The coatings, designed with sustainability in mind, prioritize health and safety during use while helping extend the package life-cycle after use.
May 14, 2020
Michelman has been opening new markets for paper packaging ever since creating our first repulpable water-based coating decades ago. Paperboard with water-based coatings provide good barrier properties and is the best combination for environmentally friendly packaging structures. Water-based coatings can be recycled and repulped, and are an alternative solution to current wax, PE extrusion coating, and film lamination.
Michelman’s HydraBan® is a brand of water-based coatings, specifically designed for paper and paperboard. These PFAS-free paper coatings provide water repellency, excellent gluability, printability, and offer food contact compliant options. They combine two properties critical to packers of perishable and building products – water-resistance and release – without sacrificing recyclability. These properties make Hydraban® ideal for the corrugate and paperboard packaging of seafood, fruits, frozen food, and deep-freeze applications such as ice cream. A recent and important application is corrugate-based hospital beds for hospitals and quarantine centers. Michelman’s HydraBan® paper coating has helped increase the performance of beds created by Aryan Paper and BN Pack, as these companies have taken an active role in India’s COVID-19 response. The inclusion of HydraBan® makes the beds water-resistant to withstand mopping and disinfecting for repeated use. These 100% recyclable beds are incredibly lightweight—easily lifted by a single person—but very strong and durable, supporting over 200kg.
Michelman, dedicated to innovating a sustainable future, has invested in the Mumbai-based Michelman Innovation Centre for Coatings (MICC). It is a state-of-the-art packaging incubator strategically designed to serve the needs of India and its surrounding markets to allow for the fast & efficient development of sustainable packaging. Michelman has a long tradition of innovation and sustainability with water-based chemistry. Because of this, their technology experts offer all members of the packaging value chain the ability to collaborate and decrease the time it takes to commercialize improved and environmentally-friendly flexible packaging. Collaboration with Michelman’s technical and market experts accelerate the concept-to-commercialization cycle with innovations to produce packaging that offers:
- Recyclable structures
- Brand appeal and enhanced graphics
- Increased shelf life and food safety
- Increased productivity and efficiency
- Waste reduction and down-gauging
This combination of dedicated materials and application labs, opportunity for collaborative innovation, and infusion of water-based technology allows Michelman to help the region achieve sustainability for the natural environment and the packaging industry.
