Mid-America Machining Grows Lightweight Packaging Options With Cornerstone Technology

Mid-America Machining, a company specializing in extrusion blow molds and tooling for a range of machinery platforms and applications, introduces Cornerstone Technology molds and design services, a technology that the company contends redefines the strength-to-weight ratio of extrusion blow molded containers.

When applying the patent-pending technology to industry-standard oblong or rectangular shapes, Mid-America Machining says it has successfully demonstrated the ability to reduce the weight of containers by 20-25% while maintaining or improving the existing strength of the bottle. This level of weight reduction is achieved by minimizing the PSR to maximize the strength benefits of available resin in the container.  

“The initial focus was on mature markets where packaging designs have stagnated over time,” says Pete Lobbestael, senior vice president of Mid-America Machining. “The most exciting aspect of this technology is the fact that it is not limited to a specific industry or bottle size. It can be applied to virtually any existing shape that has a rectangular footprint.”

“Blow molding veterans who participate in dairy packaging may recall when Mid-America Machining transformed a significant portion of the domestic dairy market a few years ago with our dairy jug designs,” adds Dave Yenor, vice president of business development for Mid-America Machining. “Our Cornerstone Technology molds build upon the lessons learned in lightweighting dairy shapes and opens up a much broader segment of the packaging industry for bottle weight reduction while maintaining performance requirements.”