The green consciousness has been growing among the public and governments mind and General Plastic Industrial CO., LTD. has the determination and plan to be part of this green future. GPI has been supplying numerous customers in Europe for decades and Europe happens to be the leading continent to initiate several new measures to let their future path in line with a greener lifestyle. For example, the German Packaging Act (VerpackG), and the Plastic Packaging Tax in the United Kingdom. Italy and Spain have yet to officially confirm the effective dates of the new rules but it’s not a secret for anyone to understand that green laws will be enacted sooner or later. In addition, this change will not be happening in Europe only shortly.
Review of GPI (Cartridge Web)
As one of the leading manufacturers of laser toner cartridges in the imaging industry, General Plastic Industrial Co., Ltd and its brand, Cartridge Web, had initiated multiple market research and development evaluations to go green. We implemented a comprehensive review of our current packaging and found that EPE foam took a significant portion of all buffers applied to our packaging.
What is EPE Foam?
EPE foam (expanded polyethylene foam) is one of the most widely used plastics. EPE was first manufactured by adding freon which is exceptionally hazardous to the atmosphere of our planet so gradually, butane and other additives replaced freon. Having the characteristic of impact resistance, EPE foam is widely used as a buffer to protect fragile goods or electronic devices during transportation. It is claimed to be reusable and recyclable by melting and reshaping it into a different shape. However, the truth is that there is only a minority of recyclers who recycle EPE foam.
What GPI (Cartridge Web) Can Do for the Environment?
To reduce the usage of EPE foam, GPI started to design various shapes of cardboard as our new buffers to replace EPE. However, one of the challenges we faced is that we need extra dropping tests to make sure that our new packaging is strong enough to pass the ISTA standards. Even though this new measure of greener packaging will cost us more time to test and more spending on buffers, GPI is still willing to be part of this greener world. Other than the buffer, we also started to apply stickers without polypropylene lamination to be more eco-friendly. Based on our persistence in quality, we also conducted vibration tests to simulate if characters on a sticker without coating were still legible after the transportation. All the above proves that GPI and Cartridge Web are your reliable and eco-friendly partners in this industry.