Peel testing vacuum-formed containers

Customised engineering example

Semi-rigid thermoformed packaging, sealed by film or foil, is commonly tested by the '45-degree peel method'. This best represents how a person would open the package.

The difficulty for testing semi-rigid packaging is always in mechanically holding the container without it becoming deformed and affecting the peel readings.

Our client was testing food packaging featuring multiple cavities in a thermoformed tray.  Mecmesin designed a custom solution to hold by vacuum the semi-flexible tray in a matched recess, at 45 degrees to the test stand column, and to peel the lid from a corner.

The semi-rigid plastic lid was secured in a vice grip and linked to the force gauge by a flexible chain for ease-of-loading. By using vacuum fixtures operators can hold samples securely and perform quick and efficient peel tests.