Infinity Increases its Sustainability Initiatives
Consumer research indicates that more and more people strongly consider the ecological impact of the products they buy when making purchasing decisions. As environmental awareness increases amongst consumers, product packaging faces increased scrutiny.
Product packaging can disincline ecologically motivated consumers due to an often heavy reliance on plastics and other materials that lack a green reputation.
However, the push for more sustainable packaging is not being led solely by consumers. In the tissue industry, many corporations have recognized the benefits of packaging solutions developed with a focus on the environment.
As the number of consumers and corporations that prioritize sustainability increases, the packaging industry must also prioritize innovative ecological packaging.
Infinity Machine and Engineering Corp. has been on the forefront of innovating sustainable packaging solutions. In 2020, Infinity partnered with Little Rapids Corp. to test and develop ECOVA paper overwrap, a 100% plastic-free, heat-sealable paper wrap, made from 100% recycled fiber. Since then, Infinity has increased its sustainable packaging efforts and prioritized ecological design in its machinery.
One focus for Infinity engineers has been to pioneer more sustainable packaging for individually wrapped tissue rolls. While primarily used as away-from-home tissue in North America and Europe, individually packaged bathroom tissue rolls are very common in the South American consumer sector. Due to the increased amount of packaging material needed to wrap rolls individually, Infinity has designed its single roll wrappers, the S250BRT and the S250HT, to wrap in paper as well as plastic.
However, Infinity’s commitment to sustainable packaging goes beyond primary packaging. Infinity’s C15 Casepacker is capable of loading rolls into corrugated trays. This not only provides stable secondary packaging for tissue products, but it also reduces the amount of material needed for packaging as a tray often uses less than half the cardboard of a standard case. The C15 can also package some tissue roll products directly into corrugated cases without the need for any additional packaging, cutting down on material cost, and material waste.
While prioritizing sustainable packaging is a positive step for the tissue industry, Infinity has taken it a step further by also exploring new ways to reduce the environmental impact of tissue packaging machinery. Infinity machinery can be equipped with IE3 and IE4-rated motors, which use less power while performing at a higher efficiency. Infinity is also trialing monitors on its new Vision G3 multipack wrapper that track the machine’s power usage and air consumption. The information that is collected will be shared with the purchaser which will allow ecological opportunities to be identified and implemented based on the recorded data.
Infinity is also prioritizing sustainability in its research and development department. With about 15% of annual revenue invested in R&D, Infinity has the resources and commitment to developing new machinery and packaging with the planet in mind. Infinity is currently testing ecological materials and new machine designs that will disrupt the current tissue packaging industry and make way for a more sustainable future.
As converters and consumers alike continue to explore a more sustainable future of packaging, Infinity Machine & Engineering Corp. will be with them every step of the way.
