Coatings have the ability to transform and even ADD functionality. Think about it – a fresh coat of paint can make a room look clean and bright, a powder coating can prevent corrosion, and an anti-reflective coating can keep your spectacles free of glare. Paper is no exception. Through the use of machine chemistry and/or coatings, paper is transformed and capable of entirely different end-use applications. Check out some of the before and after paper transformations below.
1. Silicone Coated
A silicone coating prevents sticking of one object/material to another. There are varying methods for applying this type of coating, with a roll coater and air knife coater being two of the common machines used in the industry. Ivex utilizes an air knife coater to apply a thin, even layer onto our paper for several applications where a 40-140# sheet is needed. In our carpet seaming tape, the silicone coating on the non-glue side prevents blocking – a situation where the hot melt glue sticks to the back side of the sheet when rolled up. There is also the added benefit of reduced friction properties, allowing the seam to move easily across the floor.
2. Grease Resistance
Whether it’s from the bag of your last-minute, drive-thru meal or a car part, there’s nothing more frustrating than stubborn grease leaking through onto your car seat! Our grease resistant coatings keep grease on the inside of packaging. One of the uses for this practical coating is as a closure for dog food. You’ll even find it in several colors like blue, black and white.
3. Anti-Skid
Anti-skid/Anti-slip coatings are used to create additional friction between two objects to prevent sliding. They are especially useful in creating a much larger slide angle between stacked boxes on pallets. Ivex has produced paper with an anti-skid coating for use in disposable paper footwear to prevent workers from sliding on slick floors. Although some coating is ideal for anti-skid pallet sheets, our crepe paper is being trialed and tested for use without a coating. The texture and structure of our heavyweight crepe contains a higher built-in slide angle than a kraft sheet, which may serve as a more cost-effective, environmentally-friendly option.
4. Wet Strength
A common, fun experiment to test wet strength is with paper towels. However, you can imagine this same functionality is useful in heavyweight paper applications as well. Think of lawn bags holding up to wet grass, trimmings and other yard debris, or industrial processing applications that require handling of materials despite large amounts of water present. Recently, Ivex has seen an increased need for cellulose filter paper with wet strength. Our crepe paper fits this bill and comes with two rare benefits – low lead times and impeccable customer service.
5. Anti-Wicking
While capillary action makes for a fun science experiment, it can wreak havoc on paper products, especially packaging. Paper linerboards/trays with anti-wicking properties are especially useful in frozen food storage applications. As temperatures fluctuate, a barrier is needed to protect food products from water that is produced– which is where anti-wicking paper comes in. The “after” picture above shows Ivex anti-wicking paper in action. After 7 days, there was less than 2% wicking. In our trials, our paper prevented any substantial wicking for up to 3 weeks.
At the risk of sounding too much like a weight-loss commercial, YOU TOO CAN GET THESE RESULTS! All joking aside, Ivex is capable of creating customized grades with chemistry and coatings to provide customers with the products they need. The combination of small mill size, in-house knowledge and, frankly, just plain willingness to do it, have kept us in business for 105 years and counting.
Let us know how you’d like to transform your paper it the comments below or request a sample folder customized to your needs!