EnviroCool

Video About Envirocool.

Envirocool Packaging

“Package Responsibly, Use Environmentally Cool Packaging”

Introducing EnviroCool®, our Eco Friendly Temperature Controlled E-commerce Food Packaging, developed initially for the Food Industry.

So What’s So Great About EnviroCool®?

  • It’s Food-Safe – Maintains the chilled cold chain (+2- to +8) for a minimum of 24hrs, tested using extreme temperature profiles of a constant 30 degrees Celsius.
  • It’s Organic – Made from a selection of paper types including recycled and natural Kraft paper, it is quite literally plant based. Produced using trees controlled by the forestry stewardship council (FSC)
  • It’s Biodegradable – Being made from paper, this is totally biodegradable packaging. Unbleached fibres ensures the soil and water table remain unpolluted.
  • It’s Compostable – This packaging is 100% compostable thanks to its paper makeup
  • It’s Recyclable – As EnviroCool® is produced entirely from paper, it is 100% recyclable with every council in the UK using kerbside collections.
  • It’s Recycled  EnviroCool® contains up to 30% recycled paper content. The hexagonal core is made entirely from recycled paper, which gives new purpose to old products
  • It’s Courier Tough – We are still testing exactly how strong EnviroCool® is, so watch out for a series of challenges putting EnviroCool® to the test, however, due to it’s incredible structural strength, receiving complaints from customers about courier damage should become a thing of the past! We have initially tested EnviroCool® with 250kg of pressure and cannot destroy the box, so bring on the careless Courier,  The Force Is Strong with this one!
  • It’s Vegan Kind – Absolutely no animal products are used in EnviroCool®; it’s conscience-free!
  • It’s Moisture Resistant – By using a heavy grade virgin fibre paper on the outer layers, EnviroCool® becomes protected with a natural moisture barrier/resistance. This means there is no need for wax or PE coatings to protect the integrity.

Can you beat our Eco-friendly packaging?

EnviroCool® FAQs

I’ve seen other planet & environmentally friendly packaging products, what makes EnviroCool® so special?

Whilst there are a couple of other products on the market ticking a few of the same Eco-friendly boxes, we challenge you to find another system that ticks this many boxes COMBINED with the same level of structural strength that EnviroCool® offers.

Most systems rely heavily on a thick outer wall box for the structural strength, but EnviroCool® holds it’s strength in its hexagonal core. This means it can easily be used with a cheaper, thinner outer box if required, to which other systems simply cannot compete!

Also, EnviroCool® doesn’t use any plastic, man-made fibres, animal products, polystyrene or any other product David Attenborough would be ashamed of……it really could be the future for temperature controlled, environmentally friendly packaging!

So how does EnviroCool® work?

Logistically, EnviroCool® is an entirely paper-based panel which arrives flat packed. It can be assembled in seconds and is a fully recyclable, compostable and biodegradable packaging solution designed to meet the growing needs for sustainable, Eco friendly packaging.

Technically, the simple answer is ‘Science’.

The longer answer is more complex. Through extensive in-house testing, we’ve concluded that the EnviroCool® panels perform like an unventilated air gap.

Air gaps are commonly implemented in the construction of buildings as a means of improving the overall insulation (U-Value) of homes and offices. The still or trapped air inside the air gap possesses exceptional insulative properties, which we can then give a ‘K’ Value to. This represents the thermal conductivity of a material; that is, how easily energy (heat/cold) passes across it. The lower the K Value number, the better the material.

EnviroCool® panels consist of a paper-based hexagonal structure sandwiched between two heavy duty paper liners. The hexagonal structure creates a rigid barrier of still air and divides the panels into multiple sealed air convection pockets. Since the panel is predominantly air with a relatively small content of paper, the overall thermal conductivity (K Value) of EnviroCool® is similar to that of still air. The smaller hexagonal sealed air pockets also minimise energy transfer via convection due to the restricted air movement.

For reference, the K-values of Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) are 0.030 W/m.K. EnviroCool® boasts a K-value of 0.026 W/m.K (temperature dependent). That makes it quite a development in the world of stale ‘me-too’ packaging!

How does EnviroCool® perform?

Unlike our competitors, we don’t believe in quoting figures based on soft or easy temperature profiles just to win new business; doing this will only result in unhappy customers when the products don’t act as expected in an extreme temperature profile.

To make sure our products work all the time, every time, we test using an extreme temperature profile set. This really shows how our products perform in the most extreme circumstances.

What does that mean?

We all know that the temperatures do not stay constant through a 24 hour period, they fluctuate as time goes on. The industry calls this ‘Temperature Profiling’.

At Hydropac, we use a ‘temperature profile’ set to a constant temperature throughout the test, these are:

  • Constant 30˚c for an exceptionally unlikely hot Summer’s day (This would mean peaks at 40˚c at some points and Nightime temperature of 25˚c too!)
  • Constant 25˚c for a very hot Summer day (we can but dream.. but this too would mean an unlikly day with peaks at 35˚c and a very sticky night)
  • Constant 20˚c for an good average UK Summer day (Met Office data suggests this is a far more likely for the UK with peaks reaching 30˚c for a few hours)
  • Constant 10˚c for an average winter’s day (This is a good average Winters day with lows of  0˚c during the day likely)

Why do we do this?

We test all new products to evaluate their potential. If the product in question can perform and maintain a constant temperature during these extreme tests, imagine what it could do if we introduced a soft fluctuating profile!

Our test data (available on the Technical Data tab) will highlight the number of ice packs per box used for these extreme test profiles. In reality, you will use a lot less for a typical day and likely less still once EnviroCool® is filled with your food type.

How can I dispose of EnviroCool® once I am finished with it?

EnviroCool® is 100% recyclable and should always be put into either domestic or commercial recycling bins to be recycled for re-use. There is not a single council in the UK that does not recycle paper, so no excuses on that score!

Don’t panic though, if you have accidentally thrown it into general waste, EnviroCool® is also biodegradeable and compostable, so your conscience can still be clear. We’d prefer it does get recycled though, as this is much more organic way of disposing of it, and it keeps the recycled-to-recycled wheel turning!

Reusing EnviroCool®! 

Below are just a few ideas for re-using EnviroCool® based on it’s characteristics, but we’d love to hear from you and what you have re-used EnviroCool® for.

  1. Insulate your loft space – Cut to suit and place between your rafters.
  2. Use it again to send goods through the post
  3. Burn it – Use as fire material and keep that log burner stoked with a natural material
  4. Build your children a play house or for yourself if you’re a big kid!
  5. Recycle it!….