PETpla.net Insider 12 / 2020

PREFORM PRODUCTION PETplanet Insider Vol. 21 No. 12/20 www.petpla.net 21 Dimensional and thickness measurements for plastic containers and preforms. • Repeatable • Accurate • Precise • Fast GAWiS D +1.724.482.2163 AGRINTL.COM SEE GAWIS4D IN ACTION post-consumer recycling content is increasing in popularity, and consum- ers, especially in exports, are open to trying it for their products. II) Recycled content varies from industry, customer and location. For example, in India, there are still restrictions in place for the usage of PCR (post-consumer recycling) for food and beverage packaging, with improvements in quality, this is expected to change soon. At Chemco we have our in-house dedicated recycling facilities which allow us to control the quality of the input mate- rial. The high-quality machines and a world-class laboratory attached to it ensure the material is safe and can be used for packaging. III) To a large extent, preform production at our end is primarily determined by our clients and their strategy. Based on the industry we are addressing consumer behaviour did see a radical change. Still, because of the expectations of normalty and reports of a vaccine on the way, brands were not keen on making sig- nificant changes in terms of preform developments. At Chemco we are proactive and have developed vari- ous effective online sale bottle and jar designs that maximise the content, minimise breakages/ damages in tran- sit and allows the retailer to reduce environmental impacts by using lesser protective packaging. www.chemcogroup.com Eskapet I) Eskapet is one of Turkey’s lead- ing preform manufacturer, exporting to more than 80 countries in 5 conti- nents. This gives us an understand- ing of both Turkish and international market requirements. The Covid-19 pandemic affected the domestic and international in largely the same way. With a general lockdown and the closing down of the hospitality sector, sales fell dramatically compared with the previous year. The loss of the soft drink market was compensated by increased sales of bottled spring water in 1.5 and 5 litre bottles as consumers tightened their belts, and we have focused on this sector of the market. II) Prior to the Covid outbreak, we were increasingly asked for 100%, 50% and 25% recycled preforms, but with the pandemic, demand has fallen dramatically. The higher cost of rPET compared to virgin material is the reason. We find this puzzling; recycled material is environmentally friendly and should be much cheaper. But as demand for rPET increased, so did the price to more than double the price of virgin material. Then problems started to appear with rPET preforms, notably with mould and shade. There is also the problem of collecting suf- ficient waste to produce rPET. This needs to be significantly improved if the situation is to change. III) Over the three months of March, April and May many produc- ers began to order more than they needed, thereby increasing our sales figures but this over-stocking caused a decline in sales subsequently. None- theless, overall we have increased our preform sales in 2020. www.eskapet.com