Success Story
  
   
   
 

A Convenient Solution
Unique and Environmentally Friendly Packaging

The properties of EarthFirst® made it the perfect material to enclose Paramount's release of former Vice President Al Gore's documentary entitled "An Inconvenient Truth: A Global Warning". The typical plastic DVD case was shunned by producers and Mr. Gore in favor of minimal packaging in a recycled cardboard sleeve. Sealing this sleeve for retail in clear EarthFirst® PLA film would wrap up the whole message perfectly.

Being green is not always easy. In order to produce the sleeve they needed, Plastic Suppliers turned to UniKeep and EnvyPak™. Although the properties of EarthFirst® PLA Film mirror traditional petrochemical based plastic films in nearly all aspects, Plastic Suppliers had not found a converter able to provide nearly all aspects, Plastic Suppliers had not found a converter able to provide the premium look that was required in time to make the critical holiday release.

Double Feature: "An Inconvenient Truth" landed on retail shelves enclosed in a distinctive EnvyPak™ sleeve made with EarthFirst® PLA Film from Plastic Suppliers. Both the high-profile documentary DVD and it's packaging send a powerful message about the environmental impact of many everyday choices.

 

 

 

The Customer

Since 1949, Plastic Suppliers has manufactured a variety of plastic products that are converted for use world wide in the flexible packaging, windowing, label and shrink sleeve label markets. Plastic Suppliers has a long history of strategic partnerships that produce effective an efficient solutions, often seeking out new technologies and markets.

In 2004 at their columbus, Ohio facility, Plastic Suppliers, Inc. became the world's first plastic manufacturer to produce a PLA based blown film. This revolutionary plastic film is virtually indistinguishable from traditional plastic film, but the PLA is produced from an annually renewable and sustainable resource: corn. EarthFirst® PLA film is a registered trademark of Plastic Suppliers, and utilizes NatureWorks® PLA resin supplied by NatureWorks® LLC.

EarthFirst® PLA Film is uniquely situated to revolutionize many plastic markets, especially packaging.

EarthFirst® PLA film can be printed, it is FDA compliant, and its pricing is more stable than petrochemical alternatives. The Biodegradable Products Institute (BPI), and DinCertco certify EarthFirst® as compostable materials under the ASTM 6400 standards. EarthFirst® breaks away from the negative stigma of traditional petrochemical-laden plastic films and offers a product that is truly environmentally friendly.

What is EarthFirst® PLA Film? EarthFirst® PLA Film is manufactured from a biopolymer resin called polylactic acid (PLA) from NatureWorks® LLC. PLA is the first biopolymer resin to be used in any large scale production to produce a completely compostable and sustainable package.

Source: Plastic Suppliers

"EarthFirst® PLA Film is a perfect fit for EnvyPak™ and for UniKeep," said Ross Youngs, CEO of UniKeep. "As a company, we are committed to finding better alternatives for products and processes that many people overlook. It comes as no surprise to us that plastic can be environmentally friendly and that EnvyPak™ is the perfect technology for converting this film, mad from a sustainable resource, into effective marketing products and retail packaging."

EnvyPak™ Logo EnvyPak™ is a creative line of crystal clear polypropylene and paper/poly envelopes and mailers.


UniKeep stocks many standard sizes of EnvyPak™ products including booklet mailers, catalog mailers and archival storage envelopes.

Virtually any size and design can be custom manufactured, including the specification of EarthFirst® PLA custom imprinting of high-resolution graphics.

"EarthFirst® PLA Film is a perfect fit for EnvyPak™ and for UniKeep."
-- Ross Youngs, Inventor and CEO, UniKeep