NOVA’s Application Development team has been working tirelessly to accelerate the delivery of monomaterial flexible packaging to industry and consumers. By designing a package to only use a single material, polyethylene (PE), the package constitutes a high quality material which gives it potential for recycling post-use. We’re thrilled to share that through our collaborative efforts with international equipment manufacturers, we’ve made meaningful progress towards increasing the accessibility and versatility of this packaging.
The companies we chose to work with on this effort are leaders in their fields and have the ability to supply machines that produce oriented films. By working together, we are driving innovation in packaging and ultimately creating new opportunities to utilize all PE packaging.
The Right Products
The unique aspect of this work focuses on using our innovative polyethylene (PE) products in multilayer films to produce Machine Direction Orientation (MDO) and Biaxially Oriented (BOPE-HD) films. The products we utilize for these applications include:
BOPE:
- SURPASS® TX150
- SURPASS HPx267
MDO:
- SURPASS HPs153
- SURPASS HPs167
- SURPASS SPsK919
- SCLAIR® FP026
The use of orientation on PE film to improve the properties of film is not new. However, recent resin innovations alongside equipment innovations have made it a viable alternative which can replace multi-material, non-recyclable packages on store shelves. In 2020, we produced the first BOPE resin which was the first HDPE technology specifically developed for the demanding biaxial orientation process. The external launch and commercialization of this product came later in 2021. Its success has unlocked a significant PE market expansion opportunity.
Leading in Flexibles
Our leadership in BOPE-HD has positioned NOVA’s technology as the benchmark for bi-axial orientation lines. This work has been supported alongside the establishment of Brückner’s hybrid tenter frame lines, which can produce both biaxially oriented polypropylene and BOPE-HD films. As we continue to drive new product development, we are excited about the new opportunities emerging within the BOPE-HD market.Additionally, we’ve seen success in combining our oriented film with our new portfolio of ASTUTE™ plastomers. These products are used in blown multilayer films that are paired with our oriented PE films to create high performance, all-PE packaging.
As we move forward, we will continue to nurture and expand these partnerships, exploring new avenues of collaboration, and driving towards shared goals. These collaborations are not just about the present, they are building blocks for a sustainable future we collectively aspire to create.
Below are examples of all PE, monomaterial packaging prototypes that resulted from this work.