A new packaging innovation has been gracing the shelves of French supermarkets since April 2009. Developed by the Belgian company Wallbox (Mouscron; www.newcaps.com), the “newcaps technology” allows packaging companies to manufacture the containers for their foodstuffs and fill in their product in-house.

Using tools developed by Loomans (Lommel / Belgium; http://users.telenet.be/loomans/loomansplastics.htm), Wallbox develops a container assembly and filling machine to meet its clients’ specific needs. This machine is delivered to the packager alongside the various components needed for assembling the foodstuff container, including base, lid and body. The process allows companies such as the Kraft Group (Foxborough, Massachusetts / USA; www.thekraftgroup.com), whose subsidiary Lu Belin is using the newcaps technology for its cracker packaging, to manufacture the container and to fill it with the foodstuff in-house.

In a process comprising eight separate steps, the Wallbox machine first bends the container body into the right shape and melts it together so no air can penetrate the contents. The body is then glued to the base. In the next few steps the packaging company can fill the container with its product. Lastly, the re-sealable lid is glued to the box.

Newcaps technology allows for easy adjustments in the design of the container’s base and lid and can process bodies made of either plastics or carton in widths of between 80 and 280mm. The machine also can process extra layers, like EVOH, to increase the contents’ shelf life. The in-house assembly is ideal for companies that have little storage space for their packaging materials, Wallbox says.