PETpla.net Insider 08 / 2017

CAPS & CLOSURES 12 PET planet Insider Vol. 18 No. 08/17 www.petpla.net Trends and developments Caps & Closures for water and special drinks Safe, light, cost-effective. Although these three requirements are never out of fashion, clo- sures today have to do more than simply satisfy these three watchwords. More and more manufacturers are highlighting the closure as part of an overall packaging concept, con- veying the brand message or offering additional functions. On the retail shelf this creates a comprehensive range of features and tempts customers to purchase. Market movements According to the India-based market research and consulting company Mordor Intelligence, the global pro- duction of plastic caps and closures in 2016 for all packaging types was 1,286 billion units and is estimated to reach 1,814 billion units by 2021. In terms this equates to a revenue of US$29.34bn in 2016 and is projected to reach US$38.5bn by 2021. The bever- age industry leads the plastic caps and closure market and this in turn is domi- nated by the bottled water segment. This is expected to drive further growth in global demand. Growth opportunities also include added value closures. This can encompass communicating a brand message or promotion by features such as laser-printed caps, or prod- uct-dispensing functions and extend- ing to networking possibilities on smartphone or tablet, for example, to document hydration levels. The petal-flower design by United Caps is not only eye-catching but allows end users to open bottles with very little effort. Closure functions - catchword “convenience” The closure is primarily intended to protect the packaged liquid and prevent it from leaking. Still, conveni- ent solutions for special target groups are registering growth. While in the past few years, the development of the beverage closure inspired the creation of ever-lighter and more cost-effective total bottle solutions, now “conveni- ence” became the new buzzword of the industry. As a direct interface with the end user, this idea has recently moved back into the focus of closure developments. The industry is increas- ingly introducing user-friendly closures to the market, which can be opened and closed again with little effort and a good grip, especially important for certain consumer groups, for example children or the elderly. The target group of the mobile generation is reflected in the solutions including sports caps, for example in the push-pull version with or without a hinge feature or with a snap-in func- tion. Those closures permit the open- ing and closing of the bottle with one hand during physical activity. Demand for packing solutions for the “on the go” customer are expected to increase. A similarly optimistic growth rate is also predicted for closures with inte- grated dispensing functionality. The CAPS & CLOSURES