Flexible packaging leader acts to clear the air
Canadian Packaging
Converting Sustainability Bagging/Weighing Ship & Shore Environmental Inc. TC Transcontinental Packaging Transcontinental FlexstarFlexstar Transcontinental is said to be the most vertically integrated flexible packaging operation in North America
Vancouver-based flexible packaging converter Transcontinental Flexstar has completed the installation of a high-capacity RTO (Regenerative Thermal Oxidizer) pollution abatement system that will reduce its Richmond plants’ air-borne emission by more than 90 per cent, according to the company.
Boasting capacity of 50,000 standard cubic feet per minute, the $2-million investment will help the operation capture VOCs (volatile organic compounds) emitted from the two neighboring facilities’ various exhaust streams originating at the printing presses, laminators, and ink room operations.
Installed in a collaborative effort with Long Beach, Ca.-based pollution abatement specialists Ship & Shore Environmental, Inc., the new RTO swill allow Transcontinental Flexstar—a wholly-owned subsidiary of Montreal-headquartered flexible packaging group TC Transcontinental Packaging—to significantly improve air quality both indoors and outdoors.
“As part of TC Transcontinental Packaging’s commitment towards compliance and social responsibility, our plant was looking to control and capture VOCs,” explains Transcontinental Flexstar’s general manager Marc Bray, “and the installation of this regenerative thermal oxidizer significantly reduces our plant’s emissions.
“We are proud to be the first flexible packaging company in British Columbia’s Lower Mainland to have a system of this caliber.”
Originally started up in 2005, Flexstar Transcontinental is said to be the most vertically integrated flexible packaging operation in North America, specializing in blown extrusion, printing, lamination and converting, including pouchmaking and bidirectional laser scoring, for the cereal, confectionery and snack markets.
Employing 135 people, the company’s Richmond operations comprise a state-of-the-art 61,000-square-foot film extrusion facility and a next-door 30,000-square-foot converting facility housing all the slitting, bagmaking and radial laser scoring equipment.
Both facilities operate on a busy 24/7 schedule throughout most of the year to produce a broad range of high-quality flexible packaging products, both in rollstock and pre-made bags.
According to Bray, who co-founded Flexstar back in 2005, progressive environmental practise have always been at the forefront of the company’s agenda from the outset, as evidenced by the BC Export Award for sustainability it earned in 2008.
TC Transcontinental Packaging president Brian Reid says the company always strives to work with its internal and external stakeholders in a concerted manner to conduct its business responsibly.
“One of our goals is to reduce the environmental footprint of our activities, namely by fostering a forward-thinking culture within our business units,” Reid explains. “Air quality is a top concern, and we are always aiming to limit and control air pollutants, both at the source by choosing new products, and through the exhaust systems of our plants, by capturing VOCs.
“Hence we are very are pleased with the completion of this project at Transcontinental Flexstar.”
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