Modern folding cartons to meet the most demanding design and quality requirements: cost-effective and quick to produce with Openair® Plasma

The trend in the packaging industry is toward continuously rising design and quality requirements. Manufacturers count more and more on the appeal of finishes like high-gloss printing, soft-touch coatings, or hologram printing to attract consumers. And display and window packaging often involve special combinations of materials.

These materials must be joined to each other cost effectively, at high speeds, and most of all reliably. This requires an especially robust, high-performance pretreatment process: Openair® Plasma.

When integrated inline, plasma activation creates ideal surface properties for subsequent process steps, such as gluing, printing or laminating.

Particular advantages of Openair® Plasma technology in manufacturing carton packaging:

  • Makes high processing speeds possible
  • No open flames mean greater process safety.
  • Robust, durable technology
  • Simple process monitoring
  • Cost effective

Gluing coated folding cartons: Openair-Plasma® surface treatment in pre-gluing machines

Today’s carton packaging is made from sheets that are printed, finished, cut, and folded in a folding machine and usually glued by the manufacturer (pre-gluing). This is accomplished on high-performance pre-gluing machines with speeds up to 600 m/min.

The glue that is used, cold glue, adheres without difficulty directly on bare paperboard material, but if that material already has a quality finish (such as a UV coating or laminated film), the places that will later be glued usually need to be roughened using an elaborate mechanical process (mechanical miller, sandpaper, brushes) in separate machinery. Otherwise, those spots must be masked before sealing.

Integrating Openair-Plasma® technology significantly simplifies the process. Plasma jets are installed directly in high-speed pre-gluing machines where they pretreat the folding carton in the glue seam areas. The resulting increase in surface tension is enough to dramatically increase adhesion capacity; the cold glue that is generally used bonds regardless of the coating, varnish or surface sealing.

Gluing packaging directly in the set-up equipment: Openair-Plasma® makes quick bonding possible.

Right before printed and pre-folded packaging is filled, it is set up and opened, and – if necessary – also glued. Due to the fast processing speed and compact design of the equipment, the glue that is used at this stage must form a bond in the shortest possible time.

The increased surface tension that Openair-Plasma® creates results in fast and superior bonding regardless of the properties of the surface to be glued. So pretreatment with plasma makes it possible to process UV-coated or laminated carton packaging.

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Upcoming Exhibitions and Events

Get to know Plasma up close at our trade fairs and events!

Trade Fair
09. - 12. Apr 2024

PaintExpo

World's Leading Trade Fair for Industrial Coating Technology

Hall 1, booth 1210

Messe Karlsruhe

Messeallee 1

76287 Rheinstetten

Trade Fair
06. - 10. May 2024

NPE 2024

The Plastics Show

West Building Level 2 - Expo Hall, Booth W7479

Orange County Convention Center

Orlando, Florida

Trade Fair
28. - 07. Jun 2024

Drupa

No. 1 for printing technologies

Hall 11, booth A32

 

Messe Düsseldorf

Am Staad

40474 Düsseldorf