Save the environment with thinner label materials

Text: Nina Colliander-Nyman
Photos: Herman, UPM

In the future, customers can look forward to thinner and more technical label materials. UPM Raflatac is investing heavily in research and development where its vital goals are to save the environment through reducing the usage of materials, improve efficiency and offer totally new technical solutions.

"Our label development is divided into two areas: the extensive regeneration of already existing products and the development of special products within new areas," explains Håkan Saxén, UPM Raflatac's Vice President of Research and Development. This can involve solutions such as the thin, filmic PP30 and PET25 release materials for standard labels or special products such as labels on car engines.

"Environmental issues in our standard products have rapidly become highlighted. Even so, being environmentally friendly it is not enough for a product, it must also be top quality and preferably also cost efficient in order to attract interest," says Saxén.

Thinner and more technical
labels are the future.

UPM Raflatac's new, filmic release materials for labels have already been adopted by several users amongst the company's customers in the European market. The materials have numerous advantages both for printers, packers and endusers. Since it is thinner than paper, one roll contains more labels, which in turn leads to fewer roll changes. Transport costs are reduced and material consumption is on the whole less.

"The new, thinner release materials for labels are set to revolutionise the labelling industry in the European market in the coming years," predicts Jan Hasselblatt, Key Account Director at UPM Raflatac.
Thanks to the new material, efficiency is improved across the whole chain, while at the same time environmental pressures are reduced.

"Release material is traditionally made from siliconised paper. In our new product, we use a thin 30-micron polypropylene film as a release liner. The material is over 40% thinner than the siliconised paper and more robust than paper. In addition, the PP30 liner has a good recycling value, which means numerous advantages for customers and end users," Hasselblatt says.

Recycling of the PP30 release liner is significantly easier than for other equivalent release materials both for printers and end users. This is principally due to polypropylene's versatility as a recyclable material and the fact that it requires less energy in the recycling process. UPM ProFi acts as UPM Raflatac's cooperation partner in polypropylene recycling.

"From a technical point of view, all our new product solutions aim towards a reduced usage of material and thereby lower transport costs. Everything works hand in hand and our goal is to create products that are both cost efficient and more environmentally friendly. It is not an easy equation, but nor is it impossible. Since the amount of material used has the greatest influence on the carbon footprint, reducing the usage of materials is the bottom line. If we succeed in halving the grammage, a huge impact can be achieved," says Saxén.

The advantages that the new PP30 release material liner bring for packers are easy to calculate with the help
of an online PP30 productivity calculator which can be found at www.upmraflatac.com

Development is rapidly moving forward in regards to paper as well. Approximately 75–80% of label volumes are still paper labels.

"Especially in the food industry, paper labels are widely used and we are working hard to develop thinner and more technical paper labels. Thanks to new solutions, we can reduce the grammage without sacrificing the quality of the product. Labels today are on average 80 g/m², but we are already testing ones with a grammage of 55 g/m² , making them 20–30% thinner than they are currently," Saxén says.

With paper technical solutions, it is also possible to use thinner release material for paper labels. The
standard today is 60 g/m², but versions as thin as 40–45 g/m² are already being tested.

In future, the usage of bio-based materials will also grow. "We are already working with bio-based plastic materials for future labels and label adhesive. Everyone realises that oil and fossil-based materials will become more expensive in the long run, which makes this a long-term effort. Sooner or later the demand for bio-based products will increase sharply. The only thing that is not known for sure is when this will happen," Saxén says.