Finnish packaging manufacturer Muovi-Heljanko Oy has come up with how to reduce the amount of raw material used for plastic canisters by 24 % while at the same time improving their features. Compared with the traditional small engine petrol can the new multilayer canister is lighter, the contamination risk smaller and the evaporation percentage almost zero.
– Our innovation that reduces the canisters carbon footprint with 24 % has a demand both in the Nordic countries and in Central Europe. Our goal is a 30% turnover growth from our export markets, says SIMO HELJANKO, Managing director of Muovi-Heljanko.
The layers of the innovative multilayer canister are many times denser than the layers of a traditional monolayer HDPE can. Thanks to its impermeable layers, the can is thinner and lighter, which reduces the weight of the used raw material and the transported can.
– The new raw material and technology stop the packed material from passing through the wall of the canister. A barrier layer keeps oxygen and impurities on the outside and petrol fumes, gases and chemicals on the inside, explains Mårten Karlsson, Sales manager at Muovi-Heljanko.
– Nine-month test results show that the evaporation percentage of the multilayer canister is very close to zero. In addition, the can keeps its shape, does not bloat or get dented. The labels stay neatly in place, which supports the product’s brand image, Mårten Karlsson summarises the product’s benefits for the environment, the customer and the end-customer, i.e. the consumer.
One of the biggest contract fillers in the Nordic countries, Swedish Titab Pac AB warmly welcomes Muovi-Heljanko’s multilayer canister. – It is our responsibility to inform our clients about better packing options both from an environment and a packaging perspective, summarises Sales manager Anton Wicksell.
– We’ve been looking for a plastic canister like this ever since we started packing alkylate based petrol in 1989. Now our customers can be absolutely certain that the can contains 5 litres. And we avoid overfilling.
It is estimated that eight million small engine petrol cans are manufactured in the Nordic countries yearly, which in terms of raw material means 2 million kg plastics. The manufacture of a single multilayer canister requires 24 % less plastics, reducing the need for virgin plastics by up to 480,000 kg. Thanks to the reduction in raw materials, the carbon footprint of a 5 litre multilayer canister is 24 % smaller compared with a traditional small engine petrol can.
– Product safety, responsibility and environmental friendliness are the cornerstones of Muovi-Heljanko’s product design. We pay attention not only to our own actions, but also our customers’ enterprises. We want to help them to choose better alternatives both from a product and an environmental perspective, says Simo Heljanko.
– The benefits of the multilayer canister are highlighted in packaging that must be light and dense. For example, technochemical products, such as alkylate based petrol or solvents require oxygen-tight packaging when they are transported over long distances or stored for months.
The vast investments that were initiated in 2017 at the Muovi-Heljanko factory in Monninkylä, Askola have been completed. Multilayer canisters leave the new production line and end up in the hands of the consumers as full small engine petrol cans through, for instance forestry, boating and motor sports.
The new production line was purpose-built for the production of the new multilayer canister. The line is fully automated and represents the latest technology. High sales goals have been set for the multilayer canister that will be launched at the packaging exhibition in Gothenburg in October 2018, which is the biggest in the Nordic countries.
– With our new investments we are aiming for the Central European as well as the Nordic markets. Our goal is a 30% turnover growth specifically from our export markets, Simo Heljanko explains.
* When comparing the new 5-litre multilayer canister (190 g) with the most common 5-litre cans (250 g) for small engine petrol that are produced in the Nordic countries.
Additional information:
Simo Heljanko
Managing director
simo.heljanko@muovi-heljanko.fi
040 7384 488
Mårten Karlsson
Sales manager
mårten.karlsson@muovi-heljanko.fi
040 052 4405