Developed by four companies – Holmen Iggesund, Krekelberg, Inmaco Solutions and Van de Velde Packaging Group – in a collaborative approach, the Flock Box is a new packaging concept that combines natural fibre flocking technology with paperboard to create a fully recyclable premium gift box.
A plastic-free packaging concept, the Flock Box consists of an embossed outer box and an inner tray with tailored cavities of various shapes and forms which can be used to present different items. The insert’s luxurious look and feel have been created with flocking technology, which uses static electric currents to make fibres stand up and resemble a velvet-like material.
“The Flock Box has been enabled by the development of Holmen Iggesund’s highly formable paperboard Inverform, which has unique characteristics that allow it to be press-formed in the required shapes,” says Per Berglund, Head of Formables at Holmen Iggesund.
For this joint project, the Dutch company Krekelberg, which has been manufacturing flocked materials since 1948, has flocked Inverform with cellulose fibres, adding a high luxury feel to the board. The fibres can be coloured in any specific shade required.
Inmaco Solutions, a Dutch machine builder, made the tools to press-form the flocked Inverform inserts for the Flock Box. In addition, Van de Velde Packaging Group has created the outer Flock Box packaging from Holmen Iggesund’s Invercote DUO paperboard, and die-cut the top part of the inserts made from Inverform. The gift box surface was treated to emphasise the embossing and luxury feel of the gift box.
“We are seeing more and more conscious luxury brands wanting to replace plastic with fibre-based solutions. The Flock Box is made of board and fibres that are 100% recyclable in the existing paper collection stream, contributing directly to a circular packaging ecosystem. Flocked fibre-based inlays could replace large quantities of plastic inlays,” highlights Berglund.
The Flock Box is made from paperboards supplied by Holmen Iggesund from sustainably managed forests. The paperboards consist of fresh wood fibres, a renewable raw material well suited for recycling. The outer box is made from Invercote DUO, which has printing surfaces that enable optimal reproduction of the most sophisticated printing images. The inner tray is made from Inverform, a paperboard with high stiffness designed for stable pressed and folded trays with high visual appeal.
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