Project description
Sustainable new packaging system ready to roll
Packaging, especially expanded polystyrene (EPS), is a major challenge to sustainability and a carbon-neutral future. The Agil Packaging System (APS) project offers a new way to package bulky household appliances that doesn't rely on massive quantities of EPS – air-filled bubbles made from multilayer film. The all-in-one APS system can be installed at the end of a manufacturing line, and offers a 30 % cost saving compared to EPS packaging. The system is flexible (packaging is custom-made and produced on demand), has a lower carbon footprint than EPS, and the multilayer film can be easily recycled. The system has been prototyped and is now ready to be optimised in clients' plants.
Objective
Agil Packaging System, S.L. (AGILPACK) reinvents the Major Household Appliances Packaging System (refrigerators, washing machines, dishwashers) replacing Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) with alveolar bubble wrap packaging pieces made from a new type of material: multilayer film.
AGILPACK has developed the patented APS flexible system with the following characteristics: replaces packaging solutions using EPS with a new concept based on Bubble Multilayer Film; packaging comprises a set of three-dimensional parts formed by airtight bubbles made from film; it is a complete system including parts design software and machinery, installed at the end of client’s line.
The Advantages for clients of APS system compared to actual ones are: APS solution has 30% lower cost than conventional EPS packaging; it is a flexible system because alveolar plastic bubble film parts are custom-made, on-site and on demand; it has a much better sustainability and lower carbon footprint; its easy recyclability leads to a circular economy solution; it helps companies comply with the increasingly stringent regulatory laws of cities and EU for EPS use.
Wrapping bubble alveolar film parts have been produced and tested, a software for parts design and calculation has been designed, machine modules prototypes have been developed and tested and the system is ready for optimization at industrial pilot level in a client’s plant.
The market target is the bulky white line household appliances packaging sector accounting for more than €177 million in EU and €2.3 billion worldwide.
APS highly scalable system will allow AGILPACK, by 2024, to be servicing 16 clients’ plants and to reach a total turnover of €50.9 million.
Fields of science
Programme(s)
Funding Scheme
SME-1 - SME instrument phase 1Coordinator
31620 HUARTE
Spain
The organization defined itself as SME (small and medium-sized enterprise) at the time the Grant Agreement was signed.