PETpla.net Insider 05 / 2020

CAPS & CLOSURES 47 PETplanet Insider Vol. 21 No. 05/20 www.petpla.net The first call for tamper-evident caps and closures by Michael Maruschke Till 1998/99, edible oil was customarily sold in India in open containers. This situation attracted the attention of Ramneek Vats, whose search for a better packaging solution led him to found Balaji Polymers in 2004, in the city of in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, on the north-east outskirts of New Delhi. It began with the production of caps and closures and expanded into preforms five years later. Balaji Polymers May 8, 2019 We met: Mr Ramneek Vats, Founder & CEO Mr Amit Arora, Business Partner Temper-evident caps to tackle counterfeits Caps and closures made from HDPE, PP and PP+co-polymer are still the main pillar of Balaji Polymers today and its focus remains on edible oil. It offers screw caps, flip flop caps, pilfer proof caps and big jar closures, with optional handles. They are pro- duced on Toshiba all-electric injection moulding machines in two factories located nearby. Balaji Polymers prides itself on being the ‘first call’ for tamper-evident caps in high volumes in India. Its designs confirm the origin of the pack- aging, avoiding risks of counterfeiting and fraud. Several different designs are available, not only for edible oil. It claims its technical masterpiece to be a tamper-proof two-piece cap for edible oil that weighs only 3.1 g; it is the lightest cap of its type in the world – the European standard is 3.4 g. Another special design is a preform and closure design with a 42/34 neck size, which is used for 2 l and 5 l bot- tles. Balaji is the only manufacturer for this kind of preform and closure in India. The company’s preforms are pro- duced on two 48-cavity Husky H-PET 230 t injection moulding machines. Preforms are available for 200ml, 500ml, 1 l, 2 l, 5 l and 15 l bottle sizes. Balaji Polymers is working to replace 15 l aluminium cans with PET con- tainers in the edible oil market. It has developed preforms for stackable and non-stackable containers in this size – another first of its kind for commer- cial production in India. Special part- nership with B.L. Agro Most of Balaji Polymers’ 400 t monthly preform produc- tion capacity is destined for B.L. Agro, the lead- ing edible oil manufacturer. This relationship is more than just a conventional manufacturer/ supplier business association; the two companies think of each other as part- ners. They have grown together. When B.L. Agro underwent a major expansion in 2014, Balaji installed two new Tour Sponsors: Husky high-output injection mould- ing machines to cope with the higher demand. Ramneek Vats of Balaji Polymers and Ashish Khandelwal of B.L. Agro work together personally, regularly meeting to discuss projects and develop new bottle and closure designs. www.balajipolymers.org Balaji Polymers’ production facility with Husky H-PET 230 Petka