Precision tool manufacturer Exact has developed Natureline, a completely plastic-free tool product packaging. It consists of 100 percent renewable raw materials and is therefore fully recyclable.
“Avoiding is better than reducing” – this is the motto under which the precision tool manufacturer Exact GmbH & Co. KG launched the Natureline project. “With the development of sustainable product packaging, we want to be a trendsetter in the tool industry,” explains Managing Director Andreas Oemkes. “We must manage to get plastic, polystyrene, foams and co. out of our thinking, but above all out of our processes,” he emphasises.
With Natureline it is possible to establish a zero waste cycle in the entire industry, the company boss is convinced. “We have long been convinced that plastic-based product and logistics packaging is the best solution in terms of product protection and transport,” says Oemkes. Through cooperation with experts from the packaging industry, however, they came to the conclusion that environmentally friendly and intelligent packaging alternatives could also be used for precision tools that fulfilled all industrial requirements. Before plastic packaging became the standard in the tool industry, sheet steel cassettes were widely used.
At the time, many manufacturers wondered whether the end customer would accept the new plastic packaging at all. But they were successful: within a very short time, the sheet steel cassettes were replaced by the new plastic versions. Exact now expects such a change in its Natureline products. The material used consists entirely of renewable raw materials. The basis of the fibre materials is made from 100 percent waste paper and natural substances such as useful hemp or similar natural fibres. The material can be completely recycled, is resistant, shock-absorbent and grease- and water-repellent, Oemkes explains.
The new generation of packaging can be used without any problems in worldwide transport logistics. With the help of multifunctional solutions, the packaging volume can also be significantly reduced. In addition, the new concept eliminates possible additional legal costs such as CO2 taxes or increased levies for plastic packaging. The company says it can already offer the new packaging for the most important product groups. The plan is to successively expand the deployment. Exact has set itself the goal of wrapping almost 80 per cent of its approximately 8,000 products in an environmentally friendly way. These include, among others, taps, countersinks, sheet metal drills/step drills and other precision tools for metalworking in a wide range of sizes and designs. A catalogue for trade partners presenting the plastic-free packaging is in preparation.