Adhesives represent less than 3 percent of the total packaging cost, but can have a big impact on a brand’s reputation when it comes to consumer experience. The effect can be so substantial that executives at H.B. Fuller Co. have decided to invest in a Packaging Center of Excellence in North America to address customers packaging adhesives needs across a broad range of applications, substrates and environmental conditions. Upon its opening in early 2014, the Packaging Center of Excellence will be H.B. Fuller’s fourth center focused specifically on customer collaboration. 

 

With its wide variety and industry-leading packaging adhesive offerings, H.B. Fuller provides the full breadth and depth of adhesives and engineering services for end-of-line packaging, container labeling, flexible packaging, retail-ready packaging, handle and packaging reinforcement and specialty packaging. Along with the robust offering, the new Packaging Center of Excellence will further enable collaboration efforts to help brands continue to advance their packaging designs. 

 

“Packaging heavily influences consumer buying decisions and with the rise of social media, all it takes is one negative experience to put brands on the defensive,” says Peter Petrulo, business director of packaging, North America at H.B. Fuller. “As experts in packaging adhesives, it’s our role to help protect our customer’s product and ensure end-users have a positive experience with our customer’s brand. That means staying on top of industry trends so we can meet our customers’ evolving business needs for safety, sustainability, efficiency and new packaging applications.” 

 

Petrulo also says that H.B. Fuller is dedicated to advancing adhesive technology for the packaging industry, so the company is continually evolving and reformulating products for customers. H.B. Fuller’s most recent development includes the reformulation of its adhesive coated technologies (formerly known as Adalis) Sesame technology. The reformulated adhesives offer a much wider operating window and improved bond strength, allowing customers to continue to run efficiently, despite potential variation in their own processes.

 

Additionally, H.B. Fuller prides itself on working with all original equipment manufacturers to ensure compatible adhesive technologies even as equipment evolves. For example, the company has been credited for helping to engineer end-of-line packaging adhesives to serve today’s new on-demand, tankless hot melt systems. With an ability to run and perform on any hot melt system, H.B. Fuller’s hot melt adhesives are being used by manufacturers who have adopted equipment such as the Nordson® Freedom and Graco Invisipac systems. These hot-melt adhesives – designed to run smoothly on all the latest engineered fluid dispensing equipment – offer superior bond strength and fiber tear and excellent non-blocking, free-flowing properties. 

 

To show their commitment to flexible packaging and to expand the Flextra line, H.B. Fuller acquired Plexbond Quimica S/A, to help better serve the flexible packaging market in South America. This acquisition will allow convertors to address the market’s evolving needs while providing a greater array of products and services to the region.

 

For more information about packaging adhesives from H.B. Fuller, www.hbfuller.com/packaging-solutions.

 

 

H.B. Fuller

www.hbfuller.com