Composite technology wins US innovator award

Sydney-based Armacel Technology Group has won the 2003 Innovator of Year Award at the North American Association of Independent Corrugated Converters meeting in San Francisco.

Representing 750 members of the corrugated packaging (cardboard) industry, the Association chose Armacel from six finalists for its high impact vacuum process that allows a tough co-polymer plastic layer to be forged onto a wide range of preformed substrate or core material such as cardboard. The Association award cited the Armacel technology for its ability to enable greater industry product diversification in a highly competitive marketplace.

The potential of that marketplace is substantial - with over 1500 corrugated packaging plants in the United States and Canada alone producing 400 billion square feet in packaging material and world cardboard manufacturers producing 132 billion sq m of material valued at almost $95 billion in 2002. Armacel is no stranger to innovative product applications with its technology employed in architectural panels and lightweight environmentally friendly refrigerators in the Olympic village at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.

The Armacel composite can be produced using various core and surface materials - and is particularly suitable for applications using recycled core and/or surface materials such as recycled paper and plastic to produce a composite product with high strength to weight ratio and good insulation properties. Some products already produced using the Armacel process include refrigeration cabinets, air conditioning components, packaging products, shipping pallets and containers, building products, safety helmets, surfboards, sports equipment and furniture.