Packaging company Amcor has launched a new technology that promises
to simplify the way liquids such as drinks are bottled.
The technology, known as Liquiform, uses the liquid itself
(soft drink, shampoo, etc.) to hydraulically form the bottle. The forming and
filling processes are done simultaneously on the one machine and no compressed
air is needed.
Amcor said in a statement it expects that, for consumer
product manufacturers, the technology will reduce capital costs and improve
operating efficiency and product quality. The company claims that it delivers a
reduction in operating costs of up to 25%, reduced manufacturing risk and
greater flexibility in container design.
Amcor has set up a joint venture which owns the LiquiForm
technology and related intellectual property.
The joint venture has signed agreements with Sidel, a manufacturer
of bottling machinery, Yoshino Kogyosho Co, Japan’s largest plastic bottle
manufacturer, and Nestle Waters. Amcor and Sidel each own a 50% interest in the
joint venture.
The joint venture will issue licences allowing machine
manufacturers to produce and sell equipment using the technology. Global demand
for new blow moulding and filling machines for which LiquiForm would be
suitable is estimated to be approximately 800 machines per annum.
SMH reports that, according to analysts, licence costs are
expected to range from about $100,000 for a small machine to $1 million for a
large machine, or an average $500,000 per machine.