe, to reduce the overall carbon footprint of the product and the system that packs it, stores it and delivers it to the end user.
The need for the Product Manufacturers, Designers and Production Equipment Suppliers to readily work together on 'without difficulty' product development is critical for environmental obligation and demands.
Enercon currently seal over 25 billion containers per year in Europe alone and save 10's of millions of Euro's in packing and scrap costs each year and 100's of mega watts of energy per year.
Yet we only seal about 20% of what could be sealed and we have approximately 30% of the induction market.
Think what we could do if more design teams included hermetic induction foil sealing in their future planning as a matter of best practice.