Liberty Intercept Blog

Liberty Packaging enjoys long-term affiliations with some first class innovative organizations. We've been involved with NDIA New England, IEEE, and ThomasNet (formerly Thomas Register) for many years, and more recently have joined forces with both SME and Women in Packaging.

We’re often asked: when considering Intercept Technology heavy duty flexible film barrier packaging for the storage and/or shipping of electronics, which product would be best?  Intercept barrier protection is currently used for all sorts of electronics such as complete equipment, circuit cards, printed wire boards, chassis and frames, even the most sensitive devices and chips.

Here are three Intercept materials that protect electronics:

Manufacturing companies seeking to save time by eliminating the application of protective oils to their products may want to consider heavy duty barrier packaging as a solution. Besides time savings, other benefits to this approach include cleaner products and cleaner more streamlined operations.

My son is a guitar player. He started playing the guitar at eight years old and is now playing professionally.  Along with our drummer son, as a family we would spend many hours at music stores looking at, and eventually buying, musical instruments, parts, and gear. Always good for holiday and birthday “extra” gifts, D’Addario guitar strings were well received by our son and compared to other musical products, at very reasonable prices in the string gauges he prefers. Our guitar string purchases were personally pleasing to me because D’Addario uses a product line we represent with our Liberty Packaging business, Corrosion Intercept® packaging. For all guitar players reading this, the copper-colored inner-pack bags that protect the strings in storage and shipping Corrosion Intercept barrier protection.

Intercept Technology™ barrier packaging has found many markets internationally, particularly in Europe. Bell Labs invented Intercept heavy duty barrier bags and films to help them solve problems with corrosion on the printed wire boards (PWB) metals. In the late 1980s, AT&T manufacturing, which later became Lucent and is now Alcatel-Lucent protected their PWB in Static Intercept barrier packaging which also has the properties of perfect static dissipation protection (ESD - electro-static discharge).

When looking at all the Intercept Technology barrier packaging photos across the web, (there are many) as well as on the Liberty Packaging web site, surely it can be a bit confusing.  Why are there dark-colored Intercept films, copper-colored Intercept film, and white-colored Intercept films? How can small, sensitive items and such large items as helicopters and drilling rigs be protected with the same material? One might ask “how can our important products be protected by the same packaging as other products that don’t even look like ours?”

Liberty Packaging representatives have recently been consulting with companies about the option to have cleaner operations by reducing or eliminating the application of protective oils to their products.

In manufacturing, these protective oils act as a barrier to corrosive gases, primarily for the protection of metals.  Liberty Packaging offers a free consultation to companies who want a cleaner operation and product. Of course, not all operations can eliminate oils - they are necessary in some instances - but our philosophy as concerned citizens and manufacturing business advocates is that we can help eliminate some of the oil dependency.

Anyone who has attended a trade show understands that exhibitors are there to woo potential clients who will be impressed enough to purchase their wares. It's about sales. Two weeks ago, I attended IMX 2011 – “The Interactive Manufacturing Experience” in Las Vegas, a new type of manufacturing-centered trade show, focused on educating the attendees. The over-arching message there was one of a promising future for American manufacturing. Of the exhibitors and attendees I met, all said their businesses had largely recovered from the mess of our economy, and each was there to participate in discussions about innovation moving forward. With about 5000 registered attendants, and exhibitors representing large and small manufacturing concerns, this IMX 2011 provides a good compass for our manufacturing future here in the U.S.

Sustainability concerns with the use and disposal of plastic sandwich bags have apparently not hindered their sales too greatly, for a variety of reasons, particularly in schools. A story entitled "Despite Sustainability Concerns, Sandwich Bags are Sticking Around" in Plastics News this week indicates that even in school districts where children qualify for the Federal Free and Reduced Lunch Program, the use of plastic sandwich bags continues. Elementary school teachers often request one or two packages of sandwich or zipper bags from their students' use in the classroom, along with the other typical supplies children would use.

My wife returned from her business trip to Las Vegas with a gift for me. Elaine said the trade show she visited was fascinating, but my mind was focused on the shiny gift bag she held in her hand.

The smallish, designer, bottom and side gusseted, heavy card stock bag is a distinguished, full-color print to match the color scheme of the product inside. From the flat bottom, the shape tapers inward toward the opening, which features a die cut handle and ribbon closure. Inside the bag is a box surrounded by clear shrink wrap.