R-Flute is a new type of corrugated fluting designed to help customers sell more, reduce supply chain costs and operate sustainably.
A meticulous development process has resulted in a profile in which the flutes are smaller and closer together than B-Flute, whilst optimising board strength. It is ideal for fast moving consumer goods. Compared with the widely used B-Flute, R-Flute delivers better printing, better appearance, machine line efficiencies and dramatic savings in logistics, whilst continuing to offer the necessary protection.
R-Flute’s calliper is 20% less than B-Flute’s, so that 20% more corrugated can be loaded onto a pallet. This means up to 20% fewer deliveries to handle, up to 20% less storage space and correspondingly fewer pallet movements in the factory.
Following an intensive period of design, development and trials in numerous applications, R-Flute usage has accelerated very quickly. It is already the second most popular type of fluting bought by DS Smith Packaging’s customers.
When launching its award winning innovative bake-in-bag product, The Saucy Fish Company turned to DS Smith Packaging Louth for its retail ready pack. The team at Louth specified R-Flute. This medium provides a superior performance in both print and pack construction and this helped to develop a retail ready pack that perfectly complements the shaped inner cartons, holding them securely and in a way that presents the full face of the primary pack to the consumer.
The closeness and structure of the flute tips, when compared to B-flute, enables the pack to fold very accurately, so that the finished pack is always neat and square. The perforated opening works reliably and gives a neat appearance on the shelf.
A long-standing customer of DS Smith Packaging Featherstone, Ardagh Glass, one of Europe’s largest glass packaging manufacturers, relies on the team at Featherstone to interpret its needs and review any new technology that might bring benefits to their packaging supply chain. That is exactly what happened when Featherstone recognised the impact R-Flute could have on this customer’s packaging line.
The previously used B-flute hampered the packaging process, as the weight of the bottle made an indentation on the board. R-Flute has excellent resistance to crushing caused by bottles or cans and this helps with the ‘sweeping’ nature of the packing process, making it much more effective and reducing line downtime. The crush resistance of R-Flute brought the annual packaging weight down by 160 tonnes. This translates into a reduction of 142 tonnes of CO2 emissions. And 1,700 pallets have been taken out of the supply chain, with 68 fewer trucks now needed for deliveries. What’s more, valuable warehouse space was freed up, saving money and creating more space.
When launching its award winning innovative bake-in-bag product, The Saucy Fish Company turned to DS Smith Packaging Louth for its retail ready pack. Saucy Fish DS Smith Packaging South West was called on by Constellation Europe to develop a new range of wine packs using R-Flute. Constellation
