How One Flexible Packaging Printer Mixes it Up

Accredo Packaging Inc., the flexible packaging arm of the API Family of Companies, strives to embody the principles of business, social, and environmental sustainability. However lofty these goals, they have their roots in humble beginnings.

The family-owned enterprise was established in October 1986, with operations based in New Orleans as Advance Polybag Inc, a manufacturer of 'T-Shirt' (grocery) bags for the retail and grocery markets. As demand outpaced capacity, new facilities were established in Baltimore, Las Vegas, Oklahoma City, and Chonburi, Thailand.

Flex pack

In 2007, the company decided to broaden its production base and diversify into flexible packaging. To this end, Accredo Packaging was formed in August 2009, and is based in Sugar Land, Texas.

Accredo Packaging is a fully integrated converting company producing flexible packaging with an emphasis on sustainability. It primarily targets consumer packaged goods (CPG) markets in North America, producing a variety of products including co-extruded, laminated, printed, or unprinted barrier roll-stock; pouches; wicketed bags; and bundling film.

To handle its customers flexible packaging needs, Accredo Packaging relies on its stable of 10-color Windmoeller & Hoelscher (W&H) state-of-the-art presses, including a range of Novoflex, Vistaflex and Miraflex presses.

Johnny Dye, director of printing technology, says that the W&H presses were chosen for their high-output capabilities, ability to run efficiently at high speeds, and ease of use. "W&H's ability to maintain very precise registration at high rates of speed was a major determining factor in selecting their presses," he notes. "We push W&H presses to their limits and they respond very well."

The Vistaflex press acquired by Accredo Packaging was the first in the U.S. capable of running at 2,600 fpm, the company boasts. In addition, Dye adds that it provides the capability for exceptionally fast changeovers, "thereby increasing our productivity."

Pursuing opportunities

The company's mission is to be the most ecologically aware flexible packaging manufacturer, while producing best-in-class flexible packaging solutions, points out Executive Vice President Rex Varn.

"We're expanding in all the segments we identified as our target markets," explains Varn. "We will continue our investment program which has allowed Accredo to gain a foothold in the flexible packaging converting market. With our integrated production under one roof, Accredo is able to provide our customers convenient, efficient service at a competitive price."

Varn sees a clear and growing trend of rigid packaging applications moving to a variety of alternative flexible packaging options. "Customers who currently package their product in cans, boxes, and other rigid containers are looking closely at ways to lightweight their packaging for all the 'sustainable' reasons—savings on package cost, materials, and transport, while also reducing its environmental footprint," he contends. "We're well geared to service this market, including stand-up pouches and shaped pouches, as well as laminated rollstock."

Colorful graphics

Another area considered a growth opportunity by Varn is improved print graphics on shrink bundling film. "With Accredo's extended gamut print capability, we have the ability to more easily bring color brilliance to shrink bundle film for bottle collation, as well as towel and tissue overwrap," he maintains. "This will provide the creative designers and brand teams with the ability to bring 'pop' to their brand image. This is very important in the competitive end-user market environment."

Accredo Packaging's extended gamut printing solution adds colors beyond CMYK to the process ink-set to improve the ability to render 'spots' using only process colors. The system allows for the enhancement of the color brilliance of the image itself, adding further value to custom packaging solutions. Additionally, the extended gamut printing process compliments the company's sustainability objectives. Through a mix of the company's proprietary ink delivery system, use of extended color gamut process printing, and press selections, Accredo Packaging is able to:

• Use less substrate at start up;
• Reduce ink waste by up to 95 percent;
• Reduce ink consumption by up to 35 percent;
• Have less ink inventory;
• Eliminate clean-ups between jobs;
• Significantly reduce hazardous return waste;
• Reduce solvent waste by not having to wash-up between color changes;
• Reduce production and cycle time; and,
• Reduce solvent emissions.

Sustainability

Accredo Packaging is a registered member of the EPA's Green Power Partnership, the Organic Trade Association, and is a Certified Minority Business Enterprise.

"Accredo Packaging has integrated sustainability into every aspect of its business model," explains Malcolm Cohn, director of sustainability. "As one of our core values, sustainability is critical in the products we create, our worker safety initiatives, and our environmental policies. Our owners and executives take a leadership role in promoting a sustainable operating environment—whether it's looking at current day-to-day operations or forecasting future needs and requirements."

Accredo Packaging's factory claims to be the first flexible packaging manufacturing facility in the U.S. to be granted LEED Silver certification by the U.S. Green Building Council. It uses 100 percent wind-generated electrical power, with a focus on eliminating waste while minimizing its carbon footprint.

The green power is purchased from TXU Energy and supplies all of its electricity needs. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Accredo Packaging's green power purchase is equivalent to avoiding the carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions of nearly 2,000 passenger vehicles per year, or the CO2 emissions from the electricity use of more than 1,000 average American homes annually.

"We have found that renewable energy is one of the easiest and most effective ways to minimize the impact of carbon emissions, and the increased cost of wind over fossil fuel sourced power was minimal, considering the benefit achieved," Cohn says.

Additional environmentally friendly features of the company's facility include: water-use reduction programs; climate-controlled indoor environment; regenerative thermal oxidizers for the destruction of VOCs, HAPs, and odorous emissions; ozone destructor; and on-site plate manufacturing that does not require solvents or water. For its plates, Accredo Packaging uses a thermal platemaking process that reduces overall energy consumption, emissions, and waste. In addition, the platemaking waste rolls are recovered and incinerated off-site for bio-mass energy, displacing fossil fuel use.

Continuing down the path

The company has commenced building a new 175,000-sq.-ft. extension to its existing 200,000-sq.-ft. manufacturing facility. The expansion, due for completion later this year, has been designed and will be built to meet LEED Silver certification standards.

"There is also a customer-driven aspect to pursuing LEED certification," Cohn explains. "Many of our customers are themselves leaders in their own environmental initiatives. For the most part, communities and industry are beginning to turn the corner on the realization of the planet's limited finite resources. Enough reasons for change are becoming more evident. At Accredo, we wanted to demonstrate our commitment to protecting the environment and helping reduce not only our impact on the planet, but helping our customers to understand what we can do together to reduce the impact."

The company's decision to do this was both value and market driven. "We have management support and we have a workforce that is concerned about how we impact the planet," Cohn concludes. "Along the way we believe our current and future customers will believe in the same ideas." pP