Shailesh Nema: Regulation should advocate water-based coatings

Ramu Ramanathan (RR): What is the update about Michelman India in terms of volume and growth?
Shailesh Nema (SN): We have consistently shown double-digit CAGR growth across recent years — with the exception of the years impacted by Covid.  We have been working with many substrate suppliers to enhance their new innovations, with our coatings, to provide barrier properties that are workable on their existing machines — including both converting equipment as well and packaging lines.

RR: One thing you are looking forward to …
SN: Michelman prides itself on being prepared and being agile. Preparation comes from anticipating continuing changes in the industry – including regulatory updates. We add value when developing new structures that meet evolving regulatory needs. In India, Plastic Waste Management Rules (PWM) were introduced many years ago, yet implementation is still far away and there is still ambiguity about certain aspects of PWM. We stay agile by continually assessing regulatory updates and proactively developing solutions that will help companies comply with evolving regulations. We look forward to receiving additional, specific guidance regarding implementing PWM in India.  

RR: Is this because there is a belief in our industry that brand owners will be proactive and shall shift to sustainable alternatives and metrics only if the regulations are implemented stringently?
SN: Well, this is true. But international brands are getting ready. HUL has a term called “push button ready” (PBS). This categorization identifies products which are certified as sustainable and complies to PWM, but that have not yet been commercially launched. Many international companies also have vowed to shift to recyclable packaging in coming years — however, a significant number of these companies are still in the early stages of this transition.   

RR: What has been the pace of amalgamation of tech advancements vis a vis the implementation of regulations?
SN: Tech advancements are taking place at a good pace. However, implementation of regulations is quite slow because of the ambiguity around sustainable measures. There is a need for the industry to collaborate and work together to develop and execute sustainable solutions. More solutions along the lines of “push button ready” (PBS) form should see daylight in the marketplace. This will certainly motivate others and also encourage investment in tech advancement. 

RR: Describe the market in India. 
SN: There is a strong demand for coatings for fibre-based substrates because coatings can add needed functionality to final structures formed from fibre-based substrates. However, the shift to fibre-based substrates in the flexible packaging industry is not occurring at the preferred pace. 

RR: How is the industry getting affected?
SN: The lack of regulatory clarity, mentioned above, is contributing to the slow conversion rate to paper substrates in flexible packaging. This regulatory ambiguity impacts the growth of environmentally-friendly final structures that have improved end of life options, even though there are significant market opportunities for conversion. For example, if 50% of SKUs of FMCG companies shift from a current non-recyclable multilayer plastic packaging structure to paper-based packaging structure, which is compliant and recyclable, there would be a huge boost to the coatings market. In particular, functional coatings that provide oxygen barrier, moisture barrier, grease resistance, heat seal, and overprint varnish protection (OPV) will be in high demand. Hence, there is a lot of anticipatory buzz about the functional and barrier coatings market in India.

RR: What type of OEM collaborations does Michelman have with paper mills in India?
SN: We have been working on multi functional coatings for papers in collaboration with multiple paper mills. These coatings can provide multiple barrier properties such as moisture, water, oil and grease, and heat sealing properties – all in a single coating.

For cold beverage paper cups, Michelman provides double-coating from inside and outside

RR: Any special application that you are eyeing?
SN: Michelman is supplying paper cup coatings for the Asian market which are in compliance with the recyclability regulations of the US, Europe, and parts of Asia.  We are really looking forward to introducing this product in India as well — however the regulation is still unclear. In certain states of India, PE coated paper cups are banned and in certain states it is not. There is still uncertainty regarding when these regulations will become more explicit. 

RR: To what extent can Michelman allay some of the concerns related to coatings?
SN: Michelman has a strong regulatory team that leads our efforts to oversee global regulatory needs and to maintain compliance with regulatory requirements. Going forward, our innovation teams are working on the next generation of products that will meet future regulatory concerns, including improved end-of-life, recyclability, biodegradability, and plastic free requirements. 

RR: What is the chemistry of coatings?
SN:.We are specialised manufacturers of water-based coatings and have the capability to disperse a variety of polymers into water. This allows us to deliver a wide range of barrier properties and modify the surface behaviours of various substrates.

RR: Which chemistry is the most popular in India?
SN: Water-based chemistry  

RR: Why so?
SN: Water-based chemistry is becoming increasingly popular in the packaging industry due to several advantages. These include the absence of solvents during the drying process, enhanced safety from a machine conversion perspective, and the ability to meet various food compliance standards for different applications. It offers easy compliance with the regulations, flexibility for customisation, and good printability. Barrier properties can be tweaked for specific application requirements. Our products are compatible with a wide variety of printing and coatings processes.

RR: What are rod and curtain coating?
SN: There are various coating technologies available, including rod coating, roller coating, and curtain coating. All three are present in India, but roller coating dominates. Both rod and roller coating are commonly used to apply smooth coatings on porous substrates like paper. Depending on the quality of the paper, converters can choose the most suitable coating application

RR: What is the percentage of coating amount in a particular packaging batch size?
SN: It could be between 7% to 12% of the weight of the total packaging structure, if you want to switch to a sustainable packaging structure. The minimum grammage of a coat varies from three to five gsm, for a wide range of applications.

RR: This makes sense when there is dry absorption on the reverse side. When does double-coat come in?
SN: In certain applications, you need the properties a coating would supply on both sides of the substrate. For example, for cold beverage paper cups, we supply a coating on the inside to form the cup.  We also supply a coating on the outside to achieve effective barrier properties that block moisture from reaching the substrate during condensation.  

RR: But 70% of the paper cups need one-sided coating to serve multiple  ... 
SN: Coating needs are determined based on application. As noted above, cold beverage cups require one coating on the interior, to help in cup formation and sealing, and another coating on the exterior, to protect against condensation. Hot beverage cups, on the other hand, only require a coating on the interior. Coatings can be formulated to provide whatever properties are required for either side of the substrate.

RR: What purpose do these types of coatings serve in a paper cup?
SN: These provide properties such as heat sealing to form the cup, and barrier properties such as good COBB, OGR etc. Especially during the manufacturing of paper cups and flexible packages at a high speed, these coatings enable dwell time of milliseconds.  

RR: What are the typical application areas in the Indian context?
SN: Paper bags, food trays, pan masala pouches, and paper cups. Our goal is to facilitate replacing multilayer plastic packaging structures with monolayer plastic and fibre-based structures.

RR: One question that keeps coming up is the cost comparison between coating and lamination. Your view?
SN: The drive to move from film lamination to water-based coating will be triggered by regulation. Because film lamination has been optimised for decades, the industry is not set up to do wide-scale coating (to replace lamination) today. Therefore, coating is at a cost premium given current industry structure. There are multiple benefits of using coatings including customisation, sustainability regulatory compliance, and haptic advantages.

RR: Brutal question, to what extent, has the industry been able to replace PE?
SN: In terms of performance, the sealing abilities of PE are unmatched by coatings, to be honest. However, heat seal coatings do provide good fit-for-use performance in many applications. We have replaced PE in the edible oil sachets segment. Our coatings perform cost-effectively in these packets. Another sector where coatings are effective is paper bags.

RR: One feedback we have received from converters is: controlling the viscosity of coatings and ensuring consistency is onerous. Your view please?
SN: The phenomenon of viscosity increase is commonly observed in water-based coatings due to variations in product particle size or poor formulation. Most of our products are ready to use and have a shelf life of one year. They generally require only mild stirring before use. In some cases, isopropyl alcohol (IPA) may be added to the coating to improve drying or wetting performance.  

RR: Clearly, there is a knowledge gap or technology gap in the applicator ecosystem that needs to be urgently addressed?
SN: Oh yes. There is a need for knowledge sharing. Since the move to coatings as a PE lamination alternative has just begun in India, the learning curve on coating applications is still evolving.

RR: Can coatings alter the shelf-life of a product?
SN: Yes. Many coatings are designed to improve properties like oxygen barrier and moisture barrier to achieve targeted levels of shelf life, depending on the product that is being packaged. We collaborate with brands and converters to enable achieving the required shelf life.

RR: Finally, what is the update about Michelman’s innovation centre?
SN: The Michelman Innovation Centre for Coatings (MICC) reflects our commitment to expediently developing targeted solutions to meet the needs of the region. MICC allows us to conduct prototyping and multiple testing of packaging structures. We can discuss packaging structure alternatives with the brand owner, and make the packaging structure in our premises. Material composition can be tweaked as well, after performing various tests for barrier properties and/or in order to obtain a desired property. Our continued investment in MICC reflects our ongoing commitment to quickly develop targeted solutions to meet the needs of the region.