(Bild: Linhardt)
In the middle of the second wave, Linhardt is preparing for the time after the crisis. Then, as the company is convinced, sustainability will once again play a leading role. With consumers, and thus also with the customers of the manufacturer of tubes, vials, cigar tubes and complete solutions.
To this end, Linhardt has conducted research into PCR materials and developed them further for its series-ready production. The aim of these development efforts was to continually increase the PCR content of the tubes, for example with the newly introduced six-layer process. Here, the layering process increases the recycled content in the middle layers of the tube, so that sensitive filling materials only come into contact with virgin-material.
Wall thickness at the limits of physics
But even more sustainable than an increased PCR content is, of course, plastic that is not used in the first place. And so the company is also working on achieving ever thinner walls for its tubes. August Wanninger, Innovation & Product Development at Linhardt, explains, "We can currently offer wall thicknesses of 500 µm for our PCR tubes, and wall thicknesses of up to 350 µm are even possible for our PP monomaterial solutions in the lightweight variant." Theoretically, in terms of barrier capability, up to 250 µm would also be possible. "But already at 350 µm, the tubes start to develop an undesirable top-heaviness," comments Wanninger.
What HD printing has to do with sustainability
The company has also invested heavily. 4.5 million euros in HD printing technology, which will increase annual capacity from 55 to 120 million tubes. HD printing is a specially developed, high-resolution offset printing process for tubes. It enables smooth gradients, photo-realistic images at a screen ruling of 200 LPI and sharp, clean print quality. "With this, we have been able to create a real unique selling point for ourselves," says Wanninger happily. He continues, "We want to encourage our customers to switch from laminate to plastic and thus achieve improved recyclability of their product packaging." The first success stories have already been reported, particularly in the beauty sector.
