Soluble film holds problem’s solution: packaging unit doses of water-treatment chemicals in water-soluble film ensures safety and accuracy
The powerful chemicals used to treat industrial water can be a little hard to handle.
But by using a special film, Buckman Laboratories and its contract packager made their problems dissolve.
Buckman Laboratories, a manufacturer of specialty chemical compounds, is using water-soluble film from MonoSol LLC for pre-measured unit doses of its water treatment chemicals. These chemicals inhibit the growth of microorganisms that could cause fouling problems in industrial heating and cooling systems. MonoSol’s M9500 film addresses the dual challenges of environmental safety and container management. Packaging these chemicals in water-soluble pouches minimizes risks for product handlers, reduces pollution and eliminates product spillage, while assuring mixing accuracy.
“In solid form, the water treatment chemicals can be easily mixed and packaged in a much safer-to-handle package,” says Rick Clark, technology director for water treatment at Buckman Laboratories. “The total concept–formulation and packaging–is to limit human contact with the chemical and also to eliminate the need to dispose of waste packaging.”
Buckman uses contract packer Bartlo Packaging Services (BPS) to package the water-treatment chemical. “We’ve been using water-soluble film in our New Jersey facility since there was water-soluble film,” says BPS President Al Bartlo. “Packaging in unit doses is where the agrochemical and cleaning-products industries are headed.”
Material is shipped in drums or bulk delivery systems for BPS to repackage into unit doses for industrial and commercial use. BPS handles liquid, powdered and gel chemicals on its 13 packaging lines, packaging a variety of chemicals from active detergents to toxic insecticides.
Films for BPS customers are specified by MonoSol’s state-of-the-art testing laboratory in Portage, Ind. Laboratory technicians perform tests to determine the long-term chemical and physical compatibility of a water-soluble film.
MonoSol’s M9500 water-soluble film was selected for Buckman’s water treatment chemicals. The M9500 produces mechanically tough packages with excellent heat-sealing characteristics, better seal area integrity and faster solubility at the point of use. Other improvements designed into the M9500 film are improved resistance to embrittlement and excellent cold storage capabilities.
The M9500 film offers a range of packaging possibilities, increasing the number of products that can be packaged in PVA water-soluble films. With enhanced machinability, the M9500 widens the scope of packaging equipment choices to include all types of vertical-form-fill-seal machinery. Appropriate for packaging neutral, mildly alkaline and acidic formulations, the M9500 is suitable for many powder, gel and liquid forms of chemicals and detergents as well as other products.