Waldkraiburg, February, 23, 2011. When the Kutterer Mauer AG, a specialist in closure concepts for packagings, launched development for a novel closure system, it placed its bets on materials made by KRAIBURG TPE. This new closure can be opened quickly and easily with just one hand. Fingertip pressure is enough to make the cap pop open. It can be closed again just as easily. This functionality was made possible by thermoplastic elastomers in the THERMOLAST® K product group, formulated by the TPE specialists in the Bavarian town of Waldkraiburg. These compounds offer excellent resilience, a high degree of elasticity and pleasant touch, making them a natural for use in the packaging market. What’s more, they can be made up quickly and economically in a two-component co-injection process. They are amenable to recycling and can be dyed in any of many color shades. This new closure has already been adopted for hairdressing products such as the velvet curl cream and the smooth straightening cream made by Schwarzkopf. The closure system, manufactured separate from the container, can also be used for a number of additional packaging types. These might include containers used for cosmetics or even in the foods industry.

Fingertip opening: Clever cap using TPE
The new closure system devised by Kutterer Mauer AG relegates cumbersome flip and screw tops to the past. All this is made possible by the compounds used here, drawn from the THERMOLAST® K product group made by KRAIBURG TPE. Applying a fingertip to the pressure point, made of TPE, is enough to cause the hinge web – also made of TPE, to pop the cover open. It can be closed just as easily, without any signs of fatigue. “The properties of the TPE material – since they match our new development perfectly – were what convinced us,” says Klaus Höfflin, Technical Manager at Kutterer Mauer AG. “The high elasticity, excellent resilience and the pleasant and non-slip tactile effects of the KRAIBURG TPE compounds smoothed the way to this highly functional closure system, one that can be used in many sectors, for a wide variety of packaging designs.” The closure is manufactured separately and fits both bottles and tubes. Over and above this, the company profits from significant economies during production, when compared with caps using a form-fit mechanical connection. The two TPE parts can be bonded – reliably, cleanly and economically – to the rigid polypropylene elements in a two-component injection system. Moreover, thermoplastic elastomers offer additional sales arguments that will help convince the final customer. Easy dyeing in a variety of shades along with the option to aromatize the compounds make it possible to set products apart from the competition.

This press release is available for download along with additional information and photo material at
www.kraiburg-tpe.com

KRAIBURG TPE (www.kraiburg-tpe.com) manufactures thermoplastic elastomers based on HSBC (hydrogenated styrene block copolymers) and markets them all around the world. In addition to custom solutions, the company offers under the THERMOLAST® brand name a broad spectrum of standardized compounds to cover a wide range of applications. With its high-performance HIPEX® compound, KRAIBURG TPE is opening up the world of rubber for all the companies that process thermoplastics. The TPE specialist has production sites in Germany, the USA and Malaysia. The sales organization covers Great Britain, France, Italy, Spain, China and India.

The Kutterer Mauer AG (www.kutterermauer.com) emerged from a July 1, 2008, merger of two companies – the Kutterer Kunststofftechnik and the Mauer AG. The new firm develops closure concepts for tubes, bottles and other packaging units.The original companies, both of which were managed as family firms, can draw on decades of experience in this field and welcome every challenge. The successful pooling of expertise and experience in plastics technology offers the best prerequisites here. The closure technology experts render assistance in planning, developing and manufacturing all kinds of plastic closures. The broad product line and custom production exactly in accordance with client specifications make cooperation easy and convenient for the customer.