PCC first came to prominence in the late 90s on unveiling what it claimed was the world's first single-stage PET paint container. Offering transparency, lightness and suitability for solvent and water-based paints, it went on to be used by a number of companies.
More recently PCC has focussed, with manufacturing help from a South African converter, on perfecting a two-stage version, which it says will be "significantly cheaper and more versatile than traditional metal and PP packaging". The two-stage technology, now available for 2.5-5 litre cans, allows preforms and lids to be manufactured centrally and then "economically shipped and stored at the paint filling plant" before blowing into finished cans on site. PCC says this dramatically lowers transportation and storage costs, as nested preforms "take up only one tenth the space of finished cans".
Interested converters must buy special reheat stretch-blow moulding machinery, which the company says "should not necessitate major investment".
PCC hopes to see the first UK licence granted this year.
