February 2011 John R. Rastetter

PVC Disposal Issues Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) is the primary component in today's plate mounting material, like most plastics, PVC does not biodegrade. There are three primary options for disposal: Landfill, Incineration or recycle. Bury it along with the mounted plates and over time hazardous chemicals like dioxin leach from the PVC. (The identity of the corrugators and brand owners are identifiable from the plates) Incineration releases poison gasses and dioxins, the higher the chlorine content the higher the known carcinogen levels. Recycling is an option but at a high cost in labor to separate plates form the mount.

Mounting Material Can we eliminate PVC mounting materials? Yes, and we need to. Brand Owners are committed to delivering “Green” solutions for all aspects of there packaging purchases. Corrugators are experiencing disposal issues and high disposal costs. Landfill of spent box dies creates long term liability for you, the Brand owners and the Corrugators.

Eco-Mount Non PVC Engineered Elastomer Extruded, engineered elastomer, formulated to have the physical and performance characteristics of PVC without the disposal issues. Flexible yet strong Crack / fracture resistant No welting from adhesives or sealers Low curl set. Confirmed performance through vigorous on press testing

Physical Characteristics Flexible yet strong Eco-mount is provided in 62” and 72” widths at 100’ in length Roll set is slightly less than PVC but maintains a curl to allow dies to be stood on end. Crack / fracture resistant When cutting into sheets manually or using a Kongsberg table the edges are sharp and fracture free No fractures when stitching the lead and tail strips

Physical Characteristics High Bond with PSA adhesive Through testing we found that some adhesive systems perform better than others. Not all acrylic PAS adhesive systems are the same. Use of adhesion promoters are an option. No welting, adhesives or sealers Unlike PVC, Eco-Mount is not affected by typical solvents used in plate sealers or common solvents used in cleaning. There is no distortion of the mount.

Market Testing 8 FPPA members have evaluated Eco-Mount Over 20 production jobs have been produced with Eco-mount with multiple press runs over the past 6 months. Press results show performance similar to PCV with no reported failures. Full introduction of product is expected in 60 days. Continuous product improvement. We will be incorporating suggested improvements going forward

Results of Market Testing Strengths Competitively priced with PVC Easy handling Good PSA adhesive bond Good die sealer bond Weaknesses Punched tail edge slots show slight deformation Possible need to change PSA to achieve highest bond Possible fracture when dropped from height

Improved Sustainability with Eco-Mount Eco-mount is designed for use as a fuel source, in combination with plates and mounting hardware. Reclaiming the high BTU value. In partnership with Geocycle, box dies are used as fuel source at cement kilns. Ash generated is blended into the concrete product. Certificate of destruction is provided, eliminating long term liabilities.

How the Program Works The company wishing to dispose of Eco-Mount is set up in the program They collect spent dies in a cubic yard box or skid They call FedEx freight for pickup Waste is shipped to a Geocycle facility They are charged by FedEx for the freight They are charged by Eco-Mount for the disposal cost After incineration they receive a certificate of destruction It is important to insure that only Eco-Mount dies are shipped

FPPA's Sustainability Vision Statement: "The vision is to advocate and communicate a positive environmental philosophy as it applies to the flexo plate making industry — supporting innovative manufacturing technologies and practices that promote environmental and economic health."

Eco-Mount Widths 62” and 72” Thickness0.030” ”-0.001” TransparencyOpaque Black Curl SetSimilar to PVC Cut & trimClean cut, no shattering SewingNo cracks or shatters FlexibilityHigher than PVC Chemical resistanceNo solvent attack from adhesives or sealants Weight10% lighter than PVC