Simply squeeze and mix

With a chemically resistant and soft-touch thermoplastic elastomer (TPE) made by KRAIBURG TPE, the product developers at CORADIN, a French injection molder, have redefined the way liquid cosmetics are dosed and prepared. The flexible dosing element made of TPE, which is integrated into the base of the patented ECODIS® and has won several awards, allows comfortable and clean application of care products.

The sustainable cosmetics market is growing, with more and more consumers also expecting the packaging to be eco-friendly and save resources. CORADIN's innovative ECODIS® is manufactured in the respect of the environment and its design aims to minimize the weight of the plastics used while achieving maximum functionality.

CORADIN was looking for a soft-touch material for the flexible dosing element fitting into the base of the dispenser – a material ensuring both a pleasant soft touch and high resistance to cosmetic ingredients such as vitamin C, and capable of being processed together with polypropylene (PP) utilizing cost-effective, multi-component injection molding without a need for additional bonding agents.

“During extensive testing of several compounds, a specific THERMOLAST® material showed the optimum characteristics required for our sophisticated dispenser,” says Florence Bidamant, Associate, General Manager & CCMO of CORADIN. “We were also impressed by the technical expertise and market knowledge of KRAIBURG TPE’s specialists, who provided excellent support from our first inquiry about injection molding trials to series production.”

The dispenser is one of several application projects that have benefited from the close collaboration between CORADIN and KRAIBURG TPE. The ECODIS® 2in1 is a convenient-to-use, cylindrical dispenser version that contains an additional cartridge inside to accommodate a second cosmetic liquid or powder. Slightly squeezing the flexible dosing element in the base perforates the cartridge to enable the content to mix with the main component in the container. Squeezing again then applies the ready-to-use care formula to the skin.

In this way, liquid skin and hair care products such as emulsions, lotions, make-up foundation, skin-lightening products, anti-wrinkle creams, beauty treatments, and regenerative products can be freshly made immediately before they are applied. Attachments with outlet openings of 0.2 to 3.0 mm are available depending on the viscosity of the final product. The patented “mixology” of the ECODIS® 2in1 has already won several awards.

CORADIN supplies dispensers with capacities of 10, 15 and 30 mL for customers all over Europe and North America, including several well-known cosmetics manufacturers. The TPE compound for the dosing element can be easily colored to support the user’s brand design or product-specific color coding.

“Innovative packaging requires innovative materials to combine sales-enhancing design with consumer-friendly functionality, cost-effective manufacture, and environmentally appropriate sustainability,” says Michael Pollmann, Director Sales and Marketing EMEA at KRAIBURG TPE. “We are pleased that the ECODIS® Dispenser and ECODIS® 2in1 have been a marketing success with our compound. The application underlines our strong focus on developing customized thermoplastic elastomers for sophisticated cosmetics packaging.”