Zip-Pak, a US-based manufacturer of resealable technology for flexible packaging, is establishing a new Engineering and Innovation Center (EIC) at its Carol Stream, Illinois headquarters. With an opening date scheduled for late 2017, the EIC will house 9,100 square feet of laboratory space along with 5,000 square feet of engineering and office space, initially staffing 20 employees.
The new EIC will centralize Zip-Pak’s product innovation and core business functions under one roof. It also places engineering and innovation in close proximity to its core US manufacturing facilities, as well as a number of key customers and supply chain partners.
“Our new EIC will enable us to be more nimble and flexible in responding to the needs of our customers,” said David Pritchard, who was recently named Zip-Pak Director of Global Innovation and Engineering, and will carry out the mission of the EIC. “Enhanced collaboration among our teams of packaging experts, along with our supply chain partners and customers, will provide even greater levels of service, support and cost efficiencies,” said Pritchard in a press release.
In early 2018, Zip-Pak plans to open the doors to the new EIC, inviting supply-chain partners and consumer brand owners to experience a range of resealable solutions in the Zip-Pak innovation pipeline.
Zip-Pak's innovation
Through extensive and ongoing consumer research, Zip-Pak continues to strive toward advancements in resealable solutions. Recent focus group feedback has called attention to areas of consumer concern regarding confidence in a secure seal, and a desire for a more positive experience when initially accessing the product contents of a flexible package. As a result, Zip-Pak has developed several tactile and audible feedback technologies to provide assurance that a resealable package is fully closed.
The company is also working closely with supply chain partners to enhance the experience of first opening a resealable flexible package.
In addition to a focus on new product development, Zip-Pak will continue to develop and deliver application technologies that further extend its legacy. The company’s history already includes inventing the process of applying a zipper to film in a transverse direction, as well as utilizing this application on both vertical form-fill-seal and flow wrappers.
