Trade.Information

Innovative Eco-cut Tray Sealing System Facilitates Manufacturers to Cut Expenses, Condense Ravage and Boost Production

The pressure on food manufacturers to reduce waste has never been greater - both in terms of cost savings and environmental impact As well as the direct effect of legislation regulating the industry, consumers have also become keenly aware of the environment and are recycling more than ever.

Tray sealed packs offer what consumers and retailers want - convenience, protection and freshness - and now the PA brand-new patented Eco-cut tray sealer also gives the manufacturers what they need.

The innovative Eco-cut tray sealing system is the culmination of several years of intensive research and development.

The end result is an "unbelievably efficient" in-line tray sealer which is set to revolutionise the industry by offering three crucial benefits - it will enable manufacturers to cut costs, reduce waste and increase productivity.

And it can be used with a variety of recycled and environmentally friendly packaging options enabling manufacturers to offer a green alternative and help reduce household waste going to landfill.

Production trials have been underway for several months with testing under real factory conditions giving excellent results.

The Eco-cut, which maintains the high quality seal of the existing PA machine range, has been praised for its efficiency and ease of use, as well as the cost savings achieved.

It has been subjected to wet conditions, and typical tray flange contamination issues as well as hygiene and wash down routines taking it all in its stride.

Because of the Eco-cut patented design there is no film waste to dispose of - contributing savings in terms of film cost as well as the time and cost taken to handle and dispose of waste from a traditional tray sealing operation.

Additional savings can also be made by down-gauging film - with the Eco-cut capable of sealing film of 14 microns.

During its extensive trial period it has been shown that as well as film savings of up to 33 percent, production downtime has been reduced by up to 20 percent when compared with a conventional tray sealing line.

The running time per reel of film is increased and the unique design reduces film snaps - both key factors in increasing production speed.

After using the new machine during the trial period one customer said: "I am delighted with the performance of the PA Eco-cut machine, it is very easy to use and unbelievably efficient.

We have managed to seal 8200 trays from just one reel of film, compared with 4440 trays on the conventional tray sealer that was running on this line before we installed the Eco-cut.

It has withstood the rigours of our operating environment and I have no hesitation in rEcommending it".

PA Chairman Anthony Penn said: "I am genuinely excited by the launch of this machine and the difference it will make to operating costs, and the environment.

This is a significant move for PA as we continue to use the expertise and skills built up over 45 years in the tray sealing industry to develop our product range to meet the needs of our customers.

We understand the pressures they face on a daily basis and have put significant time and research behind this latest machine to help address these issues.

The Eco-cut offers an excellent seal quality while reducing costs and meeting the demands of high speed food production lines".

As well as working closely with customers, PA has been in close contact with a number of retailers throughout the development process.

One UK market leader has been quick to praise the new machine.

A spokesperson said: "We are continually working in partnership with our suppliers to reduce packaging waste.

We welcome the work that PA is doing to support this initiative and are particularly pleased that the Eco-cut machine reduces waste in the manufacturing process.

In addition we acknowledge the environmental benefits it offers to our suppliers such as reducing the weight of packaging film used in the final product and the ability to use recyclable or environmentally friendly packaging materials".

To boost its environmental credentials, the Eco-cut is suitable for use with recycled PET (rPET) thermoformed trays and can be used with a variety of biodegradable and compostable packaging.

While retailers and consumers continue to demand convenience combined with the need to keep food fresh, hygienic and protected, tray sealing equipment has a key role to play.

But now there is the chance for the food industry to take a great stride forward with this pioneering new machine which offers significant advantages directly to them and to the environment - an unbeatable combination.

Note for Polyethylene Terephthalate
Polyethylene terephthalate is a thermoplastic polymer resin of the polyester family and is used in synthetic fibers; beverage, food and other liquid containers; thermoforming applications; and engineering resins often in combination with glass fiber. It is one of the most important raw materials used in man-made fibers.

Depending on its processing and thermal history, it may exist both as an amorphous (transparent) and as a semi-crystalline (opaque and white) material. Its monomer can be synthesized by the esterification reaction between terephthalic acid and ethylene glycol with water as a byproduct, or the transesterification reaction between ethylene glycol and dimethyl terephthalate with methanol as a byproduct. Polymerization is through a polycondensation reaction of the monomers (done immediately after esterification/transesterification) with ethylene glycol as the byproduct (the ethylene glycol is recycled in production).

The majority of the world's PET production is for synthetic fibers (in excess of 60%) with bottle production accounting for around 30% of global demand. In discussing textile applications, PET is generally referred to as simply "polyester" while "PET" is used most often to refer to packaging applications.

It is manufactured under trade names Arnite, Impet and Rynite, Ertalyte, Hostaphan, Melinex and Mylar films, and Dacron, Diolen, Terylene & Trevira fibers.

The Polyester Industry is covering globally about 18% of world polymer production and finish third after polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP).

PET is hygroscopic, meaning that it naturally absorbs water from its surroundings. However, when this 'damp' PET is then heated a chemical reaction known as hydrolysis takes place between the water and the PET which reduces its molecular weight (IV) and its physical properties. This means that before the resin can be processed in a molding machine, as much moisture as possible must be removed from the resin. This is achieved through the use of a desiccant or dryers before the PET is fed into the processing equipment.

Inside the dryer, hot dry air is pumped into the bottom of the hopper containing the resin so that it flows up through the pellets, removing moisture on its way. The hot wet air leaves the top of the hopper and is first run through an after-cooler, because it is easier to remove moisture from cold air than hot air. The resulting cool wet air is then passed through a desiccant bed. Finally the cool dry air leaving the desiccant bed is re-heated in a process heater and sent back through the same processes in a closed loop. Typically residual moisture levels in the resin must be less than 40 parts per million (parts of water per million parts of resin, by weight) before processing. Dryer residence time should not be shorter than about four hours. This is because drying the material in less than 4 hours would require a temperature above 160 °C, at which level hydrolysis would begin inside the pellets before they could be dried out.