Shields Up!

Joe Heinemann, president of Rayven, Inc. says that new developments in eco-friendly adhesives, substrates, and release liners will continue to come onto the market, but cautions that “at this point, they are not cost-competitive with traditional products. But over time this should change.”

Reducing the carbon footprint involved with coating and laminating will increase the amount of research into viable alternatives to more traditional, energy-intensive technologies according to Ruenzel. “This means that solventless technology will continue to expand at the expense of solvent-based and even water-based applications.” He adds that solventless is a zero percent VOC process and that solventless laminators are very energy-efficient because no drying system is required. “While it is premature to assess the future of EB or UV adhesive laminating,” he says, “it would be reasonable to assume that some applications within a narrow process range could emerge.” All that being said, Ruenzel claims that many applications that require solvent- or water-based adhesives and coatings will remain for many years to come. “It will be incumbent upon the machine manufacturers to develop more efficient drying systems that will reduce energy costs,” he asserts.