Greiner Packaging has launched a jointly financed facility to develop coextrusion barrier films.
The facility is located at the Institute for Polymer Extrusion and Compounding (IPEC), part of the Johannes Kepler University (JKU) in Linz, Austria.
Greiner is investing more than 2 million euros ($2.2 million) in this research project in the next few years.
Franz Reitbauer, managing director of Greiner Packaging, said: “The market for plastic packaging with barrier properties is growing in Europe at up to 7 percent each year. Our objective is to establish and ensure Greiner Packaging's position as the innovation leader in the market in the long term. Moreover, the knowledge gained from the project should also help create jobs for highly qualified employees at our competence centre for barrier and material development at the Kremsmünster site.”
Greiner said the facility will help the company expand its core competencies “from the manufacture of single-layer packaging for food with a short shelf life to the manufacture of thin-walled multi-layer packaging to achieve a long shelf life.”
The coextrusion facility was opened July 8. The coextrusion facility is available for testing and research, said Greiner.
As well as IPEC, Recendt (Research Centre for Non-Destructive Testing) is also involved in the research activities.