Uflex received accolades and attention at the recently concluded Indiapack/pacprocess 2017 at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi. The huge Uflex stand with a number of new products drew good footfalls at the show. On display was the automatic linear pouch pick, fill and seal machine for packing ready-toeat products. The operation of the machine is simple—pick up the pouch, fill it with the desired product using a filling head and then seal it. Uniquely, the Uflex pick-fill-seal machine allows several ingredients to be filled in the same pouch. Uflex received many queries for the machine during the three-day show.
“Our machine on display is a horizontal filling and sealing machine. Multi-track machines and stick pack machines have gained a significant reputation globally but are not yet so prominent in the Indian market since new products take time to find their place in the market,” said Mukesh Mohan Agarwal, general manager – sales and marketing, Engineering Business, Uflex Limited.
Flexible packaging and sustainability
Anup Kansal, president at the Uflex flexible packaging business vertical, told us at the Uflex stand, “The packaging industry is becoming more fragmented with each passing day. Strategically, it would be a mistake to focus on what our competitors are doing. For us it would be far better to just focus even more on our customers’ needs.” Kansal added that sustainability poses a major challenge to the packaging industry and that Uflex pays particular emphasis on down-gauging, light-weighting and optimal utilization of eco-friendly materials. The packaging industry as a whole is quickly adapting to changes required and embracing various technological advancements.
With sustainability in mind, Uflex has developed low-ink GSM rotogravure cylinders for flexible packaging printers. These can help in reducing the manufacturing cost drastically. Conventional electro-mechanically engraved cylinders do not allow cell shapes to be changed, but a new laser cylinder engraving line allows customization of the cell structure with improved reproduction capabilities and reduced ink consumption by 18 to 25%. Sachin Dahake, deputy general manager of the Uflex cylinder business, was pleased by the response received for this new technology at the show from flexible packaging printers, “We have been receiving continuous enquiries from the very first day of the event. We had come to the event with high hopes and the crowd hasn’t let us down.”
A multi-layered, moisture-resistant BOPP cement sack called the FlexSafe bag shown by Uflex at the exhibition is said to be superior to any other in the market for this type of bulk packaging. Manufactured using nano perforation, the bag can be pressure filled with cement. Nano perforation of the sack material prevents it from bursting since the air trapped inside while filling cement is allowed to dispel. The FlexSafe Bag reduces the wastage of cement during transportation and storage because the perforations are designed to prevent moisture from entering inside the sack.
“Unlike other type of packaging where some amount of cement gets wasted while transportation, this bag ensures near-zero wastage. Generally, a 50 kg sack is promised to the customer and by the time it gets transported and reaches the destination, it weighs 48.5 or 49 kg. With this sack, we can assure minimal or no wastage and its moisture resistance feature avoids the formation of lumps,” said Paridhi Misra, assistant manager, Uflex Limited. The BOPP cement sack won Uflex the silver award at the 2015 DuPont packaging awards. With a metallic patch at both ends, the sack once opened cannot be closed again which works as an anti-counterfeiting solution.
Holographic anti-counterfeiting solutions
Holography is the youngest vertical at Uflex, growing with the demand for better shelf appeal and anti-counterfeiting solutions. CG Ramesh, general manager of Holography Business showed us some of specialty anti-counterfeiting and decorative films that the company offers for various packaging applications including flexibles (primary packaging) and cartons (secondary packaging). Uflex also displayed its thermal holographic films. “It is very important to ensure that customers are made aware of our products. If this aspect is not borne in mind, all our efforts would go waste. That is where exhibitions help us. They give us a platform to exhibit our products to our target audiences,” said Sushil Dhar, assistant vice president, films business, Uflex Limited.
A new age tube packaging design for Uflex, called Flexi tube, offers better barrier properties, good aesthetics and is also loaded with anti-counterfeiting properties that distinguish it from general products available in the market. “The best feature of the product is that duplication of the product is simply not possible,” said Abhimanyu Singh of tubes vertical at Uflex Limited.
