Dow, brand owner RB, and converter Drukpol. Flexo have jointly developed a new resealable pouch designed for recyclability and end-of-life disposal into existing recycling streams.
The stand- up pouch which uses Dow’s polyethene (PE) films were designed for RB’s Finish perfume-free dishwasher detergent line.
“The innovative mono-material pouch is yet another example of the power of collaboration,” said Karin Katzer, marketing director End Use for Dow’s packaging and speciality plastics business. “Through our Pack Studios net-work and design for recyclability solutions, we are helping brand owners move to a circular economy and deliver on their sustainability commitments.”
Dow, RB and Drukpol.Flexo worked together to overcome the challenge of creating a mono-material, PE-films based packaging that can be produced on existing equipment and enable extra functionalities like zippers, easy opening, and the right mix of stiffness and flexibility. The development team was able to address this challenge through Dow’s portfolio of innovative technologies including Affinity, Dowlex and Agility.
“RB is committed to reducing, reusing and recycling materials in our packaging. We constantly search for solutions to address plastic waste and believe that plastic packaging designed for recyclability is the way forward,” said Krzysztof Krajewski, head of packaging innovation at RB. “With this innovative mono-material pouch, we are able to offer consumers easy to use packaging with enhanced features. Our new packaging is supported by existing recycling waste management systems and because the packing is lighter in weight, we are also able to reduce transportation costs and emissions.”
Drukpol.Flexo contributed to the innovation with their convert-ing expertise, supporting RB with the assistance required for their packaging lines. Kamil Ziemak, vice president at Dow, RB and Drukpol develop recyclable packaging for Finish dishwasher detergents
Ziemak added, “The packaging is not only designed for recyclability but also offers a high quality customer experience with respect to performance like the look, feel and ease-of-use.”