Dow Launches First Pack Studios in North America

The Dow Chemical Co.’s Packaging and Specialty Plastics (P&SP) business opened its first Pack Studios focused on laminating adhesive in North America, which is the company’s seventh Pack Studios location globally.

This announcement follows the opening of Pack Studios Singapore in August. Pack Studios Ringwood is aimed at accelerating a range of plastics applications including laminating adhesives projects through a global network of laboratories, technical experts, and testing equipment. Dow’s Pack Studios enable a collaborative innovation process that helps customers deliver faster and more efficient commercialization of new and improved products.

“Pack Studios Ringwood gives our customers an opportunity to leverage Dow’s global network of expertise, broad product portfolio and application testing capabilities with Nordmeccanica’s equipment excellence to accelerate the development of game changing laminating adhesives solutions for the packaging industry,” said Karen S. Carter, North America commercial vice president for Dow Packaging & Specialty Plastics. “Our collaboration with Nordmeccanica will bring benefits to our customers and advance solutions for the entire laminating adhesives industry.”

Dow recently entered a joint collaboration with Nordmeccanica SpA, a worldwide leader in coating, laminating and metallizing machinery, aimed at driving laminating adhesives development. The collaboration led to the opening of Dow’s Pack Studios in Mozzate, Italy in 2015, the first Pack Studios customized to address the needs of Dow’s laminating adhesives customers. Pack Studios Ringwood will offer similar capabilities to its customers. The facility will serve as an innovation and technology training center for North America, equipped with a collaboration room and an industrial-scale Nordmeccanica Super Combi 3000 laminator line for faster commercialization of new adhesive solutions. This state-of-the-art equipment allows customers to test, prototype and bring forward innovations to advance solutions for the laminating adhesives industry without interrupting their own commercial production.

“The collaboration between Dow and Nordmeccanica will continue to drive innovation and fuel the growth of the laminating adhesives industry for many years to come,” said Vincenzo Cerciello, Nordmeccanica N.A. president. “Innovation is the result of combined efforts from multiple players, and Pack Studios Ringwood provides customers with an environment to deliver more efficient and improved products.”

Through Pack Studios Ringwood, Dow looks to bring forward developments to advance the laminating adhesives industry through cost reduction and reduced cycle time on fabrication, prototyping and testing. Here, visitors will be able to work on-site with Dow’s dedicated technical teams and network of industry experts in laminating adhesive application, materials and design. Key capabilities include:

•    Industry-scale equipment, including Nordmeccanica Super Combi 3000 laminator line
•    Rapid prototyping and modeling technologies of laminating adhesives for faster innovation and product development
•    Application testing capabilities

Pack Studios Ringwood is founded on Dow’s strong legacy of materials science. It joins the ranks of six established Pack Studios facilities in Freeport, TX; Horgen, Switzerland; São Paulo, Brazil; Shanghai, China; Mozzate, Italy; and Singapore. The Ringwood, IL facility will continue to connect customers with Dow’s global network capabilities and expertise across the value chain - including resins, lamination, packaging design, converting, and prototyping.

For related articles, news, and equipment reviews, visit our Packaging & Bagging Equipment Zone

Click here for a List of Packaging & Bagging Equipment Manufacturers