Düsseldorf, Germany, 18-4-2014 — /EuropaWire/ — Henkel will be present at the Interpack show this year with numerous innovations and proven adhesives systems. The focus is on solutions that Henkel has engineered in response to the requirements of the packaging industry.
The major themes for the present and future include, among others, food safety, occupational health and safety, sustainability, lighter packages and the effects of volatile raw materials markets. Henkel, the world’s biggest adhesives manufacturer, will be tackling these challenges with a broad range of applications and products at Interpack.
Food Safe Packaging
Adhesives, and Henkel’s concentrated expertise, can be found in a multitude of food packages. This is reassuring for customers in the food industry and hence for consumers. Through its extensive knowledge platform devoted to Food Safe Packaging, Henkel is supplying information on the subject to decision-makers in the industry. The platform targets those responsible for food safety, quality managers, packaging developers, purchasers and other interested parties in the food industry and among its suppliers who want to find out more about the current hot topic of food safe packaging.
Henkel is providing information via several avenues. The core channel is its web presence at www.henkel.com/foodsafety. The site provides a range of materials such as webinars, white papers and videos exploring diverse aspects of the subject. The Internet offering is backed up by Henkel stands at numerous trade shows like Interpack as well as at the Food Safe Packaging forums. The latter have already been attended by numerous customers and representatives from research, the trade press and the retail trade wishing to find out especially about the latest trends in adhesives development from the experts.
New solvent-free laminating adhesives group
One example of extra-low-migration adhesives is the Loctite Liofol LA 7777 series, a group of new solvent-free laminating adhesives for flexible food packages. Thanks to its low monomer content and rapid breakdown of primary aromatic amines, this system delivers a product group that can help to improve safety both during processing, as it is exempt from R40 labeling, and for the end-user.
Furthermore, owing to their low CO2 release, these systems can be used for laminates with elevated barrier properties. The performance profile is enhanced with extra features such as a workability almost twice as long as that of conventional systems. In the event of prolonged waiting times at the laminating machine, this helps to prevent the waste that results when the workability time is exceeded. Henkel is thus also responding to the growing interest in sustainable products.
High-performance adhesives for retortable applications
For highly stressed applications such as in stand-up pouches for pet food that undergo sterilization, Henkel is presenting a new solvent-based adhesive system. Already tested in the field, this system meets the highest standards and also features very rapid breakdown of primary aromatic amines. The two-component system can be applied with conventional methods on laminating machines for solvent-based systems.
Aquence adhesives for low-migration consumer goods packages
In the food sector, packages are subject to stringent regulations. They are governed, among other legislation, by the European Plastics Regulation which specifies overall limits for the migration of substances from package components into the packaged food. To ensure that practically no substances contained in the adhesives can penetrate into the food, Henkel is offering its well-known water-based adhesives under the Aquence brand as low-migration adhesives.
Targeting the highest safety, Henkel has added a complete low-migration product series to its trusted Aquence product range. Specific product variants are available for the various processing systems, from roller to nozzle application. The Aquence low-migration products are also noted for their low usage rates.
Sustainable innovations for glass labeling
Glass bottle labels are exposed to such influences as strong temperature fluctuations and high humidity, particularly in summer. Labeling adhesives have to retain their stability and thus prevent the label detaching from the bottle in ice water or when condensation water forms. At the same time, the label should be easy to remove during the washing process for returnable bottles. With its broad application and performance spectrum, casein-free Aquence XP 190 satisfies these requirements, performing just as well as adhesives based on casein.
Since Aquence XP 190 is casein-free, its price is not subject to seasonal fluctuations like that of adhesives based on milk protein. In the grip of a steady, long-term rise, the casein price reached an all-time high in recent months. There are no signs at present of a trend reversal, as demand from other industrial sectors is also increasing and availability depends on milk output. Experts therefore expect a continuation of the upward price trend in the medium and long-run. Casein-free Aquence XP 190 is thus an efficient and economically sustainable alternative to conventional labeling adhesives for the beverage and liquid food industry.
Foamed adhesives yield optimal results
In high-volume applications like lamination, efficient processes are particularly important. The innovative Aeration System from Henkel reduces process times during lamination in the corrugated board industry considerably, while creating potential for enhanced efficiency at the same time.
This proven system solution for the foaming of laminating adhesives allows clean machining even at high production speeds. The system consists of a Henkel laminating adhesive and a perfectly adapted third generation Glue Mixer, foaming the adhesive inline. By considerably increasing the volume of the adhesive, the system thus significantly reduces the quantity of adhesive required per unit of laminated area.
New hotmelt adhesive sets standards
With a processing temperature of 100 degrees Celsius, Technomelt Supra 100 Cool from Henkel is the new record-breaking hotmelt for the packaging industry. Featuring all the known positive aspects of the proven Supra product series, the innovation from Henkel offers superior efficiency in the end-of-line packaging process while also contributing to greater sustainability and increased work safety at the customer.
The continuing trend toward higher bond performance, greater mileage, and long-term availability is increasing in importance in the consumer packaging industry. In addition to its low processing temperature of 100 degrees Celsius and its high bond strength, Technomelt Supra 100 Cool also is distinguished by its wide range of applications in case, tray and carton bonding. Field tests among consumer goods manufacturers all over Europe have shown that the low processing temperature of Technomelt Supra 100 Cool reduces the required energy input by up to 50 percent relative to conventional hotmelts. Like all products of the Technomelt Supra series, Technomelt Supra 100 Cool is suitable for bonding food packages.
Freedom System and Central Hotmelt Feeding System
The Henkel stand will showcase an innovation that Henkel has developed in cooperation with the Nordson Corporation, a leading manufacturer of precision dispensing systems for adhesives and other materials. The Freedom System is a combination of tailormade hotmelts and high-end application equipment. Customers benefit enormously from the system and the different degrees of freedom it offers that gave the innovation its name. Thanks to innovative adhesives formulations, customers gain a measure of independence from raw materials markets, and they can set up the system with ease and virtually anywhere in their facility. They can reduce downtimes and escape the complexity of traditional dispensing systems. With the Freedom System, material is well optimized.
Another innovation at the trade show is the Central Hotmelt Feeding System. This new unit from Henkel enables customers to supply several adhesives application systems from a central adhesives store at the same time. This is made possible by an intricate piping configuration in which granular hotmelt is conveyed by compressed air and via an adjustable valve to the hotmelt application system. The system is cost-effective and saves energy during the production process. Smart software makes the feeding process easy to control.
Henkel presents product portfolio for self-adhesive label production
At Interpack, Henkel is presenting its extended range of pressure-sensitive adhesives for the production of self-adhesive labels, tapes and films. By closing its acquisition of the high-performance adhesives business of the US specialty chemicals company Cytec Industries in 2012, Henkel again strengthened its competencies in this specialty adhesives sector and now offers an even broader product portfolio.
The acquired PSA technologies are put to varied use across multiple industries to give special characteristics to self-adhesive labels, films and tapes. For the label industry, Henkel today offers a comprehensive range of pressure-sensitive adhesives that is designed for a multitude of removable, repositionable and permanent applications and covers all common technologies: water-based, solvent acrylics, hotmelts and UV-curable adhesives.
The Henkel stand is located in Hall 7, stand C10. Experts from the various business areas will be available for discussions throughout the trade show.
Contact
Holger Elfes
Business Unit and Brand PR / Adhesive Technologies | Headquarters, Düsseldorf / Germany
Phone +49-(0)211-797-9933
Fax +49-(0)211-798-9832
Lisa Kretzberg
Business Unit and Brand PR / Adhesive Technologies | Headquarters, Düsseldorf / Germany
Phone +49-(0)211-797-5672
Fax +49-(0)211-798-9832
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Low migration adhesives for flexible food packagings