Easy Overwrapping with Paper Instead of Film

With a greater emphasis on environmental sustainability, packaging biodegradability and cost reduction there is a greater focus being placed on wrapping products with paper.  Whether it is being used for gift or presentation purposes, protection or for distribution and transit purposes, paper as a wrapping material can offer a quality impression that also conforms to the most stringent of environmentally conscious concerns.

Eco Wrapping Solutions

All Marden Edwards base seal overwrapping machines can already wrap with paper instead of film.  The positive gripper system that transports the wrapping material through the machine is perfect for reels of paper resulting in no machine conversion work necessary.  However, for this simple conversion to happen, it makes the assumption that the paper itself can already be sealed by heat.

Adhesive paper types
There are two types of self-adhesive paper available, paper which contains a thin plastic coating which seals when heat is applied and paper where the glue is pre-sprayed in the exact places where the seal needs to be made.

The plastic coated paper can be expensive and has the problem of not being able to fully biodegrade.  The advantage is that it can be run on any existing Marden Edwards overwrapper with no conversion.  Paper, where the glue has been sprayed into discrete locations, is less expensive but the overwrapping machine requires the fitting of a standard print registration system to ensure that the paper and seals are accurately placed around the pack being wrapped.  The biodegradability of the glue can also be in question but recent developments by such companies as Parkside Flexibles have resulted in materials which have complete biodegradability.

Non-adhesive paper
If a non-adhesive paper is to be used, Marden Edwards can supply one of its range of KAP Kraft paper overwrappers, which applies the glue to the paper as the machine is running.  Marden Edwards has manufactured over two hundred of this style of machine and the PVA, sugar based dextrin or hot melt glue is applied inside the machine as the materials are running through.  Typically PVA and dextrin are used for presentation quality wrapping whereas hot melt glue is used when the paper is replacing cardboard for reducing case packing costs.