Coldpack and Danafilms Introduce Temperature-controlled Packaging

WESTBOROUGH, Mass.—Custom-made candies shipped factory direct to consumers, rely not only on their hard outer shell for protection, but also an innovative packaging structure called the AirLiner, to ensure the candies melt in your mouth—and never in the mail.

AirLiner—produced by San Diego-based Coldpack with barrier films by Westborough, Massachusetts-based Danafilms—is an inflatable, insulating plastic liner that offers both the exceptional temperature control and protection from rough handling that delicate food items require. Coldpack offers dozens of variations on the AirLiner package based on size, application and different degrees of thermal performance. The AirLiner protects the candies from warmer temperatures or from becoming brittle in colder climes as well.

The key to the AirLiner’s success lies within the multiple layers of film, which form air-filled baffles to insulate a shipment’s contents. The number of baffles is directly related to the structure’s thermal characteristics, and acts as much as a cushion as a temperature control.

INNOVATIONS INSIDE THE BOX

While the AirLiner offers similar insulation and cushioning properties compared to its rigid foam counterparts, the AirLiner’s smaller footprint (prior to being inflated and shipped) helps it to stand head and shoulders above the competition.

When a shipment of AirLiners arrives at the plant, the inflatable liners arrive flat and casepacked, with more than 100 units per case. At that volume, one truckload of AirLiners is roughly equivalent to 30 truckloads of bulkier foam alternatives. That inbound freight savings, combined with raw materials savings as compared to foam, also helps the candy maker to realize a 96 percent improvement on its packaging’s carbon footprint.

“This is an innovative extension of void-fill packaging, and by using less material versus styrofoam, we’re making the most of sustainability,” says Steve Crimmin, sales manager at Danafilms. While a consumer opening a box of personalized candies may see simply a plastic liner, Crimmin explains that the multiple layers of film use several innovations for maximum product protection.