Polyethylene Film Extrusion
The benefits of high-density and linear low-density polyethylene film go beyond flexibility in a plastic solution. It’s also customizable, versatile, cost-effective, and appeals to customers.
High-Quality Pellets for Your Film Needs
Polyethylene film is a popular choice due to its thin yet durable composition. Plastic film is made from a variety of polyethylene resins, including Low-Density Polyethylene (LDPE), Linear Low-Density Polyethylene (LLDPE), and High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE), along with other types of plastic such as Polypropylene (PP) and Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC).
While HDPE and LLDPE film are both in the polyethylene family, the materials provide plastic converters with specific benefits that make them ideal for different applications.
For example, HDPE is well known for the following benefits when used as a film:
- Moisture and chemical resistance
- High material strength
- Affordable and reusable
These qualities make it ideal for applications such as deep-freezer bags or liquid packaging for household chemical products like detergents and cleaning supplies.
LLDPE is well known for qualities such as:
- Resistance to acids and oils
- Clear, glossy appearance
- Resistance to environmental stress cracking
- High puncture and impact resistance
LLDPE is often used for protective packaging, such as shrink or stretch films for food packaging, due to its high resistance to breaking and outside contaminants.
Whether you’re looking for HDPE or LLDPE, or both, Shell Polymers can help find the best resin for your specific needs. We are focused on providing high-quality, consistent LLDPE and HDPE resins. That includes providing customers with the lowest dust-containing pellets to ensure quality and provide peace of mind that our pellets will run smoothly through your equipment.
Key markets for blown film
Food and Beverage
Food and beverages continue to be one of the fastest-growing spaces in plastics. To keep up with demand, converters need a consistent and confident PE supply. That’s why Shell Polymers will provide HDPE and LLDPE for use across many food and beverage packaging applications.
Polymer Packaging
The film used for polymer packaging is a critical part of innovation and growth in both consumer and industrial applications.
Quality Control Converters Can Rely On
To set our technical service team up for success, we're filling the applications hall with state-of-the-art commercial equipment and implementing best-in-class quality control standards. As a result, customers can work hand-in-hand with our experts to test or qualify resin without having to shut down their business’ production lines. Customers can also rely on Shell Polymers to provide high-quality resin with low amounts of floss, dust, and angel hairs.
Dust becomes a major issue as it causes pellets to bounce and chip. That’s why Shell Polymers gives converters the lowest dust-containing pellets to ensure high-quality resin and provide peace of mind when the pellets run through machines. To provide that high-quality resin, we use scalperators to remove dust and angel hair from the pellets, removing the challenges they cause from converters’ operations.
Our Analytical Lab will also be a key component when it comes to producing the right pellet for our customers. Our lab will analyze the properties of the ingredients that go into a product and ensure that what we deliver is what our customers need.
In-House Polyethylene Film Expertise
Dan Falla, Senior Technical Service Engineer, Film
Dan Falla has spent more than 30 years helping customers to innovate in new product and application development, and is a Fellow with the Society of Plastics Engineers, Membership Chair Flexible Packaging Division, Recycle Division Councilor a Fellow with the Society of Plastics Engineers. Dan is a Lifetime Achievement recipient with the Chemistry Industry Association of Canada.
Senior Technical Service Engineer & Competency Advisor
Shaun Pirtle has more than 34 years of experience in polyolefins manufacturing, customer support, and product innovation. Before joining the Shell Polymer team, Shaun worked for major North American film and resin producers in product development and as the Application Technology Leader for the Industrial & Consumer Packaging segment.
Technical Resources from Our Film Experts
Blown Film Troubleshooting: Reduce Line Downtime with Expert Tips on Lubricants
Breakdowns, failures, and unplanned downtime can have severe impacts on a business. Fortunately, converters can leverage lubricants to minimize downtime on blown film lines.
Ensure a Trouble-Free Blown Film Extrusion Machine Shutdown
Learn about tried-and-tested procedures that help blown film operators maximize their blown film machines’ utilization.
Improve PE Blown Film Extrusion Operations with These Five Expert Insights
There are countless opportunities to improve operations, provided PE blown film extrusion converters know where to look and what to look for.
Overcome Production Challenges for Plastics Converters with these Output-Boosting Expert Tips
Keep up with consumer demand and increase output in PE Film and Injection Molding applications with these expert insights from our Polymer Pros, Dan Falla and Elliot Carnevale.