Result Group has extended its portfolio of linerless labelling solutions for finished products, adding the new InNo-Liner system from Herma, which the company says is the first of its kind to cater for labelling cartons and shippers.
“Given the growing need for sustainable methods and products in both retail and shipping industries, it’s no surprise that linerless technology has seen a growth in popularity,” says Michael Dossor, group general manager at Result Group.
“Result Group is committed to offering packaging and materials that are more sustainable and tackle plastic waste and have partnered with like-minded suppliers to address one of the biggest economic and industrial challenges.”
According to Result Group, the InNo-Liner system is not only a cost-cutting game changer for logistics and shipping, but also actively contributes to protecting the environment as it removes thousands of square meters of siliconised paper liner from the market and the waste disposal chain.
“The holy grail of sustainability is to remove an item before even having to recycle it and herma InNo-Liner delivers just that, no problematic silicone release liner,” Dossor says.
Hanes, the owner of such brands in Australia as Bonds, Sheridan, Champion and Berlei, has already committed to the new Herma linerless technology as part of its 2030 global sustainability goals, which include addressing the use of plastics and sustainable raw materials in products and packaging.
According to Dossor, the InNo-Liner system from Result Group combined with the linerless labels supplied by Label Manufacturers Australia (LMA), will minimise the CO2 footprint of labels (no liner) and “a great amount of waste is going to be avoided”.
Jim Chatz, CEO of Label Manufacturers Australia (LMA) said that most companies focus on packaging that is used and discarded by the consumer, often omitting the warehouse and distribution space where tons of silicone paper is discarded each day.
“The Herma InNo-Liner technology was the perfect solution for Hanes to adopt at the back end of their supply chain. It will help create sustainable value for the company, stakeholders and communities. The bottom line was a strong RIO when replacing conventional label materials and machinery currently installed. Savings in the material itself, as well as removing waste disposal and a host of other measurable benefits,” Chatz said.
How it works
The Herma linerless system is designed to apply labels to the side or top of outer shipper cartons or boxes of different heights that are fed to the applicator in any sequence.
The InNo-liner system transfers the initially non-sticky label to a tamp pad, which is equipped with a box height sensor and a linear dosing unit.
A water activation unit performs a transverse motion underneath the label where it activates the adhesive with a highly consistent spray of micro-atomised water. Then the linear transfer unit automatically moves the tamp pad, with the activated label to the required labelling height for the next case in the line.
This is all achieved at the same speed of a traditional Print and Apply Labelling system.
“The key benefit of the system is that no coatings are placed on the surface of the facestocks to aid in the unwinding of the stock on the applicators,” says Dossor.
“This means no negative impact is felt with variable printing, a key challenge with alternative linerless systems and standard direct thermal and thermal transfer materials can be used. There is simply no change to the way the cartons are recycled in current systems.”
“The underlying principle is easy to understand and simple. It does not involve any solvents, heat or other activation media associated with possibly undesirable side-effects.”
For printing variable data on the labels, both thermal transfer and direct thermal options are available and labels can also be pre-printed in colour with conventional techniques.
The Herma linerless technology complements Result Group's existing Ravenwood linerless technology for finished products. In partnership with Ravenwood authorised label printers, Hally Labels, Label Force and Label Manufacturers Australia (LMA), Result Group assists brand owners meet their sustainability goals and deliver the type of eco-friendly packaging that consumers demand.
