Constantia Ecoflex will produce more environmentally friendly packaging family EcoLam
Image: The Constantia Ecoflex Ahmedabad will feature Blown Film Extruder. Photo: courtesy of @eyesnapmoments / Constantia Flexibles.
Austria-based flexible packaging producer Constantia Flexibles is set to open what it claims to be the world’s first plant to produce more sustainable and recyclable flexible packaging only, in India.
Located in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, the new facility will be equipped with technologies such as Blown film extruder from Hosokawa Alpine to produce more environmentally friendly packaging family EcoLam.
Featuring mono-material structure, the EcoLam lightweight Mono-PE laminate is suitable for a variety of packaging applications.
Constantia Flexibles CEO Alexander Baumgartner said: “We know about our responsibilities towards the industry, the end consumers and – first and foremost – towards the environment.
“Thus, we are not only focusing on developing more environmentally friendly packaging, we also designed the first plant in the world dedicated to produce sustainable packaging only.
“The plant named Constantia Ecoflex Ahmedabad is located in Gujarat in India, which is the perfect market to implement such a forward-looking project.”
EcoLam laminate is suitable for several packaging applications
The solutions produced at the new plant all belong to the innovative product family EcoLam, which is part of Constantia Flexibles’ innovative product line Ecolutions.
The fully recyclable EcoLam has a reduced carbon footprint of approximately 32% than that of comparable products.
The EcoLam family comprises different barrier grades including EcoLam, EcoLamPlus, EcoLamHighPlus, to deliver the barrier required for a range of products.
Constantia Flexibles, in a statement, said: “The decision to open a plant in India was relatively straightforward.
“Amongst others, the new ‘Plastic Waste Management Rules’ show, that the Indian government can exert pressure on the recycling economy and that it supports initiatives and companies which advocate for less waste.”
The rules aim to scrap single-use plastic such as pouches completely by 2022, as well as phasing out of non-recyclable multi-layered plastic.
Constantia Ecoflex Ahmedabad, which commenced test runs in September 2019 following more than two years of the construction phase, has an area of 24,500m².
By 2020, the facility is expected to employ 150 people, a three times increase to the current number of employees of 50.
In October 2019, Constantia Flexibles has teamed up with Sappi, a supplier of paper-based packaging, to develop technologies suitable for recyclable paper production processes.