It’s a challenge to find or create a metal adhesion test that can be performed in a non-converting facility and still be meaningful enough to be representative of the actual converting processes. A metal adhesion value represents the force it takes to separate the layers of a laminated structure and is important to understanding whether the metallized substrate is performing in the structure as it should. First in metal adhesion testing, there was the Scotch 610 tape test. This is the method where 3M 610 tape is applied to the metallized surface of the film and is then pulled away at a 180 degree angle at a controlled rate. The amount of metal that transfers to the tape determines the integrity of the metal adhesion to the film. From my experience unless the metal adhesion is already visibly poor, the metal does not decal from the film, so this is in essence a go or no-go test. Another more detailed metal adhesion test used by Celplast (MA-1) is a modified version of the method TP-105-92 published by the Association for Metallizers, Coaters and Laminators (AIMCAL). It consists of a laminated structure (see diagram below) that better represents the converting process. In this method, the metallized film is heat sealed to an EAA/Paper/Foil laminate before tensile testing is conducted. Specimens of 1” […]
Celplast Metallized Products recently co-presented a paper with Larry Jopko of Dow at the TAPPI Barrier Symposium at ICE in Orlando, FL, entitled “How good is your barrier packaging in the real world?” This paper focused on barrier properties and lamination bond strengths of 2 ply and 3 ply metallized film structures, both before and after gelbo flexing. Two different high barrier metallized films were examined: Barrier Sealant metallized PE and Metacoated PET. Three different adhesive systems were evaluated: solvent based, solventless and water based. The Barrier Sealant in a 2-ply structure, laminated to clear PET, gave the best performance in terms of retaining barrier properties after Gelbo flexing. Celplast Metallized Products is a leading supplier of high barrier films to the North American converting industry, including SUPERMET™ and ULTRAMET™ for high metal adhesion, and FOILMET™ for high barrier. Celplast is also the exclusive distributor to North America of the CERAMIS® SiOx-coated and Camclear® AlOx-coated families of clear barrier films. Celplast has recently introduced a family of top-coated metallized films, with a top-coating designed to protect the metal layer from moisture and hot, humid environments. This includes REFLECT-MET™ for reflective insulation and radiant barrier applications, as well as DURA-MET™ for extended shelf life food packaging. Celplast also offers testing for OTR, WVTR, metal adhesion, emissivity, scuff resistance, corrosion resistance and […]
Leadership Development SIG at Celplast Metalized Products Our members were fascinated to learn that the Celplast organization, with roughly 60 employees, has roughly 60 leaders! Yes that’s a 1 for 1 ratio and I must say a few members had raised eyebrows when Marc Jolicoeur, Plant Manager, shared this statistic with us. Celplast has been on a leadership development journey for the past 18 months and has been experiencing incredible results due to their investment in people and leadership. I bet you want to ask “What’s unique about their approach”? Well to be honest, there are a number of unique elements that are coming together to create the momentum in this company. Currently the Celplast program focuses on five key elements. Forward Thinking Senior Management The FISH Philosophy 1/4ly memorable moments Situational leadership Generous recognition and rewards The first element, forward thinking management, is an element that was not specifically mentioned, yet I believe is the most important of all elements. During a trip to the east coast a couple of years ago, Marc experienced the FISH philosophy first hand and recognized that this was a leadership approach that could make a significant impact in his company. Upon his return he approached the management team with the news of what he had uncovered and the process was underway. Clearly without […]
Packaging Films 1-2013 One of the most common flexible packaging formats is the stand-up barrier pouch. This structure typically consists of three layers as shown in figure 1. These structures include a PET/print/adhesive/metallised PET/adhesive/ sealant or PET/print/adhesive/metallised OPP/sealant, with each of these layers playing a functional role in the overall structure. Figure 1: Comparison of 3-ply vs. 2-ply structures for stand- up pouches. The printed PET provides a surface for excellent printability and adds stiffness to the structure. The metallised layer provides an oxygen and moisture barrier in case of metallised PET or moisture barrier in the case of metallised OPP, and also improves stiffness. Metallised films in general provide good aesthetic value and allow for eye-catching graphics, which may be a brand owner requirement in some finished structures. Lastly, the sealant layer provides sealing for the pouch which must also have good COF (coefficient of friction), HSIT (heat-seal initiation temperature), and seal strength, which are critical to downstream processing and performance. Metallised sealants allow converters and brand owners to improve their carbon footprint by reducing material and energy usage when transitioning from a 3-ply structure to a 2-ply structure with- out compromising barrier perform- ance or other key performance cri- teria such as COF and HSIT, which are critical in downstream process- ing (figure 1 and table 1). Based on the […]
Celplast Metallized Products has introduced new line of Silicone Oxide coated high barrier OPP Ceramis® films. The new transparent films Ceramis® CPP-004 and Ceramis CPP-005 exhibit exceptional oxygen and water vapor barrier and are ideal for dry foods such as biscuits, and crackers where maintaining product freshness can be particularly challenging. The non SiOx coated side of Ceramis® CPP-004 is heat sealable and when laminated with the oxide coating sandwiched to an approved substrate, the laminate is capable of compliance with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requirements. Ceramis® CPP-005 is a non heat sealable film for use in form-fill-seal (FFS) applications. Both of these products boast a six month shelf life in the original packaging when used in accordance with the recommended storage conditions. For more information on these and other products, please contact Celplast Metallized Products naomi@celplast.com/testsite.
November 4th, 2011 – To give back to our local community, Celplast Metallized Products Limited and Underwriter’s Laboratories joined forces to support Habitat for Humanity Toronto (HFHT). HFHT’s mission is to mobilize volunteers and community partners in building affordable housing and promoting homeownership as a means to breaking the cycle of poverty. On November 4th, 2011, 6 volunteers from Celplast and 7 from Underwriter’s Laboratories spent the day getting their hands dirty, bringing the homes one step closer to move-in ready. The two companies’ monetary donation will go towards the purchase of construction materials and help enable future build sites. Once completed, the site at 4572 Kingston Rd. in Toronto will provide residence for 29 families. Work on the site began in September 2010 and is expected to finish by year end 2011. Celplast volunteers pictured from right to left include Krish Tharmal, George Dong, Weijia Zhang, Veronica Ataya, Dante Ferrari and Sid Fernandes. HFHT is part of a global organization which averages completion of a single-family house every 10 minutes. Since its founding in 1976, Habitat for Humanity has helped build or repair over 400,000 houses and served over 2 million people around the world. For more information please visit http://www.habitat.org or your local chapter website.
Celplast Metallized Products is proud to announce Veronica Ataya has recently joined the business as Product Development Engineer. Veronica has a Masters degree from the University of Toronto in Chemical Engineering, and completed her Bachelor of Chemical Engineering from Simon Bolivar University in Caracas, Venezuela. She comes to Celplast with valuable sales & marketing experience as a Sales Supervisor with Merkat Imports in Acarigua, Venezuela. Veronica has taken a leadership role in product & process development, and is managing Celplast’s ever-expanding R&D lab. She will be presenting her findings on top-coated metallized film barrier properties at the AIMCAL Fall Technical Conference in Reno, NV, October 23 – 26, 2011. Celplast Metallized Products is a leading supplier of high barrier films to the North American converting industry. In addition to its metallized film solutions, including SUPERMET™ for high metal adhesion and FOILMET™ for high barrier, Celplast also is the exclusive distributor to North America of the CERAMIS® SiOx-coated and Camclear® AlOx-coated families of clear barrier films. Celplast has also recently introduced a family of top-coated metallized films, with a top-coating designed to protect the metal layer from moisture and hot, humid environments. This includes REFLECT-MET™ for reflective insulation and radiant barrier applications, as well as DURAMET™ for extended shelf life food packaging. Celplast also offers testing for OTR, WVTR, metal adhesion, […]
Cel-Met and O2 Barrier metallized sealants from Celplast permit down-gauging of approximately 25% without compromising the barrier properties or performance of the barrier laminate. The Cel-Met sealant replaces metallized oriented polypropylene to reduce a three-ply structure to two plies while providing an oxygen transmission rate (OTR) of 4.0 cubic centimeters per 100 square inches per day and a water vapor transmission rate (WVTR) of 0.08 grams per 100 square inches per day. The O2 Barrier sealant replaces metallized polyethylene terephthalate to convert a three-ply structure to a two-ply and provides even higher barrier properties: 0.04 cubic centimeters per 100 square inches per day OTR and 0.05 grams per 100 square inches per day WVTR. Eliminating the need for a second pass in the lamination process also conserves adhesive and reduces energy requirements 31% for solvent-based structures and 11% for solvent-less. Carbon dioxide emissions also drop: 34% for solvent-based laminating and 30% for solvent-less. Applications include stand-up and peg-display pouches. Judges Comments The judges noted the metallized sealants reduce steps in the process and achieve a significant source reduction. “It’s a new way of looking at structures and definitely a step in the right direction,” concluded one member of the panel. A detailed article on these Barrier Sealants is available on Converting Quarterly Magazine 2011 Quarter 2 p 56.
Celplast, a leading player in the development and manufacturing of high barrier film solutions for converters, recently announced the appointment of Grupo Navegador as their exclusive representative in Mexico. To mention a few of the various film products that Celplast produces, Grupo Navegador will be responsible for sales and promotion of the improved metallized SUPERMET™ product line, the high barrier FOILMET™, the clear barrier films CERAMIS™ (SiOx-coated) and CAMCLEAR™ (AlOx-coated). Grupo Navegador will also be responsible for the introduction in Mexico of Celplast’s new product lines REFLECT-MET™ for reflective insulation and DURAMET™ for flexible packaging products that require an extended shelf life. “Celplast’s wide range of barrier films open new doors for the converter,” says Sergio González de Cosío, Commercial Director for Specialty films within Grupo Navegador. “These films from Celplast will provide high value to projects that can take advantage of the films’ extraordinary properties. We are very pleased to partner with Celplast in promoting these product lines in Mexico.” Celplast’s barrier films are available in a wide variety of substrates such as polyester, BOPP, nylon and PE; metallized or coated with SiOx; and in a wide range of thicknesses. “We are excited to be able to offer the Mexican converters our outstanding products. The demand for our high-end specialty films has grown tremendously over the last few years, which […]
Celplast Metallized Products / VAST Films’ new Metacoat™ allows coating, metallizing in a single pass, dramatically cuts costs, builds better barrier properties, protects surface from micro scratches. Mark Spaulding — Converting Magazine The Association of Industrial Metallizers, Coaters and Laminators (AIMCAL) presented its Technology of the Year Award toCelplast Metallized Products Ltd. / VAST Films Ltd., Toronto, Ontario, Canada, for its Metacoat™ roll-coating technology on Sunday, March 21, 2010, at a banquet during its annual Management Meeting, March 21-24 at the Hilton La Jolla Torrey Pines in La Jolla, California. The patent-pending Metacoat technology allows coating and metallizing to occur in the same pass at standard metallizing speeds. A gravure coating station applies an acrylate and/or methacrylate liquid to the film surface and cures it immediately via electron beam exposure. Coating can occur before or after metallizing. Eliminating separate metallizing and coating passes dramatically improves economics. It also can increase a metallized film’s barrier properties because top-coating immediately after metallizing protects the metallized surface from micro scratches and defects caused by roller contact and downstream processing. Immediate applications include packaging, insulation, reflective displays and flexible electronics. In time, additional applications may include food packaging, metallized transfer film, hot-foil stamping film, solar collectors, photovoltaic cells, optical coatings and scratch-resistant coatings for decorative panels. Celplast currently produces 39-inch-wide coated/metallized material on a […]
