PETpla.net Insider 01+02 / 2021

CAPS & CLOSURES 26 PETplanet Insider Vol. 22 No. 01+02/21 www.petpla.net The Essential Guide to Tethered Closures With 179 attendees from 39 countries the third PETinar organised by PETplanet Insider took place on November 5, 2020. PETplanet invited Michael White of Husky to present: the Essential Guide to Tethered Closures. Fig 1: Threaded. Compatible with all beverage types Michael White is the Director of Business Development for Closures at Husky Injection Molding Systems. The webinar begins with an overview of the EU Single Use Plastic (SUP) Strategy, which was approved by the European Parliament in March 2019. It specifies that by July 2024, all SUP beverage containers with a volume ≤ 3 l requires the closure to remain on the bottle. Based on market inter- est, Michael believes that it is only a matter of time before this directive is adopted in other countries outside of Europe. Husky sees the directive as an opportunity for brand owners to enhance their product on the shelf while communicating a message of sustainability. Husky’s tethered development program began with an intensive study on the consumer inter- action. By looking at each interaction point with the application, from selec- tion on the shelf, to the re-closing experience, Husky has been able to optimise their designs. These designs are intuitive, and enhance the con- sumer experience through the use of audible and tactile feedback. Fig 2: Snap. Well-suited for still water Husky sees the tethered designs falling into two primary buckets: the snap neck finishes (Fig.2) and the threaded neck finishes (Fig.1). The snap neck is best suited for light weight still water applications. A snap seal- ing is insufficient to retain the inter- nal bottle pressures created by CSD and JSDT (juices, sports drinks, and tea) beverages. Threaded necks are compatible with all beverage types. Husky is actively working on differ- ent tethered designs. A key aspect is balancing legislative compliance while minimising tooling investment. Husky’s standard tethered design has the shell connected to the tamper evident band (TEB) via a member segment. While this concept satisfies the legislative requirement, it detracts from the user’s drinking experience. Husky’s premium tethered solution provides the best of both worlds. It ensures legislative compliance while promoting an enhanced consumer experience by enabling locking of the shell in the open position. By ena- bling locking, the closure shell will not interfere with the pouring experience and/or when drinking direct from the bottle. (Fig.3) The moulded-in bridge approach to closure manufacturing enables more complex geometry to be injec- tion moulded without any downstream secondary operations to be performed. Once the closure is ejected from the mould, it is ready to be applied on the capping line (Fig.4). Fig 3: Fixed shell position in the open position Fig 4: Moulded-in bridge: Ready for capping line, no secondary operations required Fig 5: Integrated hinge. Promotes posi- tive consumer experience by enabling shell locking There is not a one size fits all as dif- ferent neck finishes offer their own unique set of challenges. That is why Husky is working on a portfolio of solutions including:  Snap-on flip top closures  Flip Lid flip top closures  Standard tether  Premium tether Contact Husky for any questions on their tethered cap solutions and down- load the Essential Guide to Tethered Closures free of charge. The PETinar is available on the PETplanet Insider homepage. We thank Michael for his very interesting presentation of Husky Technology and all participants for their interest and stimulating questions. www.husky.co Husky Download Guide: https://campaigns.husky.ca/TetheredClosuresGuide Listen to PETinar at PETplanet: www.petpla.net/2020/11/10/ review-the-essential-guide-to-tethered-closures/?s CAPS & CLOSURES