Make up
Keeping PP squeezable through reactor technology
Challenge
The most aggressive make-up formulas on the market are used in professional settings - runway shows, hair expos, backstage in theatres, movie sets, and cabarets. The make-up has to be thick, close to being paint, and go through application quickly and easily. Hence, when a major brand that got its start selling to make-up artists, models, and photographers needed to solve an issue for a new product, they came to use. The formulation was light and non-reactive on skin, but proved deadly to numerous types of plastic.
Procedure
We had to do one compatibility test after another to ensure we had just the right grade of PP. The customer wanted to keep the professional squeeze bottle format, but creating it in PP while maintaining appropriate barriers from environmental damage was challenging. To ensure correct barrier safeguards without adding layers to the bottle and thereby rendering it unsqueezable, we had to find another solution.
Normally, when PP is used, extra layers are added to create more of a barrier, and may reach up to 5 or 6 sandwiched layers. In this case, adding more layers to the bottle would make it unusable due to extra stiffness. We had to create a reactor.
The reactor concept was implemented to ensure that a very specific coating was added to the single layer of PP to provide extra barrier support as well as glossy sheen that was far more appealing. After several trials, we finally hit upon the right procedure and could provide the right levels of glossiness, barrier protection, and squeezability.
Result
We were able to help launch the product successfully having overcome all of the obstacles interposed. We were also able to source the right squeeze top for the packaging. Even though we did not produce it ourselves, we worked with a trusted, vetted partner and provided the client with extra savings. They didn't have to worry about sourcing it themselves and we got the closures at more competitive price than they could have obtained.
All in all, the client shipped the professional cosmetic line on time, under budget, and conforming to all the requirements they had.