Pioneering biodegradable tubes Emballator Tectubes

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Emballator Tectubes is a privately owned company that is a market leader in the development and manufacture of biodegradable and aluminium tubes. For more than 100 years the company has been seeing consistent growth thanks to its dedication to innovation and environmental protection. This clear focus has resulted in its becoming a world leader in the development and design of bio-materials technologies. Philip Yorke reports.

With two state-of-the-art factories located in Sweden, along with an extensive R&D department, Emballator Tectubes has been able to not only develop ground-breaking materials technologies, but also increase its geographic reach. Export sales to its traditional markets such as Europe and the US have stayed strong, whilst its ventures into new and emerging markets have helped to significantly broaden its export sales worldwide. Its activities in China, Asia and the Pacific Rim countries have boosted sales to around €60 million. In 2017 the company produced more than 500 million tubes for manufacturing industries worldwide.

New niche markets

At Tectubes, the strategy is to continue to drive sales through the development of innovative products for niche markets worldwide. The company is also increasing its presence in many of its non-traditional market sectors such as pharmaceuticals, food and growing personal care markets, where extruded plastic products continue to dominate. Underscoring this trend is its recent launch of the world’s first biodegradable toothpaste tube, using resins that are made from renewable sources.

Today the company’s standard range of tubes is divided into four distinct categories: aluminium, extruded plastic, injection moulded plastic, and IML (in-mould labelling). The company continues to invest heavily in its development of what it describes as ‘Green Tubes’, both in its use of biodegradable materials as well as those made of resins from renewable sources.

Fully customised solutions

Thanks to its commitment to operating under the highest levels of hygiene and unrivalled engineering, Tectubes has become Europe’s largest supplier of tubes to the pharmaceutical industry and is an approved supplier to some of the biggest healthcare companies in the world. One of its biggest advantages is the breadth of products that are specially designed to meet its clients’ specific, individual needs. For example, if a product is sensitive to light, oxygen or other external influences, innovative new packaging can be tailor-made to meet the tight specifications, thereby finding the optimal, flexible logistical solutions to perfectly fit each client’s requirements.

When it comes to household chemicals, it is important to Tectubes that the packaging is ideally suited for the intended use. For example,

the special requirements may involve preventing the contents of the tube from coming into contact with other substances. For both extruded and aluminium tubes, the company can offer its customers barrier properties that are able to cope easily with more aggressive contents.

International regulations concerning the packaging of food products are equally stringent as those required by the pharmaceutical industry. A modern tube offers a very hygienic choice for food as it is always supplied with an open end, thus making it a time-efficient and hygienic process. Furthermore, all Tectube products are supplied with tamper-evident closures, which in turn minimises the risk of leakage, whilst increasing security for the end customer. In addition, with the latest multi-function tube, the customer can squeeze the packaging and determine for themselves the thickness of the sauce or mayonnaise strip that they prefer.

Dedicated support

Through the company’s extensive experience in tube technology and its broad network of customer support agencies, it is capable of providing exceptional back-up throughout any production process. This can range from helping customers with the design and appearance of the tube, to finding the best equipment with which to fill the tubes.

Tectubes keeps a close eye on consumer trends and constantly adjusts its range to suit the latest market demands. With its highly skilled technical development department and sales team with a solid understanding of the latest tube technologies, it can offer the customer an infinite range of tailor-made customer services. At Tectubes, the company supplies not only the optimal packaging solution, but also a total package service.

For further details of Emballatior Tectubes’ latest innovative products and broad range of customer services visit: www.tectubes.com