Kodak enters the waterwashable plate market and sells its flexo division
Performance Advantages of Aliphatic Polyketone in Flexible Films
“Assistance system are becoming the key factors to success�
Will 2019 be another tumultuous year for the North American polyester industry?
On Top of the Game 1
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Due to its high permeation resistance, unique balance of strength and ductility along with excellent chemical and sterilization resistance, aliphatic polyketone resins offer film producers a cost effective alternative to other thermoplastics.
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BASF is breaking new ground in plastic waste recycling with its ChemCycling project. Chemical recycling provides an innovative way to reutilize plastic waste that is currently not recycled, such as mixed or uncleaned plastics.
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“With shorter jobs and more job changes assistance system are becoming the key factors to success”
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Mid of October, Kodak’s Flexographic Packaging Division invited a few handpicked journalists to attend their VIP Flexo Summit in order to discuss their latest products and developments as well as the new Flexcel NX Ultra solution that produces fast, clean, and efficient water washable flexo plates.
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In 2018, the North American polyester and upstream intermediates markets experienced major changes. Various plant outages tightened up the supply/demand balances, ownerships changed, PET resin pricing power shifted to producers, new fibre capacity was announced, and China's waste ban was implemented.
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Without a doubt, A Hatzopolous is one of the biggest names in gravure printing throughout Europe. For years, they have been winning awards left, right and center. Flexible Packaging Technologies met up with Ovi Serb, Technical Director of A. Hatzopolous S.A., to learn more about what gives them the edge.
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Plastic Waste Has a Chance
Every year, Britain’s Royal Statistical Society crowns an international statistic of the year. This year, they chose “90.5%,” which is the staggering amount of plastic waste that hasn’t yet been recycled on this planet. This number stems from a report on the work of California-based scientists. While the topic itself is nothing new and has been the subject of many (often biased) documentation and articles, this number is far greater than most experts from the so-called first world countries could have possibly estimated. While there are functioning recycling systems in place in most developed countries, even their recycling rates are not as high as one could hope. For instance, Germany recycles 66%, Wales 64% and Singapore 61% of its plastic waste. According to a report from Eunomia, these are the top three countries when it comes to recycling. The top 25 countries are all in Europe and Asia as well as Australia. We, from the packaging industry, are often viewed at as the “bad guys” and “the root of all evil.” While the environmental advantages of plastic packaging have been discussed at length and should be known to everybody with an open mind, my question is rather what can be done to improve the situation in general? Currently, I am in South America. From what I can tell here, there isn’t really a serious recycling system in place. Trash is simply collected in one large bin. While we could wait for governments to come up with solutions, I wonder if there are private companies that have identified the issue and are able to generate a profit from doing something good. If anyone among you knows of any entrepreneurs who have already started a business to turn waste into profit and, therefore, not only helped the planet but also created jobs, I would love to interview this person. In my last editorial, I mentioned that we will move to Canada. I can now confirm that this has happened—the company has been fully registered and the bank account has been approved. As of now, the company is fully functional.
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Performance Advantages of Aliphatic Polyketone Resins in Flexible Film Packaging Due to its high permeation resistance, unique balance of strength and ductility along with excellent chemical and sterilization resistance, aliphatic polyketone resins offer film producers a cost effective alternative to other thermoplastics commonly used to produce flexible packaging. Moreover, Esprix Technologies has developed and commercialized a proprietary tie layer resin technology which will allow the flexible packaging community to use Ketoprix™ polyketone resins to tailor the properties of their multilayer structures to achieve previously unattainable combinations of mechanical and economic performance. Films produced from Ketoprix™ polyketone resin exhibits high permeability resistance to many gases as well as low moisture vapor transport properties. Moreover, the permeability of Ketoprix™ is not sensitive to ambient moisture (relative humidity) levels as is the case with some other thermoplastics commonly used in flexible packaging films. For example, oxygen permea-
bility of EVOH (32% mol PE content) increases from approximately 0.2 at 65% RH to 2.0 cc-mil/100 in2 24 hr-atm at 90% RH. As can be seen in the Resin
OTR cc-mil/100 in2day-atm 65% RH
EK611
1.75
EKF621
1.65
EKF631
1.42
EVOH2
3.2
PA6 (oriented)
2.5-3.0
Table 1 below, the oxygen permeability of Ketoprix™ polyketone resins exhibit an oxygen transmission rate superior to that of 48 mol% PE content EVOH and type 6 polyamide in high humidity conditions. It should be noted here that being drawn, or oriented, during the film production process is known to decrease permeability (improve)
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with crystalline resins. Considering that the Ketoprix™ films used to generate these data were not oriented, these values do not represent the best possible results achievable with Ketoprix™ aliphatic polyketone resins. Depending upon the intended end use applica-
tion, a materials’ permeation resistance to other common gases can be important as well. Permeation resistance to hydrogen, carbon monoxide and methane gases are of particular interest. As can be seen from the graphs below, films produced from Ketoprix™ aliphatic polyketone
resins also offer excellent performance in this regard as well. Water vapor transport is another material characteristic important to the flexible packaging market where Ketoprix™ resins offer excellent performance. As can be seen from the data in Table 2 below, the water vapor transmission rate of Ketoprix™ polyketone resins are similar to that of EVOH and superior to
polymers is that as strength increases, ductility (practical toughness or impact resistance) decreases. Ketoprix™ aliphatic polyketone resins are an exception to this rule of thumb in that they exhibit both high strength and high ductility, or toughness. Two of the best
that of films produced from oriented type 6 polyamide resins. One of the basic tenets measures of a materiof physical properties in al’s ductility are the
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elongation at yield and elongation at break values. On an intuitive level, these properties define how much deformation the material can
That said, as can be seen from the data below when compared on an “apples to apples” basis with typical EVOH and Polyamide film resins, Ketoprix™ resins exhibit significantly greater ductility, as measured by tensile elongation, than do these other resins. While the high tensile elongation at yield and break values exhibited by aliphatic polyketone sustain before there is resins are important permanent/ KetoEVO Barex unrecoverable damage Solvent prix™ ™ H 767 Alco(yield), and how much Ethyl 112% 60% hol % deformation is required Ethylene 676 118% 114% % to produce complete Glycol 35 Isopropyl 112% 180% failure (break). For film Alcohol % 94 applications, this trans- Benzene 108% 108% % lates into excellent Toluene 24 97% 108% % puncture and flex/crack 74 110% 123% performance. Unrein- Xylene % forced aliphatic D-Limonene 101% 85 188% % polyketone resins ex- Acetone 41 370% 105% % hibit tensile elongation Methyl 35 Ke375% 108% values of 25% (@yield) Ethyl % tone and ≥ 250% (@break). Methyl 35 101% 245% % It is worth noting that Isobutyl Ketone orientation during the film production process performance adwill produce much high- vantages, what makes er elongation values these characteristics than those exhibited by truly unique is that, as injection molded test shown in Table 3 Ketospecimens, such as prix™ polyketone resins those that were used to also exhibit high generate these values. strength values. It is
this combination of strength and ductility/ toughness which translates to a resin that offers a truly unique mechanical performance in flexible packaging applications. In field use, virtually every film will come into contact with one or more reagents that may have a deleterious effect on the properties of the film. Logically enough then, one of the most important considerations when choosing a material for any given application is a material’s resistance to attack by the chemicals with which it may come into contact during use. This is another area where the inherent properties of aliphatic S a m p le C o n t r o l E x p o s e d
Tensile Strength, psi
Tensile Elongation @ yield, %
8,294
25
8,294
23
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polyketone resin offer a significant advantage in film applications as polyketone exhibits re-
common classes of ingly then, retained chemicals to which Ke- tensile elongation valtoprix™ polyketone resins are resistant to attack by include: Aliphatic & Aromatic Hydrocarbons
sistance to attack by a broad range of reagents in a wide range of conKetones, Esters & ditions. Ethers There are two mechaInorganic Salt Solunisms by which a chemtions ical attack occurs in Weak Acids & Bases polymers: solvation and When a polymer experichemical reaction. Due ences chemical attack in large part to their di-
polar (electrochemically neutral) semi-crystalline morphology, aliphatic polyketone resins are resistant to attack by both of these mechanisms in a wide range of chemical environments. Among the
this is typically first manifested in surface crazing, embrittlement or plasticization. While crazing is difficult to quantify in a meaningful way, embrittlement and plasticization (solvation) are manifested in the tensile elongation at break value. Accord-
ues following immersion in reagents of interest for an extended period of time provides insight into the effects these chemicals have on any particular resin. In Table 4 below, retained tensile elongation values are provided for Ketoprix™ polyketone, and EVOH and Barex™ resins after 60 day immersions in various chemicals at 23 C. As this data clearly illustrates none of these chemicals had any significant effect on the tensile elongation of aliphatic polyketone resin while both the EVOH and Barex™ resins showed significant effects from some of these exposures. Any film which will be used to produce either a medical fluids bag or to seal a medical device package will necessarily
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be exposed to some form of sterilization or disinfection. Just as the molecular structure of Ketoprix™ conveys excellent chemical resistance to the resin, it also results in a material that is virtually impervious to all common forms of sterilization and disinfection including quarternary ammonium disinfectants. This is reflected in the
graphs below which provide retained tensile strength and elongation values for aliphatic polyketone resin after exposure to multiple cycles of autoclave, irradiation and steam sterilization. As noted above, disinfection typically utilizes a quarternary ammonium compound that will attack many thermoplastic resins. However,
as is shown in Table 5 below there was no loss of tensile strength with Ketoprix™ polyketone resin exposed to a 10% aqueous solution of ammonium hydroxide for 100 days at room temperature. It should be noted that 10% is a much higher concentration than is typically recommended or used with disinfectants and the exposure is much more severe than what would be experienced during cleaning. For example, one particular such disinfectant often used in medical facilities recommends a dilution rate of 1:256. Most films used in flexible packaging applications are multi-layer structures utilizing a combination of barrier and tie layer resins to achieve a particular combination of barrier properties. Polyethylene is one of the resins most commonly used in these films. Up until now, there have been no tie layer polymers effective in bonding aliphatic polyketone and polyolefins (PE,PP). However, this is no
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longer true as Esprix Technologies has developed and commercialized a family of proprietary tie layer resins that can achieve inter-ply adhesion as high as 50 pli when used to adhere a Ketoprix™ polyketone film to a polyethylene film. There are also grades available for coextrusion of polyketone and polypropylene structures as well. As a result of this breakthrough development, it is now feasible to produce a wide range of multi-layer structures utilizing Ketoprix™ resins. This development now allows designers to tailor the barrier and mechanical properties of their packaging designs in ways that were previously not possible. This new tie layer resin is available for evaluations and is only available from Esprix Technologies. To summarize, aliphatic polyketone resins from Esprix Technologies provide the film producer and packaging design community a unique combination of barrier and mechanical properties along with excellent
chemical and sterilization resistance. Furthermore, there now exists a new proprietary tie layer resin developed by Esprix Technologies that enables flexible packaging applications to achieve previously unattainable mechanical and economic performance.
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Products with chemically recycled plastics BASF is breaking new ground in plastic waste recycling with its ChemCycling project. Chemical recycling provides an innovative way to reutilize plastic waste that is currently not recycled, such as mixed or uncleaned plastics. Depending on the region, such waste is usually sent to landfill or burned with energy recovery. But chemical recycling offers another alternative: Using thermochemical processes, these plastics can be utilized to produce syngas or oils. The resulting recycled raw materials can be used as inputs in BASF’s production, thereby partially replacing fossil resources.
BASF has for the first time manufactured products based on chemically recycled
plastic waste and is thus one of the global pioneers in the industry. “A responsible use of
plastics is crucial to solve the world’s waste problem. This applies to companies as well as to institutions and consumers. With chemical recycling we want to make a significant contribution in reducing the amount of plastic waste,” said Dr. Martin Brudermüller, Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of BASF SE. “With our ChemCycling project, we are using
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plastic waste as a resource. In this way, we create value for the environment, society and the economy. We have joined forces with partners throughout the value chain to establish a working circular model,” said Brudermüller. BASF is collaborating closely with its customers and partners, which range from waste management companies to technology providers and packaging producers, to build a circular value chain.
tion panels, with 10 customers from various industries. Manufacturing products that meet high quality and hygiene standards – which are specifically required for food packaging for example – is possible because the ChemCycling products supplied by BASF have exactly the same properties as products made from fossil resources. Stefan Gräter, head of the ChemCycling project at BASF, sees great potential: “This new way of recycling offers opporFrom waste to tunities for innovative cheese packaging business models for us and fridge compoand our customers, who nents already place great valBASF is already devel- ue on products and oping pilot products, in- packaging made from cluding mozzarella recycled materials but packaging, refrigerator who cannot or do not components and insula- want to make any com-
promises when it comes to quality.” As a next step, BASF plans to make the first products from the ChemCycling project commercially available. BASF Verbund offers ideal conditions for ChemCycling
At the beginning of the production chain, BASF feeds oil derived from plastic waste by an oiling process into the Production Verbund. BASF gets this feedstock for the pilot products from the partner Recenso GmbH, Germany. As an alternative, syngas made from plastic waste can also be used. The first batch of this oil was fed into the steam cracker at BASF’s
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site in Ludwigshafen in October. The steam cracker is the starting point for Verbund production. It breaks down or “cracks” this raw material at temperatures of around 850 degrees Celsius. The primary outputs of the process are ethylene and propylene. These basic chemicals are used in the Verbund to make numerous chemical products. Under the mass balance approach, the share of recycled raw material can be mathematically allocated to the final certified product. Each customer can select the allocated percentage of recycled material.
tainability expert at BASF.
Technological and regulatory challenges However, technological and regulatory condiBoth the market and tions must be met besociety expect industry fore the project is marto come up with conket-ready. For one structive solutions to thing, the existing techdeal with plastic waste. nologies to transform Chemical recycling is an plastic waste into recyinnovative complement cled raw materials such to other recycling and as pyrolysis oil or synwaste management gas must be further deprocesses. “We need a veloped and adapted so wide range of recovery that consistently high options for plastic quality is assured. Furwaste, since not every thermore, regional regsolution is suitable for ulatory frameworks will each type of waste or considerably influence possible for each prodto what extent this apuct application. The first proach can be estabchoice should always be lished in each market. the solution that perFor example, it is esforms best in a life cycle sential that chemical reassessment,” explained cycling and the mass Andreas Kicherer, susbalance approach are recognized as contributing to the fulfillment of product and application-specific recycling targets. Responsible handling of plastic waste is crucial Plastics offer many benefits in technical applications, medicine and everyday life and they are often a better
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alternative to other materials. The challenge lies in responsibly managing post-consumer plastics. Functioning waste management systems and responsible consumer behavior with regard to plastics are crucial to solving problems such as pollution from plastic litter. To this end, BASF is involved in various projects at the association level and internationally. For example, the company is member of the World Plastics Council and participates in two programs of the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. Furthermore, BASF has implemented
Operation Clean SweepŽ, an international initiative of the plastics industry to prevent the loss of plastic pellets, flakes and powder in the environment. BASF’s new ChemCycling project is another milestone in the responsible use of resources and an example of how BASF is specifically addressing global challenges while also helping its customers to reach their goals.
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“With shorter jobs and more job changes assistance system are becoming the key factors to success” We met with Ulrich Harte, Division Manager Marketing Printing & Finishing at Windmöller & Hölscher to talk about trends and developments. Flexo, gravure, digital – do you have an overview of the different market shares for different technologies in the market of flexible packaging?
Regarding high quality printing machines in the flexible packaging market flexo and gravure machines still have by far the largest market share. They are distributed differently
throughout the world. For example, rotogravure presses are still strong in Asia, even if we see a growing interest in flexographic presses. Digital printing machines in the flexible packaging market are still below 1 % and thus nearly not existing. Regarding the market of flexible packaging W&H is one of the worldwide market leaders in flexible as well as gravure presses.
What market share will digital printing be able to gain in the coming years?
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Nobody can predict exact shares for digital printing in the market of flexible packaging in the future – there are too many factors impacting the market development. We are however sure, that digital will enter the market of flexible packaging as well. It will become an addition to the established and mature processes of flexographic and rotogravure printing. While digital printing has merits for individualization and shorter job lengths, flexo and gravure will continue to be the technology of choice when it comes to quality, security and ‒ most of all ‒ efficiency. Investments in flexo and gravure printing technology remain the
best choice, when looking for efficiency and quality – now and in the next years. There are many developments in digital printing. It will however take some time before digital printing in the field of flexible packaging is fully ready for the market. W&H just recently announced that our development project for a digital printing machine based on piezo inkjet technology reached the first milestone. In recent years, the demand for simple but also high-quality laminating systems has grown considerably. Do you see this as a market to which you will devote more
attention in the future? W&H already today offers an excellent portfolio for lamination systems for rotogravure and flexo presses. We are one of the pioneers, especially in solventfree laminating. In the area of lamination systems, we work together with trusted and longterm partners to offer the whole supply chain to our customers. Where do you see more possibilities to further support the printer with automated solutions? Assistance systems for the start-up of the press are well established in rotogravure
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and flexo printing, reducing downtime and waste. For example: Using an integrated approach with our EASY assistance systems setup times for the MIRAFLEX II are 50% shorter compared to commonly used flexo machines. This is especially important since the run lengths have been getting shorter and shorter over the last ten to fifteen years. This trend will continue, the number of job changes will increase further. That means, any time and cost savings for job changes will bring a high benefit and make the process more productive and economical.
Further automations alToday we mainly moni- so influence the tasks of tor the machine and as- the operators: Highly sist the operator– toqualified operators will morrow we will use have more time to optithese systems to cormize processes and rect the process autospend less time with matically in real time. minor fixes. Operators We have shown first with less expertise will steps with our VISION receive more support system, that detects from the machine, profaults and actively pro- ducing better results. It vides counter actions. is a win-win-situation. We always keep the economy of our solutions in the focus: Not Do you think that the every customer needs hardware or the conall automation modules. figuration of a printTherefore, we offer ing press will change modular solutions and significantly in the advise the customer next years? based on our extensive market and machine There have been signifiknow-how. cant advancements in technology and quality over the last years. At the same time the general, technological principle of CI flexo as well as rotogravure printing remained valid. The task is to look at further opportunities in a wellestablished technology – and there are many ways to do that. Innovations like assistance and automation systems are today key to success. Take the gravure printing press DYNASTAR for exam-
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ple: While the principle is still the same a new arrangement of the machine and a new integrated approach to the whole process makes it possible to do a job change-over in 50% less time. Based on proven technology we will continue to push further developments for flexo and gravure printing presses - making both technologies even more efficient.
Is there a language with which the machines can communicate with each other in order to be able to exchange orderspecific information?
ample between extrusion and printing lines via so called “Smart Rolls�. A common standard across manufacturers would be very helpful. We are in contact with our partners along the whole value As the only provider for chain to discuss it. extrusion, printing and converting we are very well equipped to push the topic of data exchange and integration along the whole value chain. We are providing first solutions, for ex-
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Kodak VIP Flexo Summit
Mid of October, Kodak’s Flexographic Packaging Division invited a few handpicked journalists to attend their VIP Flexo Summit in order to discuss their latest products and developments as well as the new Flexcel NX Ultra solution that produces fast, clean, and efficient water washable flexo plates. Kodak Flexo Business Through their partners, Strategy Kodak has been directly or indirectly involved in Kodak is a name that the sales of imaging needs no introduction in systems, software, conthe printing world. sumables and work-
flows as well as services to various industries. With its top-of-the-line R&D capabilities and a full portfolio of solutions for the packaging printing industry, Kodak has always worked toward helping their customers achieve sustainable growth, be it through increasing efficiency, reducing on-press wastage or offering environmentally conscious solutions. Over the years, the company has always had a special focus on flexo solutions, which makes up almost 90%
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of the printed label segment. The global packaging market is expected to grow by 4.1% CAGR between 2016 and 2020 when the market size is likely to hit $286 billion. Flexible packaging is expected to retain almost 25% of the packaging pie. Kodak has always been about “Transforming Flexo� through advancing new technologies, collaborating with customers and key stakeholders to drive the change toward greater profitability and growth. Kodak has worked with flexo printers to raise the industry standard through the use of unique technology and systemically enabling technology adoption on a global scale and in a short time span.
selected journalists to view the work carried out by Kodak in the field of flexo over the last 10 years, especially with their FLEXCEL NX platemaking system. The summit also introduced journalists to their new FLEXCEL NX Ultra, a VOC-free, water -wash plate system and even provided participants with an insight into the overall trends that are shaping the packaging industry.
sistency, accuracy and productivity. Payne also predicted that, as flexo continues to break new barriers, it will take a larger share of jobs from offset and gravure printers, which will enable the flexo industry to migrate from traditional capabilities to advanced capabilities, through improved best practices and process optimization.
To support this growth Chris Payne, President in flexo, Kodak will conof Kodak Flexographic tinue to invest in the Packaging Division, flexo R&D as well as ingave a very positive in- crease its flexo plate dication for the future production capacity. Acof flexo in the packag- cording to Payne, Kodak ing printing field. Acwill continue to play a cording to Payne, as key role in the transforbrands look for more mation of Flexo, by enefficiency and automa- suring that it increases tion in terms of packag- production capacities of ing capabilities, flexo its FLEXCEL NX and The Kodak VIP Summit, will play a key role in FLEXCEL NX Ultra plates held in Orlando, Florida making printing easier to meet the rising dein October 2018, was a and faster, resulting in mand in the future. great opportunity for improved levels of con-
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Flexcel NX Ultra System The original FLEXCEL NX system was first introduced at Drupa 2008 and even today it offers flexo customers the highest levels of efficiency, consistency and accuracy.
up with plates that could be processed with water—eliminating the need for VOCs—without compromising on the quality and productivity while increasing consistency.
(TIL), which is a legacy from the original plates, has made the Ultra plates the fastest digital flexo plates in the industry. The TIL uses a thin-layer coating on PET to allow a clean, crisp and consistent The new award-winning thermal ablation to FLEXCEL NX Ultra Solu- achieve the highest resEmma Schlotthauer, Di- tion continues the lega- olution mask. This revorector of Marketing and cy of the original syslutionary process elimiCommunications at Ko- tem and takes flexo nates all inconsistencies dak Flexographic Pack- plate making to new while image masking. aging Division, states levels. It consistently that the FLEXCEL sysoffers the highest levels But that’s not the only tem has helped flexo of quality and on-press revolutionary aspect of reach the highest levels productivity while althe TIL on the new Ulof quality, especially in lowing aqueous plate tra plates. According to terms of design freeprocessing. Payne, the TIL uses 3–4 dom. However, in order times less energy to imfor the technology to The key component of age than a regular grow further, it was the new system is the LAMS layer. necessary to evolve and new FLEXCEL NX Ultra overcome new challeng- plate. The unique Ther- Another common obseres. This meant coming mal Imaging Layer vation is that, in a normal plate processing environment, the routine build-up of debris in the platemaking system significantly undermines quality, consistency and productivity. To overcome this, Kodak’s Ultra Clean patent-pending technology uses natural-based, environmentallyresponsible additives to ensure long-lasting cleaning and mainte-
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nance of the plates with reclaimed water, reducing debris build-up. This further results in consistent plate quality and increased on-press productivity.
in 2019, but ahead of that Kodak has already installed the system in three beta sites in the US.
One of these sites is at the IGT plant in LakeWith the NX advantage, land Florida. IGT is one the system also ensures of the world’s leading 1:1 reproduction of a end-to-end gaming and digital file to consistently reproduce the fine patterns required for optimal ink transfer, which, in turn, allows cleaner, brighter colors and a wider color gamut. It also allows for faster set-up times, longer plate life, faster press speeds and overall maximum on-press efficiency.
lottery companies. IGT aims to provide the government-sanctioned gaming industry with trusted solutions for gaming, lottery, digital and social media, as well as for multiple channels including retail, web and mobile.
This improved efficiency means that the new platemaking system delivers more than 25 finished plates per 8-hour shift, to meet peak volume plate making demands. This is significantly more than any solvent-based system. IGT Beta Customer The first commerciallylaunched FLEXCEL NX Ultra system will be released in North America
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The IGT Lakeland plant is powered by the new FLEXCEL NX Ultra system, which is used to print one of their key specialty print applications: instant lottery scratch cards.
European private equity The press operators al- firm that invests in midso gave the NX Ultra sized businesses. They plates a thumbs up, have a varied portfolio thanks to their fast set- – but all their compaup times and overall nies command leading press efficiency. positions in attractive markets and can be deIGT ran over 750 scribed as businesses The pristine IGT plant games in 2018, which that would be ‘badly was part of a guided effectively means that missed’ if they did not tour for the journalists they printed over 8.5 exist. This environment at the Kodak Flexo billion standard scratch is clearly a great fit for Summit. The visiting card units. For this the flexo packaging team was given a brief massive print requirebusiness with its market look into how Kodak’s ment, they use a 22leading position in the new system has helped station Gallus printing package printing marIGT achieve their print- press as well as a Tresu ket. ing requirements while press. With the new NX meeting their environ- Ultra system, IGT can mental objectives. produce up to 25 clean, Q. How will the Kodak Flexo business operate consistent and pressunder Montagu? The switch from FLEX- ready plates in an 8CEL NX plates to the NX hour shift. This remark- A. Under the new ownership, the flexo packUltra plates was a turn- able rate of producing aging division will being point for IGT in their high-quality, solventgreen initiative. Rob An- free plates will help IGT come a completely sepderson, Director of Pro- cross their goal of 9 bil- arate company and will operate as a selfduction and Planning at lion units in 2019. contained standalone IGT says that having a water-washable plate, Interview with Chris business. That includes all of the operations, which did not rely on Payne, President, solvent-based cleaners, Flexographic Packag- such as R&D, Manufacturing, Sales, Service, was very appealing. The ing Division Vice IT and Finance. I will IGT team pointed out President, Eastman lead the new company that the upgrade was Kodak Company as its CEO and, imrelatively easy as it only portantly, the current required the processing flexo packaging leadercomponent to be reWhat makes Montagu placed in order to work and Kodak’s flexo busi- ship team, my team, will continue to manage with the new solventness a great fit? free plates. A. Montagu is a leading the business, including all the staff that work in
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the division today. Finally, we will sell the same Kodak branded flexo products, including our flagship KODAK FLEXCEL NX System, that our customers buy from us today. Q. What will the sale mean for Kodak’s FLEXCEL NX customers? A. For FLEXCEL NX customers there will be very little change. It’s the same product, the same people and the same brand. At a fundamental level, we have been changing the nature of flexo, transforming flexo for the last ten years, and we’ve been doing that in strong collaboration with all of our partners - including our customers. Our strength comes from our customers. We’ve a track record, and it’s really ingrained in what we do, of helping our customers to differentiate – and none of that will change. Under Montagu ownership, the Flexo packaging team will have the focus, agility and resources to maintain a
constant stream of innovation for our customers and continue the journey of growth and transforming Flexo into the premium print process of choice for packaging.
business that can drive more improvements whether that be in quality or production efficiency. As a standalone company we’ll have the agility to get even closer to our customers and innovate in more ways Q. How does this move as we move forward, benefit the flexo indus- and that’s really good try in general? for flexo as a printing A. If you look back at process in packaging. It the last ten years, Ko- means that flexo will no dak flexo packaging has doubt become the prebeen transforming the mium production methflexo industry. Flexo od for printed packagprinting used to be a ing and that’s great for very craft-based proour customers and it’s cess, and increasingly frankly really exciting! it’s becoming an automated manufacturing process. And that’s really good when you think about improving quality and production efficiencies that we’re driving to deliver packaging more effectively for all of our customers. In turn, that means that flexo is gaining share as a printing process versus gravure and offset and that’s good for everybody. And our journey has really only just begun. There are many things that we’re working on within our
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Will 2019 be another tumultuous year for the North American polyester industry? In 2018, the North American polyester and upstream intermediates markets experienced major changes. Various plant outages tightened up the supply/demand balances, ownerships changed, PET resin pricing power shifted to producers, new fibre capacity was announced, and China's waste ban was implemented. All of this occurred in an uncertain and shifting economic and trade environment of the Trump Administration. A collection of market events in 2018 were predictable but many were big surprises to the region's polyester chain. As we have seen in 2018, the North
American polyester industry is full of surprises. Can we say from today's perspective that 2019 will simply be a repeat of 2018, or are new changes on the
horizon? Below are the key issues to focus on for 2019. 1. PET resin capacity constraints There are no new PET resin capacity expan-
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sions expected to be added to the North American region in 2019. The Corpus Christi new PET resin plant is not expected to be operational until the second half of 2020 at the earliest, given the delays associated with the FTC review of the Corpus Christi Polymers 3-way JV. As a result, the regional PET resin supply/demand balance for 2019 and into 2020 is expected to stay very tight, with many of the same market dynamics that we have seen in 2018 repeated in 2019/2020. Global PET resin supplydemand balance from 2015 to 2022
of PTA capacity between North American and Europe in order to meet domestic PTA requirements. Is there enough PTA to go around? Find out when you attend Wood Mackenzie's 2019 Americas Polyester Conference in Hou-
ston from February 27 to February 28. Dr. Michael Bermish will be looking at the midterm outlook for North American PTA supply and demand. 3. Global surplus of MEG A global MEG surplus is
2. Tight PTA supply Along with a tight regional PET resin market, the region's PTA supply/demand balance is also expected to remain very tight in 2019 and into 2020. As this segment of the industry ages, unplanned outages are likely to occur, especially when the plants are running hard. We can expect to see some creative juggling
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projected for 2019 and a significant multimillion tonne surplus for beyond 2020. One million tonnes of new US MEG supply is to be added by Q1 2019 but only 27 kt of demand growth in 2019. The US adds another 1.6 million tonnes in 2019-2021 and a further 2 million tonnes after 2022. This is the beginning of an extended down cycle. Imports from Canada are likely to decline but US exports must increase. Swaps with the Middle East could reduce imports, saving duty, freight and storage MEG contracts will be more competitive reflecting export alternative values to China. 4. New polyester staple capacity In 2019, the North American region's polyester staple market is expected to see its first new capacity addition in many decades. There are two new capacity additions, one geared to the low-denier polyester staple market and one geared to the low-melt polyester staple market. These new capacity additions coupled with
new punitive antidumping duties and new high tariffs imposed on China (25% as of January 1, 2019) are expected to displace a significant portion of polyester staple imports. This has not been seen in many decades and could be the beginnings of a new paradigm for this segment of the polyester industry. 5. Regional RPET market changes As of January 1, 2018 China imposed an import waste ban which has effectively eliminated rPET baled bottle exports from the US to China. China has been, by far, the largest importer of rPET baled bottles from the US, primarily from the West Coast. Currently, there are no significant substitute destination available for rPET baled bottle exports. This action by China has significantly altered the US West Coast recycling market dynamics and this will persist through 2019 and beyond. On the East Coast, the rPET market is being impacted by a tight virgin PET
resin market, which has pushed many converters and thermoformers to look at the rPET market as an alternative and somewhat cheaper raw material. This will likely continue into 2019 and 2020 until additional capacity is added to the virgin PET resin market segment. 6. The overall regional economic outlook and the Trump administration In 2018, US economic growth accelerated, boosted by the Trump Administration's Tax Reform bill. With incomes growing and the unemployment rate currently sitting below 4%, consumers' discretionary spending on textiles/ apparel and singleserve beverages was strong in 2018. US economic growth is expected to slow in 2019 as the effects of the Tax Reform bill wanes, 'the Fed' continues its policy of normalising interest rates and the Trump tariffs begin to eat into global trade. This could be a constraining factor on consumer spending on polyester-related products next year.
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On Top of the Game Without a doubt, Hatzopoulos is one of the biggest names in flexible packaging printing in Europe. For many years, they have been winning awards left, right and center. Flexible Packaging Technologies met up with Ovidiu Serb, Technical Director of A. Hatzopoulos S.A. to learn more about what it is that gives them an edge. A. Hatzopoulos S.A. was started by Athanasios Hatzopoulos in 1931 as a paper bag manufacturing company. The
company entered the flexible packaging industry in 1981 and within ten years was established as one of
Greece’s leading flexible packaging solutions providers as well as a prominent exporter of packaging solutions to the rest of Europe. Since those days, the company has come a long way, and today has a turnover of over ₏69 million, with products being exported to over 30 countries worldwide.
As far as products go, Hatzopoulos offers a wide range of packaging solutions for various industries, including food, coffee & beverages, non-food packaging, promotional packaging
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and labels. The company has many innovations to its name, including laser-cut technology, patented by the company, which allows easy-tear capabilities to a wide range of packaging, ranging from sachets and sticks to stand-up pouches for coffee, snacks, juices, personal hygiene products and so on. Other innovations include reclosable lids on dairy and processed meat product packaging, a reclosable cold seal packaging application and even special types of lacquering including the ultimate paper look and soft-touch varnish. One of the biggest innovations that A. Hatzopoulos has introduced, however, is compostable laminate—a sustainable packaging option for different commonly-used products, including coffee, snacks and other dehydrated products. In addition to being suitable to most different packaging types and highspeed packaging machines, A. Hatzopoulos’
bio-design can be also printed in a wide range of colors to ensure shelf -appeal. Thanks to its high-barrier properties, the bio-degradable laminated film also ensures that the packaging can be hermetically sealed, making it both airtight and waterproof.
For A. Hatzopoulos, this foray into biodegradable and recyclable packaging was an essential step, given all the regulations for green packaging and the demand from multinational clients to reduce waste, without compromising quality. While it is important to reduce waste and the unnecessary use of plastic, according to Mr. Serb, food packaging generally gets a bad name due to the negative image associated with plastic. He points out that not everything about plastic is bad, since plastic also preserves food, and even extends its shelf life. The company hopes that, once biodegradable and recyclable solutions—like the
ones the company has been working on—catch on, things will be different. However, like every new innovation, it will be years before green packaging becomes mainstream for all producers. Production According to Mr. Serb, the company began its operations with flexo printing in the mid-’60s and ’70s. This included four and five color stack type machines. In the early ’80s, the company also made investments in gravure technology, with their first Rotogravure machine from Holweg (now DCM France). A decade later, one Andreotti-Rotostar machine followed and, in 2008, a modern Rotomec (now Bobst Italia) was added. However, as the business grew, the company began expanding its operations and production capabilities in the mid- to late-’90s, with a brand-new factory in Kalohori, Thessaloniki. Around the time of the mid-’90s, inspired by
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the new technological advancements in the flexo industry, the company also made a lot of investments in modern flexographic equipment for its new plant.
al principle of quality over cost, even when it came to the company’s other equipment, including slitters, laminating machines and so on. As a result, the company requires quotations only from reputable vendors. Mr. Serb also elaborates that, with investments of millions of euros in play, they leave nothing to chance. Before purchasing any equipment, the testing happens on material sent from A. Hatzopoulos, which includes plates/cylinders, tapes, inks and that, too, is in the presence of the company’s own personnel.
Following a good experience with Rotomec, the company decided to make that quality level its benchmark for all future machines the company installed. Quality was crucial to A. Hatzopoulos—even at a premium. According to Mr. Serb, a cheap machine—that is down more often than it is up and running—eventually turns out to be more expensive in the long run. A. Hatzopoulos followed this operation- The company is contin-
uously expanding its capacity, planning to install two brand-new presses operational by 2019: one Miraflex CM 10 flexo printing press from W&H and one 10 color RS 6003C HS rotogravure press from BOBST—both capable of high-speed printing up to 600 m/min.
Awards Hatzopoulos has won several accolades and awards for its innovations and commitment to providing customers with the highest levels of service and satisfaction. One of its most recent achievements was being awarded the high -profile award from the Greek Institute of Customer Service, for its excellence in customer service. The Greek company has also won several other international awards including: The 2017 Flexostar Gold Award awarded by the French Flexographic Association 2 Gold & 1 Silver
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Packaging & Converting School In 2016, A. Hatzopoulos organized the first Packaging and Converting School seminar series in Thessaloniki, The Worldstar 2018 Greece. The focus of by the World Packag- this initiative was to ing Organisation for bring together packagPower Gel Stick-Pack ing professionals from The “Performance all across Europe on a with Purpose” Award common platform, in – Jury’s Trophy pre- order to share sented by PEPSICO knowledge and inforFrance, for Excelmation that could help lence in Corporate the flexible packaging Social Responsibility industry do better in Activities the years to come. The second Packaging and Converting School Awards in the 2017 Packaging Innovation Awards for their “Bio Packaging Solution” and “Power Gel Stick Pack”
event was held recently and, once again, international participants from packaging industry got the opportunity to discover the latest flexible packaging innovations and understand packaging design trends that are driving the industry forward. Speakers at the event included industry experts from Flexible Packaging Europe, Nestle, The International Packaging Institute, National Flexible, Beetroot design agency and A. Hatzopoulos S.A.
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