No.10 2022 www.petpla.net D 51178; ISSN: 1438-9452 03 . 10 . 22 PETplanet is read in more than 140 countries MAGAZ I NE FOR BOT T L E R S AND BOT T L E - MAK E R S IN THE AMER ICAS, AS IA, EUROPE AND AL L AROUND THE PLANET MARKETsurvey Suppliers of filling equipment and inspection systems Page 35 Page 20 Page 39 MATERIALS Page 15
ClipAside, drink, love! Tethered ClipAside closure wins high acceptance Contact us and arrange your line trials now! www.bericap.com PET 38 PET 29/25 PCO 1881 PET 33 PET 26 PET 26 GME 30.40 A recent consumer real-life “diary study” conducted in France found a high level of acceptance among consumers for the innovative new closure. After just one or two experiences, even the youngest and oldest users could handle the smart closure without difficulty – often with one hand. What’s more, many praised the eco-friendly nature of the cap, which remains on the bottle neck and avoids creating additional plastic waste. Best of all for you, this premium product can be integrated into most lines and any popular bottle neck format without major modification of your production equipment.
No.10 2022 www.petpla.net D 51178; ISSN: 1438-9452 03 . 10 . 22 PETplanet is read in more than 140 countries MAGAZ I NE FOR BOT T L E R S AND BOT T L E - MAK E R S IN THE AMER ICAS, AS IA, EUROPE AND AL L AROUND THE PLANET MARKETsurvey Suppliers of filling equipment and inspection systems Page 35 Page 20 Page 39 MATERIALS Page 15
The all-new PET-LINE comes with a variety of advantages to maximize output and minimize costs: • Maximum compatibility with legacy molds and PMC • Shortest cycle times for increased output • Lowest level of energy consumption to minimize the ecological footprint • Improved 100 % rPET processing to enable the circular economy • New control unit including Smart Operation to ensure easy, fast and safe start-up and production • Now available with 3000 and 4000 kN clamping force More details on www.netstal.com FLIPPING THE WORLD OF PET UPSIDE DOWN AND EVEN SIDEWAYS THE ALLNEW PETLINE WITH SIDE ENTRY.
imprint EDITORIAL PUBLISHER Alexander Büchler, Managing Director HEAD OFFICE heidelberg business media GmbH Hubweg 15 74939 Zuzenhausen, Germany phone: +49 6221-65108-0 fax: +49 6221-65108-28 info@petpla.net EDITORIAL Kay Barton Heike Fischer Gabriele Kosmehl Michael Maruschke Ruari McCallion Anthony Withers WikiPETia. info petplanet@petpla.net MEDIA CONSULTANTS Martina Hirschmann hirschmann@petpla.net Johann Lange-Brock lange-brock@petpla.net phone: +49 6221-65108-0 fax: +49 6221-65108-28 LAYOUT AND PREPRESS EXPRIM Werbeagentur | exprim.de Matthias Gaumann READER SERVICES reader@petpla.net PRINT Chroma Druck Eine Unternehmung der Limberg-Druck GmbH Danziger Platz 6 67059 Ludwigshafen, Germany WWW www.hbmedia.net | www.petpla.net PETplanet Insider ISSN 1438-9459 is published 10 times a year. This publication is sent to qualified subscribers (1-year subscription 149 EUR, 2-year subscription 289 EUR, Young professionals’ subscription 99 EUR. Magazines will be dispatched to you by airmail). Not to be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher. Note: The fact that product names may not be identified as trademarks is not an indication that such names are not registered trademarks. 3 PETplanet Insider Vol. 23 No. 10/22 www.petpla.net Copyright of front cover by: Messe Düsseldorf/ctillmann Dear readers, Drinktec 2022 has closed its doors, the first international fair for our sector after the disruption of the pandemic. From a personal perspective, I was extremely pleased; we met all PETlers again, and it was good to shake hands again and to look into each other’s eyes. Martin Hammerschmid, CEO Gernep, had repeatedly questioned the costs of trade fairs in previous years. At this year’s Drinktec he told me that he would never want to question the trade fair again, so great is the need for suppliers and processors to meet and interact in person in an intense way. Perhaps Petra Westphal summed up the importance of Drinktec best: “The future of the industry is being shaped here.” However, she also self-critically mentioned the rollercoaster ride in the preparations for this year’s event. There were significantly fewer exhibitors (2022: 1,002 instead of 2017: 1,749) and significantly fewer visitors (50,000 instead of 76,000). But the proportion of overseas visitors did increase slightly (2022: 70% instead of 2017: 67%), demonstrating the international importance of the event. We can only agree with the view of Volker Kronseder, Krones. This is how he summed up the fair: “When you walk through the halls ... you finally see people from different nations communicating with each other face to face again”. Personally, I am pleased that Drinktec and with it our PETpoint are back and I look forward to the next meeting in Munich in 2025. Yours, Alexander Büchler
PETcontents 4 PETplanet Insider Vol. 23 No. 10/22 www.petpla.net 10/2022 Page 54 TOP TALK 12 Sidel’s food, home and personal care initiative - Interview with Sidel’s new Global Vice President, Mr Pascal Lefèvre MATERIALS / RECYCLING 15 New PET hydrolase - Enzyme discovered in human saliva microbes could be used to decompose PET-based plastics 16 Improved characteristics - Clay-based additive triples gas barrier properties and boosts strength & UV resistance 18 No compromise on processability - Masterbatch for hot fill packaging EDITOUR 20 Product quality, shelf life and food safety for PET - Additive and colour masterbatches from Switzerland 22 Innovating for sustainability 26 A closed loop of 69% rPET in Switzerland 28 Sorting waste streams 30 Recycling in Spain - Business is booming in waste sorting systems 32 Always the right atmosphere 33 Virtually maintenance-free injection moulds MARKET SURVEY 35 Suppliers of filling equipment & inspection systems TRADE SHOW PREVIEW 39 K’ show 2022, preview part 2 47 Degassing and decontamination technologies 50 Digitalisation and process control, the wider concept of sustainability 52 Processing rPET in thin wall injection moulding 54 High productivity, low consumption & sustainability 56 Wide range of vision inspection systems 58 PET Technologies to debut at K’ show 59 Four moulding technologies - Focusing on packaging sustainability & efficiency BUYER’S GUIDE 64 Get listed! INSIDE TRACK 3 Editorial 4 Contents 6 News 60 PET bottles for home & personal care 62 PET bottles for beverage + liquid food 63 Patents 70 Outer Planet Page 26 MATERIALS Page 22
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PETnews 6 NEWS PETplanet Insider Vol. 23 No. 10/22 www.petpla.net Driving global harmonisation for recyclability RecyClass and the US based Association of Plastics Recyclers, the international association representing the plastics recycling industry, reinforce their collaboration to drive worldwide harmonisation of plastic packaging recyclability. The basis of this collaboration is a shared vision of science-based design for recycling guidelines and protocols for recyclability assessments. This partnership is indispensable to drive unified, fact-based approach to recyclability and to bring clarity for the whole value chain, specifically brand owners and retailers who operate in multinational markets. “RecyClass mission, beyond supporting the industry in redesigning plastic packaging and boosting recycled material in new products, is to harmonise the approach toward recyclability assessment”, said Fabrizio di Gregorio, Technical Director at Plastics Recyclers Europe. “Given the similarities when it comes to the products placed on the markets globally, such harmonisation can help make the packaging production systems more efficient and at the same time accelerate significantly the transition toward circularity”, he added. This collaboration includes establishing a common workplan to align and review the existing documents with an objective to identify potential gaps, consolidate existing methodologies and map additional testing methods. The first deliverables, focused on aligning the guidelines and protocols for flexible plastics, are expected at the beginning of 2023. “The purpose of design guides is to ensure packages can be processed through the recycling infrastructure with the highest yield and best quality impact. Since the European and North American recycling infrastructures operate on many of the same principles, it is possible to harmonise much of the guidance. I’m excited that RecyClass and APR are making efforts to communicate and coordinate. These efforts benefit the entire packaging industry and circular economy,” said Curt Cozart, Chief Operating Officer at APR. The two organisations endorsed a common definition of recyclability back in 2018 which stipulates that to be considered recyclable, a product must be able to be collected and sorted in sufficient quantities. It must be as well compatible with existing industrial recycling processes or be available in sufficient quantities to justify the development of new recycling processes to become a raw material for new products. This partnership is an important effort to harmonise the standards available on the market. RecyClass, together with APR, is prone to collaborate with other organisations willing to make plastic products compatible with recycling and deliver on the EU targets of making all plastic packaging recyclable by 2030. www.recyclass.eu www.plasticsrecyling.org Plant for chemically recycled PET Köksan PET Packaging Industry Co. introduces its new chemically recycled PET production with its patented (pending) process technology with a total capacity of 300 tons per day. According to the company the plant is designed to produce 100% rPET resin which will be ready to use for both bottle grade and textile applications. Köksan uses two CP lines with 600 tons line capacity each per day for PET resin production and is now adding a third line made by Polytex with a unique energy saving production process, according to the management. The high IV rPET CP 300 tons/day project CP for various packaging and textile grade applications has been officially launched on August 29, 2022. Chemical recycling through the glycolysis process is turning PET into bis-hydroxyethyl terephthalate (BHET) monomers which are already being used in CP lines up to 50%. The plant will be fully up and running for operation by the end of 2023. www.koksan.com Help us shape the circular economy! Technically-minded and keen to protect the climate? Relish a challenge and want to help find the right people to do something about the plastic waste on our planet? Then Krones Recycling Solutions is the right place for you! For more than 20 years, we have been developing innovative technologies to keep valuable packaging materials within a closed loop – and to take our vision of a sustainable industry from Flensburg out into the wider world. There is more to do than ever, which is why we are now looking for committed individuals to join our team – for example in the following areas: Mechanical/electrical design and automation Process engineering Product management Erection and commissioning at customers' premises worldwide Employee management Maybe you share our vision of a waste-free world, but don't see your abilities reflected fully in any of these job areas? Then why not send us an unsolicited application? Because job titles are not what matters to us. What is important is who you are and what you can do. Any questions? Please contact Astrid Schwartz (astrid.schwartz@krones.com) for more information. We look forward to receiving your application (including all relevant documents). These can be uploaded in just a few clicks on our careers portal at www.krones.com.
7 NEWS PETplanet Insider Vol. 23 No. 10/22 www.petpla.net product development caps & closures design high cavitation moulds multi-component moulds closure production systems after sales service competent – professional – inspiring +43 5572 7272-0 | sales@z-moulds.com | www.z-moulds.com Visit us @K-SHOW Düsseldorf, Oct. 19-26th Hall 10 Booth G32 z Alpla and PTT Global Chemical open Thailand’s largest plastics recycling plant Following 18 months of construction and installation, the Alpla Group and PTT Global Chemical are opening a stateof-the-art Envicco recycling plant in Thailand. With an annual production capacity of 30,000 t of recycled PET and 15,000 t of recycled HDPE, it is one of the largest recycling plants for these plastics in Asia. With this plant, the two companies will strengthen the region’s circular economy and supply the growing markets with high-quality recycled material. Located in an economic zone on the coast of the southeastern province of Rayong, the plant is equipped with the latest recycling technology and production lines to manufacture high-quality plastic recyclates with approval from the USFDA. The opening on September 13 was attended by, among others, Alpla Chairman Günther Lehner, Kongkrapan Intarajang (CEO and President, GC), Dietmar Marin (Alpla Managing Director Recycling) and Bernd Wachter (Alpla Corporate Director Circular Economy & Recycling Asia). “Demand for recycled, sustainable packaging materials is rising sharply in Southeast Asia, and high-quality plastics have a key role to play here. With this new plant, we are now applying our many years of expertise in the treatment and processing of packaging made from post-consumer recycled resins in Thailand,” explains Bernd Wachter. Alpla will supply its production facilities in Asia with recycled material and is also fostering the circular economy at the local level. With the plant, majority shareholder GC supports sustainable development in the region, moving it towards resource-conserving business and lifestyles. “Today, GC is proud to reveal that Envicco is ready for commercial operation. Used plastics within the Kingdom of Thailand will make up 100% of the raw materials processed by Envicco ’s cutting-edge production technologies to transform used plastics into valuable products,” says Kongkrapan Intarajang. “The Envicco production plant is part of our long-term circular economy strategy to fully realise GC’s value chain. It also has the added benefit of creating jobs within the community while simultaneously aligning with the Thai government’s BioCircular-Green Economy Model.” The Envicco team will comprise approximately 180 employees at the start of production. Future plans: Bottle-to-bottle recycling The 30,000m2 plant is on a plot of land measuring a good 90,000 m2 at the Map Ta Phut Industrial Estate. There is, therefore, also space for future capacity expansions. “We have long-term plans to promote the bottle-to-bottle cycle not only here in Thailand, but across Asia and other regions around the world. Carbon emissions and waste can be reduced through optimised resource consumption,” emphasises Dietmar Marin. www.alpla.com www.pttgcgroup.com F.l.t.r.: Bernd Wachter (Alpla Corporate Director Circular Economy & Recycling Asia), Dietmar Marin (Alpla Managing Director Recycling), Günther Lehner (Alpla Chairman), Kongkrapan Intarajang (CEO and President, GC), Georg Weingartner (Austrian Commercial Counsellor in Bangkok) and Korn-eak Thamrongwang (Alpla Large Scale Project Manager Asia) at the opening of the Envicco plant.
8 NEWS PETplanet Insider Vol. 23 No. 10/22 www.petpla.net Adler Industrial Solutions acquires R&D / Leverage Adler Indust r ial Solut ions, Inc. announced it has acquired R&D/Leverage, Co. This transaction marks the third acquisition by Adler in the past year and gives the company expanded scale, a broader capability set, and European manufacturing facilities that serve a global customer base. Headquartered in Lee’s Summit, Missouri, R&D is a leading manufacturer and supplier of mould types for the food and beverage, personal care, and healthcare markets. Founded in 1975 by Ivan and Ardith Drienik, the company was a pioneer in developing complex tooling solutions for the injection moulding and blow moulding industries. Today, R&D has over 250 employees split between its 180,000-square-foot and 60,000-square-foot manufacturing facilities in Lee’s Summit, Missouri, and Nottinghamshire, England, respectively. “The acquisition of R&D is a milestone addition for Adler. The capabilities and skillsets of the R&D team are second to none and will only further raise the core competencies of the Adler group,” said Philipp Gruner, CEO of Adler. “Adding adjacent markets such as blow moulds, injection stretch blow moulds, preform moulds and higher complexity injection system moulds to our capabilities allows Adler to offer more services to our existing and future customers while expanding our geographic reach within the United States and internationally.” As a part of Adler, R&D / Leverage will benefit from additional resources and investment. Ardith Drienik said the acquisition is the ideal pathway forward for the company that she and her husband, Ivan, founded and dedicated their lives to building. “When I met the Adler founders, I knew I had found the right buyer. I wanted someone that shared my husband’s love of manufacturing and engineering, and someone who appreciates the value and contributions of the employees. I feel Ivan would agree with this decision that the Adler team’s track record, energy, and vision will make them the ideal stewards of this amazing company,” said Mrs. Drienik. www.adlertooling.com www.rdleverage.com Kilian Braunsdorf becomes CEO of Paccor Kilian Braunsdorf has been appointed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Paccor, a global player in the plastic packaging industry. He succeeds Andreas Schuette, who steps down from his role with the completion of the acquisition of Paccor by the Faerch Group (as of September 1, 2022). Under the new ownership, Paccor intends to accelerate the transition towards circular packaging and provide its customers with new and innovative packaging solutions. Kilian Braunsdorf (47) joined the company in July 2020 as a Member of the Executive Board and has since served as Chief Financial Officer (CFO). Prior to joining Paccor, he held global leadership positions in the packaging industry. He started his career in Auditing and Management Consulting and holds a degree in Industrial Engineering. Kilian Braunsdorf succeeds Andreas Schuette, who served as CEO of Paccor since March 2019. Being part of the Faerch Group is stated to bring numerous benefits to Paccor and its customers. The joint geographical footprint of more than 30 production sites with around 6,000 employees across Europe, the US and Asia brings the company closer to its customers. “Paccor will continue to operate as a separate company and provide its customers with the products and services they know and expect from Paccor,” Lars Gade Hansen, CEO of the Faerch Group, said. “A comprehensive investment programme for supporting material conversion into circular solutions, expanding the operational platform and in R&D will be quickly brought into play,” he concluded. The Paccor UK business is not part of the acquisition and was hived off prior to the transaction. www.paccor.com RadiciGroup: acquisition of Ester Industries Ltd. completed RadiciGroup High Performance Polymers acquired the Engineering Plastics business of the Indian company Ester Industries Ltd. Last May, RadiciGroup announced this action aimed at strengthening its internationalisation strategy, with an investment of around 35 million euros: the transaction allows RadiciGroup - in India since 2006 - to further reinforce its local presence through the acquisition of one of the main and historic players on the Indian market. For RadiciGroup this is a significant industrial investment in which Ester Industries Ltd is selling its newly-built production plant in the city of Halol (Gujarat), West of India: compound lines, R&D laboratories, customers/suppliers contracts as well as its leading brand Estoplast which includes different types of compounds used primarily in the electrical/electronic and telecommunications markets. Ester Industries Ltd - one of the leading Indian producers of polyester films, engineering plastics and special polymers - has seen in RadiciGroup the ideal partner to follow up on its consolidated experience in the engineering polymers business, in order to focus on the packaging film sector, a business the Indian firm intends to continue and strengthen. The new production site, under construction, will become operational at the beginning of 2023, following the various transfers of tangible and intangible assets. As a result of the acquisition, the Group aims to achieve total annual sales in the Indian market of more than EUR 50 million. www.radicigroup.com
9 NEWS PETplanet Insider Vol. 23 No. 10/22 www.petpla.net % *0', ) % * , 6 - ! - 7 $ 01 . . $ ! $ # 01 /
10 NEWS PETplanet Insider Vol. 23 No. 10/22 www.petpla.net Koch Technology Solutions and Ioniqa Technologies partner to scale up recycling technology Koch Technology Solutions (KTS), a Koch Engineered Solutions company, and Ioniqa Technologies B.V. (Ioniqa) announced a partnership to scale up and commercialise Ioniqa’s PET recycle technology in the plastics industry. As part of this collaboration, KTS has committed to invest up to €30M in Ioniqa. Ioniqa has developed a process that utilises low-grade post-consumer PET to produce a feedstock that displaces virgin raw materials used in the production of polyester products. Ioniqa has successfully demonstrated this technology in The Netherlands’ 10KTA production facility. KTS and Ioniqa’s partnership will work to address the growing demand for recycled content in the 30 million metric tonnes per annum PET market. Ioniqa’s technology offers a solution to PET waste that is currently non-recyclable, turning the waste into materials suitable for high quality food grade applications such as beverage bottles. KTS and Ioniqa consider the technology as a disruptor in the PET industry providing a sustainable economic recycle proposition to conventional manufacturing routes. The partnership will drive a circular process that addresses environmental impacts of the current PET industry. Tonnis Hooghoudt, CEO and Founder of Ioniqa said “After the scaling of our technology to a 10KTA depolymerisation plant in The Netherlands, this KTS partnership is a major stepping stone for Ioniqa in commercialising its technology on a global level. Our expertise in breaking down plastic waste into virgin-like monomers matches seamlessly with KTS’ track record in designing and licensing PET production processes worldwide.”. www.ioniqa.com www.kochtechsolutions.com Acquisition of Herbold Meckesheim completed The acquisition of the engineering company Herbold Meckesheim, has formally been completed. Herbold Meckesheim will be integrated with Coperion’s recycling product lines into its new recycling business unit that plans to offer complete solutions for plastics recycling processing. Coperion intends to combine its strengths as an international industrial and technological leader with Herbold Meckesheim, a specialist in mechanical recycling of plastics and plastic waste, and to form a united business approach together. Herbold Meckesheim will continue to operate at its existing location and retain its name. Both companies will combine their capabilities in the field of recycling and integrate to build modular systems and plant solutions that cover a broad sector of the circular economy, as well as large sections of the globe with their combined sales and service network. The recycling business unit plans to offer complete solutions leveraging both Coperion and Herbold Meckesheim’s complementary technologies. From mechanical processing — shredding, washing, separating, drying, and agglomerating of plastics — to bulk material handling, feeding and extrusion, as well as compounding and pelletising, this business unit encompasses the complete process chain. With their combined global service network that supports installations and start-ups, competent and rapid service is also available on site, states the company. Additionally, state-of-the-art test centres for product development as well as customer trials are available to customers. Before interested parties make significant investments, they can undertake in-depth testing of every process step in the test labs. The recycling business unit plans to offer complete plants and systems for recycling PET, polyolefins, film, or rigid plastic. From mechanical processing to solvent-based and chemical recycling to complete solutions for highly automated to modular recycling lines. Engineering and service during the equipment’s entire operating life is also available. www.coperion.com www.herbold.com Werner Herbold, CEO, Herbold Meckesheim GmbH (left) and Markus Parzer, President, Polymer Division, Coperion (photo: Coperion GmbH, Stuttgart)
11 NEWS PETplanet Insider Vol. 23 No. 10/22 www.petpla.net PACKSYSGLOBAL.COM SWISS ENGINEERED Let‘s open a new world together. Intuitive and flexible Tethering. TEM PLUS
TOP TALK PETplanet Insider Vol. 23 No. 10/22 www.petpla.net 12 Interview with Sidel’s new Global Vice President, Mr Pascal Lefèvre Sidel’s food, home and personal care initiative In April 2022 Sidel announced the appointment of Pascal Lefèvre as the new Global Vice President. He will develop and drive Sidel’s food, home and personal care (FHPC) strategy, meeting the unique needs of FHPC markets and delivering flexible, eco-friendly, tailor-made solutions that will address the new and complex retailing and distribution challenges facing customers. PETplanet: Could you please give us some information on your personal background, experience and activities in the plastics and/or packaging industry prior to Sidel? Pascal Lefèvre: I graduated with a Master’s from ISG Paris Business school and subsequently held a number of management positions with B2B businesses in the packaging equipment industry, specifically in blow moulding, labelling and injection equipment. I joined Sidel in 2020 as Vice President Europe & Central Asia for the FHPC market and was then appointed Global Vice President of food, home and personal care. PETplanet: Which key projects did you successfully manage in the past (probably in a similar sector)? Pascal Lefèvre: When the iconic Italian brewery Birra Peroni, part of Asahi Group Holdings Ltd, decided to upgrade its glass bottling operations as a result of a growing domestic market and trends towards premium beer in the UK and the US, its new line featured Sidel’s latest innovation: the Evofill glass filler, with its cuttingedge technology and hygienic, nobase design. PETplanet: What are your main targets and challenges as Sidel’s new VP for food, home and personal care? Pascal Lefèvre: FHPC markets are large and fragmented but are steadily growing, despite the current shortage crisis. Sidel can provide innovative solutions that offer the flexibility, operability and product care demanded by these fast-moving and rapidly evolving market segments, while drawing on existing capability and expertise. We are looking to triple this key part of our business by 2030. PETplanet: What is the main strategic approach to fulfil this target of tripling the FHPC business segment by 2030 and how will it be achieved? Pascal Lefèvre: By establishing this new initiative, we can work flexibly and be much more agile. We are developing a new portfolio of machines and solutions that addresses the needs of the FHPC sectors. It is not only the high-speed machines but also our customers require mid-capacity equipment that reduces resource consumption and is flexible in any way. PETplanet: How important is the topic of sustainability in the FHPC sector for you personally and what needs to be done here globally from your very own point of view? Pascal Lefèvre: Sustainability is crucial in the FHPC sectors. We see that our customers require mid-capacity equipment that reduces resource consumption and is flexible. One product worth mentioning is Cermex Evopack, a secondary packaging unit. It reduces product repacking by managing those activities directly at the production line, thus cutting waste and energy consumption. Globally, more Sidel’s Global Vice President Pascal Lefèfvre Sidel is developing a new portfolio of machines and solutions that addresses the needs of the FHPC sectors. by Kay Barton
TOP TALK PETplanet Insider Vol. 23 No. 10/22 www.petpla.net 13 TOP TALK 13 focus needs to be placed on delivering sustainable and environmentally conscious products and packaging that will meet or exceed the standards of those currently available. PETplanet: How many employees work at Sidel overall? Pascal Lefèvre: 5,119 employees. (Source: Tetra Laval Annual Report 2021/2022) PETplanet: What is your current turnover overall? Pascal Lefèvre: 1.4 billion euros in net sales. (Source: Tetra Laval Annual Report 2021/2022) PETplanet: How many Sidel machines are roughly in use globally for this segment? Pascal Lefèvre: Around 15,000 machines have been sold globally to the FHPC segment. PETplanet: How has the company grown over the last years? Pascal Lefèvre: Growth has been consistent across recent years. Obviously, the pandemic was a shock to everyone but the ways in which we’ve developed, especially in CSD and aseptic markets, is a testament to the hard work of everyone at Sidel. PETplanet: Which markets are of specific interest for you at the moment and why? Pascal Lefèvre: We are committed to the FHPC segment’s transition to sustainable packaging solutions in response to growing consumer demand, ensuring that manufacturers can play their part in the journey to net-zero. The FHPC market is a vast and interesting one and I think longterm solutions are a priority in it. The markets related to hair care, liquid hand soap and home care are of specific interest to us, due to our expertise in designing and blowing bottles on our preferential heating blow moulding machines. The food market is also of great interest as this is where our packing and palletising solutions can handle most customer requests. (MKMXEP VEXMSREP TVSƤXEFPI ;LEX IPWI# SACMI.COM 300 4VIJSVQ MRWTIGXMSR ERH TVSGIWW IRLERGIQIRX MRGPYHIH DIGITAL (MKMXEP TVSGIWW GSRXVSP VIEGLIW TVIZMSYWP] YRXLMROEFPI PIZIPW STIRMRK YT XLI MRHYWXV] XS -S8 WGIREVMSW RATIONAL 7%'1- 4VIJSVQ :MWMSR 7]WXIQ MRGPYHIH JSV EHZERGIH GSQTVILIRWMZI TVSGIWW GSRXVSP PROFITABLE '330 TSWX GSSPMRK MRWMHI GSSPMRK W]WXIQ WLSVXIRW G]GPI XMQIW ERH PIEHW XS QSVI TVSƤXEFPI TVSHYGXMSR momic
TOP TALK PETplanet Insider Vol. 23 No. 10/22 www.petpla.net 14 PETplanet: Are customers interested more in complete lines or is it in specific machinery and equipment to be added to existing equipment? Pascal Lefèvre: In the food segment, in the edible oil business or sauce & dressing, our expertise mainly relies on delivering complete lines. In the HPC segments, most enquiries are for stand-alone equipment. PETplanet: What role does the sale of downstream equipment play in your planning? Pascal Lefèvre: End-of-Line equipment is key. It is the ‘backbone’ of our FHPC activity, with a growing need to bring agile and low energy consumption solutions. At Sidel we always plan for customer solutions that cover the complete production line process, right up to packaging and palletising products ready to be transported to supermarkets and wholesalers. By choosing Sidel, the customer has a one-stop shop for all their packaging needs, including downstream equipment such as packing, palletising and intralogistics systems. PETplanet: How has your business been affected by the global demand for rPET in containers? What changes in your equipment designs have been adopted as result? Pascal Lefèvre: Several aspects of recent legislation are driving beverage industry trends and there’s an increasing focus on sustainability. The European Single Use Plastics Directive (SUP), for example, impacts the circular economy of PET, defining the collection targets for PET beverage bottles to be at 77% in 2025 and 90% in 2029. It also requires increasing the share of rPET in beverage bottles, up to 25% by 2025 and 30% by 2030. We are witnessing the impact of the consumer’s lifestyle on the industry. On-the-go consumption and healthy living trends are continuously increasing and they are forcing the beverage industry to downsize bottle formats in some beverage categories, like carbonated soft drinks (CSD) and aseptic. On the food, home and personal care side, we face a growing demand to use rPET and our expertise in this field supports our customers in reaching their own sustainability targets. PETplanet: What is the market demand in terms of PET packaging for FHPC from your point of view and do you expect any changes, such as sustainability ambitions driven by brand owners? Pascal Lefèvre: The FHPC markets have different challenges. They are large but also very fragmented and growing constantly. The rapidly increasing importance of e-commerce reduces the accuracy of sales forecasts and puts pressure on margins and consequently has a strong impact on manufacturing. Consumers demand personalised products in terms of health and convenience at affordable prices. All this, together with sustainability and digitalisation requires new thinking at every level. Furthermore, bottle weight reduction is a strong demand, in order to reduce the amount of plastic tonnage consumed while maintaining the required mechanical constraints of the container. PETplanet: Which differences in packaging and demands can you observe when you compare this segment with the beverage segment? Pascal Lefèvre: In the FHPC markets, production lines are smaller than in beverages but much more agile and flexible. With the SKU proliferation generated by e-commerce, our customers need to change formats very often, and they need to do so quickly and efficiently. We also see a change in the case counts; customers are going to both lower and higher case counts, in order to cater for the needs of increased personalisation. PETplanet: What challenges, changes, and opportunities for Sidel have resulted from the Covid-19 situation? Pascal Lefèvre: Covid-19 has led to shortages in components, notably semi-conductors, and that has had an impact on the global packaging industry, impacting lead times and forcing costs up. As mentioned earlier, e-commerce has grown rapidly during the pandemic and this has led to less certainty in sales forecasts for manufacturing. However, we are experiencing strong demand for our products and services and are working to refresh and renew our face-to-face contact with customers. The pandemic and its causes have raised consumer concerns about food safety. To address these, we believe that food and beverage manufacturers are likely to pay more attention to food safety and traceability in every step of production. That can be reached by upgrading their existing solutions or by investing in equipment that is in compliance with regional, global and European food safety standards. PETplanet: Are there any defined investments/purchases that will align with the target for trebling FHPC by 2030? Pascal Lefèvre: Internal capabilities will be a core investment for Sidel and will include the utilisation of a comprehensive range of blowers and end-of-line solutions, including packers and palletisers, for any type of primary and secondary packaging. Sidel also offers complete or partial integrated lines in categories like edible oil, sauces & dressing, coffee and more. Nevertheless, we do not exclude the possibility of working on partnerships or acquisitions in order to cover the food, home and personal care markets we have selected. www.sidel.com
MATERIALS / RECYCLING PETplanet Insider Vol. 23 No. 10/22 www.petpla.net 15 Enzyme discovered in human saliva microbes could be used to decompose PET-based plastics New PET hydrolase Researchers in Thailand have discovered that an enzyme found in human saliva has the capacity to decompose certain forms of PET. Chayasith Uttamapinant, from the Vidyasirimedhi Institute of Science and Technology (Vistec) in Rayong, Thailand, and Worawan Bhanthumnavin, from Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand, and their teams and colleagues, investigated whether humans, who consume vast amounts of food and beverages that have been packaged in PET, may have evolved the ability to digest microplastics. Landfill sites and harbours have already been found to be promising sites for finding bacteria that have adapted to consume or make use of plastics. The candidate bacteria have evolved enzymes, known as PET hydrolases, which can break PET down into smaller molecules. The teams did not discover any PET-digesting ability in the human gut but they did find a new hydrolase, which they named MG8, while searching a public metagenome database that contains samples from seawater and human saliva. The teams were able to attribute the likely source of the enzyme to gram-negative bacteria that may reside in human saliva. These bacteria are similar to strains found near the “Pacific trash vortex”, which have also evolved to produce PET hydrolases. Their paper, published in the journal Angewandte Chemie, reports that this newly discovered hydrolase performs better than many other known bacterial PET hydrolases. It can be produced using biotechnological methods and could be put to use in plastic recycling or for functionalising plastics. In their quest for enough material to perform their experiments, the teams modified a bacterium that can be cultured in laboratories to produce the enzyme. They easily recovered an active form of the MG8 enzyme from a denatured form, which can be isolated in large amounts. This discovery indicates a high level of potential for scaling up in the future. The team discovered that MG8 can not only decompose PET with ease but, with a small modification, it can also bind to it, highly effectively. They achieved this by modifying the protein sequence, replacing one of the naturally occurring amino acids (serine) at the active site with an unnatural amino acid: DAP (diaminopimelic acid). DAP is a characteristic of cell walls of some bacteria; it is often found in the peptide linkages of NAM-NAG (amino sugars present in the peptidoglycan layer of bacteria) chains that make up the cell wall of gram-negative bacteria. The modified enzyme was found to immediately adhere to PET powder. The report paper suggests that, in this form, it could be used as a vehicle for functionalising PET surfaces, increasing its versatility in medical devices and enhancing the versatility of rPET. While it looks promising, MG8 is still at an early stage of development. Consumer-grade PET plastics with high crystallinity cannot be decomposed by it yet, for example. Further research will be necessary to reach the stage where a whole plastic water bottle can be dissolved in a simple solution containing the enzyme. Dr Chayasith Uttamapinant is a lecturer in the School of Biomolecular Science & Engineering, Vidyasirimedhi Institute of Science and Technology (VISTEC), Rayong, Thailand. The Uttamapinant group develops chemical biology technologies to study proteoforms and local translation, bioremediation tools, and open-source molecular diagnostic platforms. Dr Worawan Bhanthumnavin is an Associate Professor at the Chemistry Department of Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand. Her lab has broad interests in synthetic methodological development for bioactive compounds, fluorescent probes and sensors, as well as biological applications of these synthetic molecules. The research paper was published in Angewandte Chemie. The full article can be found at: Discovery and Genetic Code Expansion of a Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) Hydrolase from the Human Saliva Metagenome for the Degradation and Bio-Functionalization of PET. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com Some additional information was found and included in this article by Ruari McCallion, PETplanet Insider Editor-at-large. The hydrolase can be produced using biotechnological methods and could be put to use in plastic recycling or for functionalising plastics (source: Wiley-VCH, ‘Angewandte Chemie’). MATERIALS
MATERIALS / RECYCLING PETplanet Insider Vol. 23 No. 10/22 www.petpla.net 16 Clay-based additive triples gas barrier properties and boosts strength & UV resistance Improved characteristics US-based startup Berkm reports encouraging test results with no impact on recyclability or transparency and seeks additional funding for scale-up. Berkm Inc, which is based in the Boston, Massachusetts, area of the USA, is an advanced materials startup company that is working on commercialising a new type of clay-based additive for the PET plastic industry. It has secured exclusive licensing for technology developed from 25 years of research at Professor Tsung Yen Tsai’s laboratory at Chung Yuan Christian University, Taiwan. Berkm says that the additive offers a number of potential advantages for PET packaging manufacturers, especially in the food and beverage sectors. It is claimed to enable the practical and commercial production of small (100-200ml) CSD bottles, while reducing the amount of plastic per PET container, leading to savings in raw materials costs. The company further maintains that costs can also be saved in pretreatment for hot-fill applications; reduction or elimination of UV blockers; and that the qualities of recycled PET can also be improved. The particular characteristics of PET that have been shown to be improved during testing are: strength (increased by 66%); distortion caused by heat (37%); gas barrier properties (increased by a factor of 29); and UV resistance (up by a factor of 52). These improvements are claimed to be achieved while maintaining current levels of transparency. The latest round of testing, undertaken by third-party agencies, demonstrated that CSD bottles made with Berkm’s clay-based additive showed a tripling of gas barrier properties, compared with conventional PET, at a loading of 0.3%. Barrier properties can be further increased without compromising transparency, up to 1.2% loading. Berkm claims, in addition, that the improved characteristics are achieved not only without harming recyclability but can actually help bottle-to-bottle recycling when added during in-situ PET polymerisation. It can also be added during mechanical recycling and still improve gas barrier performance and strength, by 37% and 25%, respectively. Industrial scale-up trials were completed in May 2022. The platform technology can be applied to improve the CO2 barrier and O2 barrier properties and does not need different chemistries for different gases. Clay particles in the additive create a tortuous path for gas to travel. In December 2021, Berkm filed a new patent that extended its technology to polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP). Several paid pilot projects are currently being undertaken with a range of brand owners and packaging companies. Berkm is now engaged in fundraising to expand production capacity and engage partners for scale-up. www.berkm.co PET bottles (hazy ones) made via conventional clay technologies and bottles made via Berkm’s technology (transparent one on the right). TEM image of clay layers in PET polymer matrix. The image shows a high degree of exfoliation of clay layers. Clear PET bottles made via Berkm’s clay technology MATERIALS
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MATERIALS / RECYCLING PETplanet Insider Vol. 23 No. 10/22 www.petpla.net 18 Masterbatch for hot fi ll packaging No compromise on processability A lot of food and beverage products require a long shelf life, so they require filling at high temperatures to remove harmful bacteria or microorganisms which might damage or interact with the product. Normally the hot filling temperatures range from 80 °C up to 90 °C, depending on the specific product. A special masterbatch has been developed to increase the crystallinity of PET without compromising its processability resulting in a considerable increase in thermal and oxygen barrier properties. Hot fill for PET bottles presents many challenges, starting from the thermal resistance of the material itself, to the resistance to implosion to avoid deformation and to the oxygen barrier properties to ensure a longer shelf life. The current hot fill technology available on the market use hot moulds at 140-160 °C. It is feasible with special blow moulding machines that have a specific blowing system capable of blowing through perforated stretching rods and systems of special valves that allow the recirculation of air to lower the temperature of the containers below 100 °C, with an increase in the cycle time. “This technology can be very effective but often it is not easy to have a high enough output of bottles, let’s say in excess of 5 million, to justify the investment in a dedicated special ISBM or SBM machine,” explains Giovanni Sonzogni, CEO and Innovation Director of GS4Plastic. “In addition, it is often necessary to use special hot fill PET grades with a high Tg, in order to guarantee a high thermal resistance, and this further increases the cost of the final packaging,” he concluded. The Italian start-up GS4Plastic SB detected the need for a process that allows the production of a hot fill packaging with a high thermal MATERIALS resistance and a good barrier property against O2 that can be obtained simply, cheaply and with low cycle times. GS4Plastic patented a special masterbatch called FastPET, that is claimed to increase the crystallinity of PET without compromising its processability; this results in an increase in thermal and oxygen barrier properties. It is possible to use FastPET for the production of hot fill bottles in single stage stretch blow moulding (ISBM) without the need to use special hot mould technologies. FastPET is added to PET or rPET in the feeding of the extruder together with other additives, such as pigments or others, says GS4Plastic. The recommended dosing percentage is lower than 1% in weight. Thus the bottles made with this special masterbatch are 100% recyclable in the existing PET supply chain. With FastPET it is possible to make a monolayer container resist up to 88 °C, thus making it suitable for the hot fill process without either the use of special PET or expensive technologies, says the company. Increased shelf life by up to 12 months With the additive, it is possible to increase the barrier properties, and consequently the shelf life of the products by up to 12 months, states GS4Plastic. The increase must be evaluated based on the type of product and on the design of the preform/ bottle. ISBM tests with 3 or 4 stations, have been carried out, and in addition to confirming the increase in properties, a surprisingly significant reduction in the cycle time has been found. As an example, the start-up tested an 18 g bottle produced on a 4 station machine with a mould cooled to 13 °C with a cycle time of 17.5 s. It was found that with the masterbatch it was possible to achieve a cycle time of 15.5 s. The only disadvantage is the loss of transparency of the bottle. The masterbatch acts on the crystallinity of PET, and a slight loss of optical properties is therefore to be expected. The patented masterbatch called FastPET is claimed to increase the crystallinity of PET without compromising its processability.
MATERIALS / RECYCLING 19 PETplanet Insider Vol. 23 Clearly it is possible to colour the bottle, thus masking the effect of the masterbatch. (Fig. 2) The additive is potentially a suitable and efficient alternative solution to the heat set technology, for food and aerosol application. In addition, FastPET could be used for the production of refillable and returnable PET bottles, because they can be washed safely in any dishwasher. To conclude, the main advantages given by the additive according to GS4Plastic are: Suitable for usage with 100% rPET Increase in the oxygen barrier properties, so to achieve a shelf life of up to 12 months Increase the thermal properties of PET up to 88 °C (dishwasher safe) Reduced investments in machinery and mould for hot fill Reduction of cycle time Food grade approved. www.gs4plastic.com Fig 2 The masterbatch acts on the crystallinity of PET, and a slight loss of optical properties is therefore to be expected. It is possible to colour the bottle, thus masking the effect of the masterbatch.
EDITOUR PETplanet Insider Vol. 23 No. 10/22 www.petpla.net 20 Additive and colour masterbatches from Switzerland Product quality, shelf life and food safety for PET by Kay Barton When it comes to the use of masterbatches and additives in the production of PET containers, all roads eventually lead to the family-run company Sukano AG. The global specialist with its main office in Schindellegi, around 30 minutes south of Zurich, has been manufacturing these products for use in a range of sectors and applications since the business was first established at the end of the 1980s. In terms of revenue, about two-thirds of the products end up in the packaging sector and approximately 80% in food applications. The company has a global presence employing 200 staff and claims not to have lost any of its trailblazing spirit. CEO Norman Egger took the time to speak to PETplanet about demand for packaging solutions, including recycling and sustainability. Interview with Sukano AG 9 August 2022 We met: Mr Norman Egger, CEO Local to global Founded in 1988, Sukano specialises in slip and anti-block additive masterbatches for PET film applications which are still among today’s bestsellers. “Sustainable business models and innovative products while at the same time working closely with our customers have always been our focus”, said Mr Egger, CEO since 2017, as we began our interview. A local business later became a global one with the addition of two company sites established over the years in order to be as close as possible to the customer. The Malaysian facility focuses on clients in the Asia-Pacific region, with the US plant in South Carolina concentrating on American markets. Mr Egger explains the strategy. “With our set-up on three continents, we can offer a flexible service on a regional level. For example, we can develop products in one place and manufacture them anywhere.” Product portfolio and latest developments As well as an extensive and standard portfolio ranging from colours to special additives, the manufacturer also offers customised projects and product developments to meet customers specific requirements or to address market trends for PET bottles and trays as well as other end applications in market segments such as durable goods, building and construction or healthcare applications. “Recycling and circularity are particularly important for us,” said Mr Egger. “All our PET masterbatches are designed to be recycled while some may also be reused. Our products allow the use of both recycled material and increased recyclate in processing and subsequent end use. We also support our customers in moving from complex packaging designs to monomaterial packaging”. “Applications where our additive and colour masterbatches are found include dairy, water, and carbonated soft drinks PET bottles be that transparent or opaque containers. We offer a complete rPET portfolio. From colours, which are designed for detectability, light barriers to protect the content, or additives to improve and recover the mechanical properties of the polymer. Our chain extender additive enables the use of a variable quality range of rPET and allows higher rPET content in the final part.” Just to name a few functionalities the company offers, as well processing aids, light protection additives, impact modifiers or combi masterbatches. The “CPET light” project launched last year with the company Illig showed where the food packaging sector is heading. Specially developed additives produced by Sukano, together with temperature control and a modified mould for material processing prepared by Illig, have enabled thermo-formed containers for use in microwaves and for hot filling that are heat-resistant up to 100 °C to be successfully produced. Traditional market materials such as polypropylene or other materials could face competition in this area and, according to Tour Sponsors: Sukano’s CEO Norman Egger
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