A2Z Packaging Guide

MADE TO ORDER REQUEST FORM

A plastic material is any of a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic organic amorphous solids[citation needed] used in the manufacture of industrial products. Plastics are typically polymers of high molecular mass, and may contain other substances to improve performance and/or reduce costs. Monomers of plastic are either natural or synthetic organic compounds.

A polymer is a large molecule (macromolecule) composed of repeating structural units typically connected by covalent chemical bonds. While polymer in popular usage suggests plastic, the term actually refers to a large class of natural and synthetic materials with a wide variety of properties

Plastics can also be classified by various physical properties, such as density, tensile strength, glass transition temperature, and resistance to various chemical products.

A physical property is any measurable property the value of which describes a physical system's state. The changes in the physical properties of a system can be used to describe its transformations (or evolutions between its momentary states).

The density of a material is defined as its mass per unit volume.

The symbol of density is ρ (the Greek letter rho). In some countries (for instance, in the United States), density is also defined as its weight per unit volume

Packaging is the science, art and technology of enclosing or protecting products for distribution, storage, sale, and use. Packaging also refers to the process of design, evaluation, and production of packages. Packaging can be described as a coordinated system of preparing goods for transport, warehousing, logistics, sale, and end use. Packaging contains, protects, preserves, transports, informs, and sells.[1] In many countries it is fully integrated into government, business, institutional, industrial, and personal use.

An antistatic bag is a bag used for shipping (usually electronic) components, which are prone to damage caused by electrostatic discharge.

Plastics extrusion commonly uses plastic chips or pellets, which are usually dried in a hopper before going to the feed screw.

The polymer resin is heated to molten state by a combination of heating elements and shear heating from the extrusion screw. The screw forces the resin through a die, forming the resin into the desired shape. The extrudate is cooled and solidified as it is pulled through the die or water tank. In some cases (such as fibre-reinforced tubes) the extrudate is pulled through a very long die, in a process called pultrusion

Zip loc

brand of plastic bag made with interlocking ridges near the edges, so as to be easily closed or sealed by pressing one side of the opening against the other.

A volatile or Vapor Corrosion Inhibitor (VCI or VPI) is a class of chemical compounds which emit a rust-inhibiting vapor in the air to inhibit corrosion on a metal surface. Typically a packaging material such as paper or poly film is the carrier for the VCI chemicals. VCI's typically elminate the need for oils and liquid rust preventatives.

Polyolefin

A polyolefin is a polymer produced from a simple olefin (also called an alkene with the general formula CnH2n) as a monomer. For example, polyethylene is the polyolefin produced by polymerizing the olefin ethylene. 'Waste bags and Sacks' are flexible material used for lining litter or waste containers or bins. This serves to keep the container sanitary by avoiding container contact with the rubbish. After the bag in the container is filled with litter, the bag can be conveniently pulled out by its edges, closed, and tied..

HOPPER

A general term for a chute with additional width and depth to provide a volume for temporary storage of material(s). The bottom of the hopper chute typically has a mechanism to control the flow of materials, thus allowing them to be metered out at the desired rate

A chute is a vertical or inclined plane, channel, or passage through which objects are moved by means of gravity

A proportional–integral–derivative controller (PID controller) is a generic control loop feedback mechanism (controller) widely used in industrial control systems – a PID is the most commonly used feedback controller.

A PID controller calculates an "error" value as the difference between a measured process variable and a desired setpoint.

The controller attempts to minimize the error by adjusting the process control inputs. In the absence of knowledge of the underlying process, a PID controller is the optimal controller

Bubble pouches are plastic bags that feature tiny air bubbles built in, offering protection to whatever is placed inside the bag. They function very well as an art protector for a host of different types of artwork;

EVA Bag (Ethylene vinyl acetate copolymer)

It is an intermixture of a variety of plastic resins and auxiliary agents. It has low melting point, good tensile strength, impact strength, puncture resistance, weather resistance, pliability, and rubber-like flexibility. It can be used as effective ingredients of rubber for its co-melting and co-modification.

Biodegradable plastics are plastics that will decompose in natural aerobic (composting) and anaerobic (landfill) environments. y

Biodegradation of plastics can be achieved by enabling microorganisms in the environment to metabolize the molecular structure of plastic films to produce an inert humus-like material that is less harmful to the environment.

Biaxially Oriented Polypropylene film(BOPP FILM) is a thermoplastic polymer film of polypropylene with an orderly molecular structure formed by biaxial orientation process.

The processes improve the optical and gas barrier properties of the film. With excellent clarity, high tensile and impact strength, good dimensional stability and flatness, low electrostatic charge, corona treatment on one or both sides, waterproof and moisture repellant, excellent transparency, lower density, gas and moisture barrier properties, etc., Bopp film can be used as substitutes

Mil Thickness

Measurement used to determine thickness of a plastic film. 1 mil = .001 inch (1/1000).

It is used to measure the thickness of the plastic bags. A unit of measurement equal to one-thousandth of a millimetre. µm, 1/1,000 millimetre or 1/25,000 inch.

GUAGE Thickness

Guage is used to measure the thickness of the plastic film. 1 gauge is equal to 0.01 mil, that would be 0.254 micron or 0.000254 millimeter.

BLOW UP RATIO

In the tubular process, A thin tube is extruded (usually in vertically upward direction) and by blowing air through the die head the tube is inflated into a thin bubble. This is cooled, flattened out and wound up. The ratio of bubble diameter to die diameter is known as BLOW UP RATIO.

Low-density polyethylene (LDPE) is a thermoplastic made from petroleum. It was the first grade of polyethylene, produced in 1933 by Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) using a high pressure process via free radical polymerization.[1] Its manufacture employs the same method today. LDPE is commonly recycled[citation needed] and has the number "4" as its recycling symbol

Linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) is a substantially linear polymer (polyethylene), with significant numbers of short branches, commonly made by copolymerization of ethylene with longer-chain olefins.

Linear low-density polyethylene differs structurally from conventional low-density polyethylene because of the absence of long chain branching. The linearity of LLDPE results from the different manufacturing processes of LLDPE and LDPE. In general, LLDPE is produced at lower temperatures and pressures by copolymerization of ethylene and such higher alpha olefins as butene, hexene, or octene. The copolymerization process produces an LLDPE polymer that has a narrower molecular weight distribution than conventional LDPE and in combination with the linear structure, significantly different rheological properties.

High-density polyethylene (HDPE) or polyethylene high-density (PEHD) is a polyethylene thermoplastic made from petroleum. It takes 1.75 kilograms of petroleum (in terms of energy and raw materials) to make one kilogram of HDPE. HDPE is commonly recycled, and has the number "2" as its recycling symbol

Polypropylene (PP), also known as polypropene, is a thermoplastic polymer, made by the chemical industry and used in a wide variety of applications, including packaging, textiles (e.g. ropes, thermal underwear and carpets), stationery, plastic parts and reusable containers of various types, laboratory equipment, loudspeakers, automotive components, and polymer banknotes. An addition polymer made from the monomer propylene, it is rugged and unusually resistant to many chemical solvents, bases and acids

Poly can have multiple meanings. Poly is also commonly used as an abbreviation for various words and phrases including:Polyethylene, polyurethane and polyester, all forms of plastic polymers

Screw The plastic raw material enters through the feed throat (an opening near the rear of the barrel) and comes into contact with the screw. The rotating screw (normally turning at up to 120 rpm) forces the plastic beads forward into the barrel which is heated to the desired melt temperature of the molten plastic (which can range from 200 °C (392 °F) to 275 °C (527 °F) depending on the polymer).

A heat sealer is a machine used to seal products, packaging, and other thermoplastic materials using heat

Shrink wrap, also shrinkwrap or shrink film, is a material made up of polymer plastic film. When heat is applied to this material it shrinks tightly over whatever it is covering. Heat can be applied with a hand held heat gun (electric or gas) or the product and film can pass through a heat tunnel on a conveyor. Stretch wrap or stretch film is a highly stretchable plastic film that is wrapped around items. The elastic recovery keeps the items tightly bound.

A laminate is a material that can be constructed by uniting two or more layers of material together. The process of creating a laminate is lamination, which in common parlance refers to the placing of something between layers of plastic and glueing them with heat and/or pressure, usually with an adhesive.

Anti Block

The antiblock provides a slightly rough surface on the film to prevent close contact with another surface. This aids slip, and helps avoid electrostatic discharges and sticking of the materials

A thermocouple is a junction between two different metals that produces a voltage related to a temperature difference. Thermocouples are a widely used type of temperature sensor for measurement and control[1] and can also be used to convert heat into electric power. They are inexpensive[2] and interchangeable, are supplied fitted with standard connectors, and can measure a wide range of temperatures. The main limitation is accuracy: system errors of less than one degree Celsius (C) can be difficult to achieve

Slip agent Provides surface lubrication during and immediately following processing plastics. Compounded into the plastic, the additive acts as an internal lubricant that gradually migrates to the surface.

Antioxidants

A group of substances being able to inhibit radical reactions in the polymer and thus prevent degradation processes

Masterbatch

A pelletized plastic material containing highly loaded pigments which is used in a polymer system to change the final color and/or properties of a plastic part.

Flexography (often abbreviated to flexo) is a form of printing process which utilizes a flexible relief plate. It is basically an updated version of letterpress that can be used for printing on almost any type of substrate including plastic, metallic films, cellophane, and paper. It is widely used for printing on the non-porous substrates required for various types of food packaging (it is also well suited for printing large areas of solid color).

Rotogravure (roto or gravure for short) is a type of intaglio printing process, that is, it involves engraving the image onto an image carrier. In gravure printing, the image is engraved onto a copper cylinder because, like offset and flexography, it uses a rotary printing press. The vast majority of gravure presses print on rolls (also known as webs) of paper, rather than sheets of paper. (Sheetfed gravure is a small, specialty market.) Rotary gravure presses are the fastest and widest presses in operation, printing everything from narrow labels to 12 feet (4 m)-wide rolls of vinyl flooring.

The shrink guns are hand operated shrink machines that give a five-sided protection to any shape of the load. It is portable and can be carried to the job site. Shrink gun is the most economical heat shrink equipment and is a low energy stretch system. It works on propane gas. It has a self-igniting system safety switch and a cool combustion for operator safety. Two guns horizontally opposite to each other are recommended for a wrinkle free wrapping.

Treating The process of bombarding film with a high voltage current so that the surface of the film becomes roughened up and enables print to adhere more easily to the film

Wicketted Bags which have been bundled together by means of a small metal hanger that is put through 2 punched holes near the top of the bag - often used in retail applications or on-line packing machines for easy handling of the bags
ASTM STANDARDS