Polyformes, a closed cell polyethylene foam converter based in the UK, has become the exclusive distributor for Arplank expanded polyethylene foam in the UK, the company has announced. The material has been developed and is produced by the leading Japanese foam corporation, JSP at the company's European plant in the Czech Republic. The two companies have formed what Arplank Sales Manager, Jiri Slezak referred to as a ‘strategic partnership… to make the packaging industry more sustainable’.
As a cushioning material for packaging products requiring high levels of shock absorption, Arplank is a highly resilient, non-cross-linked closed cell bead foam product made out of expanded polyethylene (EPE).
During the fusion process, the polyethylene’s outer shells are thermally bonded creating a three dimensional sphere or bead that absorbs and dissipates energy. The beads are then moulded into blocks. Chemically inert, 100% recyclable and produced without VOC blowing agents, the Arplank produced at the Czech plant in Cheb also contains 25% recycled content.
Polyformes has ‘put the material through its paces’, said Adrian Green, the company’s Head of Sales and Marketing.
“Not only do we like the protective qualities it gives but how receptive it is to the many operations used in converting it such as die cutting, splitting, water jet, laser, CNC milling, sawing and moulding. It fits in nicely with many solutions we provide to our clients and now enables them to become more sustainable.”