Paper 9: History and Development of Flexible Packaging

This paper deals essentially with flexible wrapping materials and their performance on packaging machinery. The emphasis throughout is on the packaging media but the demands made on them by machines are given prominence. The basic principles of the main types of machine are enunciated and illustrated with simple flow diagrams. These show the passage of the wrapping material through the machine and the text isolates the different sections and the wrapping problems involved. For example, the feeding, forming and closure sections of a machine are examined and such properties as slip, tensile strength, elongation and heat-sealability of wrapping materials are considered in relation to them.

The paper opens with an historical survey of packaging, packaging materials and packaging machinery. The economic trends which shaped the packaging industry are presented and general developments in packaging materials and machines are traced from the turn of the century. Some comments on the functions of packaging and its part in the industrial scene are made.

The packaging media covered include paper, cellulose films, aluminium foils, plastic films and the main forms and combinations of them. The production, properties and uses of these materials are outlined but the main emphasis, as stated above, is on their machinability.

Current developments in wrapping materials and machine principles are discussed and some effort is made to forecast trends in flexible packaging generally.