Views: 50 Author: Site Editor Publish Time: 2025-03-20 Origin: Site
The packaging materials of cosmetics are mainly divided into glass and plastic, among which plastic packaging is the most used. As one of the leading plastic bottle manufacturers, MGG Group has 18 years of manufacturing experience in the cosmetic packaging industry. Next, MGG Group will take you to learn more about plastic packaging materials.
Plastic bottle packaging is very popular in the cosmetics industry because it is light, durable, and inexpensive. There are many types of plastics, each with its own characteristics and suitable for different uses. Common plastics include PP, PE, PS, PET, PETG, AS, ABS and acrylic.
PP is a commonly used plastic. It is light, durable, affordable, and has good transparency and plasticity, allowing designers to design a variety of beautiful and practical packaging. PP is safe, non-toxic, odorless, heat-resistant and cold-resistant, and can also resist acid and alkali corrosion. PP is translucent, slippery, softer than PET, and slightly less transparent, and is often used to make shampoo bottles. To color PP, you need something called masterbatch, which contains pigments and some additives. You can add it to the plastic and stir it to color it.
In cosmetic packaging, PP materials are widely used. For example, many brands of shampoo bottles are made of PP. Bottles made of this material are not only light, but also not easy to break during use. Even if they accidentally fall to the ground, they are not easily damaged. Although the transparency of PP material is not as good as PET, its translucent properties also make the product look very textured. Moreover, bottles made of PP material are very convenient to squeeze and use. For example, shampoo bottles can be squeezed out with a light squeeze, which is very convenient to use.
PE is also very common. It is impact-resistant, flexible, wear-resistant and corrosion-resistant. It is often used to make containers, pipes and packaging bags. PE is opaque, relatively soft, and its surface is not as smooth as PET. It is often used to make hoses, lotion bottles and bottle caps.
In cosmetic packaging, hoses made of PE material are widely used. For example, many brands of lotions, creams and other products are packaged in PE hoses. This hose is not only flexible, but also very convenient to squeeze and use, and can well control the amount of product. The opaque nature of PE material also makes the product look more high-end and gives people a sense of stability. In addition, PE bottle caps are also very common, which can well seal the bottle mouth and prevent product leakage.
PET is a thermoplastic polyester with a smooth and glossy surface, anti-friction, dimensional stability, high hardness, but not resistant to hot water and alkali. It is an environmentally friendly material with good barrier properties, light, non-breakable, high transparency, and can be made into pearlescent, colored, magnetic white and transparent forms. It is often used to hold gel water. PET bottles have high transparency and the bottle body is a bit soft, but harder than PP.
In cosmetic packaging, PET bottles are widely used. For example, many brands of gel water, essence and other products are packaged in PET bottles. This bottle is not only highly transparent, allowing consumers to clearly see the color and state of the product, but its hardness can also protect the product well. PET bottles are also very flexible in design and can be made into various shapes and colors to meet the needs of different brands.
PETG is more transparent than PET, but it is not widely used in China because of its high cost and difficulty in processing. It is resistant to chemicals, oils and weathering, and is often used to make cosmetic bottles, perfume bottles and pharmaceutical packaging, but the price is 2 to 3 times that of PET.
Although PETG bottles are not widely used in cosmetic packaging, their performance is very outstanding. For example, some high-end brands use PETG for perfume bottles. This kind of bottle is not only highly transparent, but also resistant to chemicals, oils and weathering, and can well protect the quality of perfume. Although the cost of PETG material is relatively high, its high-end feel and excellent performance make it used in some high-end products.
AS, also called SAN, is more impact-resistant, heat-resistant, oil-resistant and chemical-resistant than PS. It has moderate hardness and is a bit brittle, but it has high transparency and can directly contact cosmetics and food. It is often used to make lotion bottles, vacuum bottles and cream bottles, making the products look very transparent.
In cosmetic packaging, AS bottles are also widely used. For example, many brands of lotion bottles, vacuum bottles and cream bottles use AS material. This bottle is not only highly transparent, allowing consumers to clearly see the color and state of the product, but also has moderate hardness and can protect the product well. AS bottles are also very flexible in design and can be made into various shapes and colors to meet the needs of different brands.
ABS is an important thermoplastic polymer. Although its transparency and toughness are worse than AS, it has good physical properties, is easy to process and has a wide range of uses. However, it is not environmentally friendly and cannot directly contact cosmetics and food. In cosmetic packaging, it is often used to make inner covers and shoulder covers, and the color is yellow or milky white. If ABS comes into contact with a material containing alkane lubricants, it will become brittle and cracked.
Inner covers and shoulder covers made of ABS are widely used in cosmetic packaging. For example, many brands of cosmetic bottles use ABS inner caps and shoulder covers. This material's inner cap and shoulder cover not only has good physical properties, can well protect the bottle mouth and prevent product leakage, but also is easy to process and can meet the needs of large-scale production. Although ABS material is not environmentally friendly and cannot directly contact cosmetics and food, its application in cosmetic packaging is still very important.
Acrylic is called "glass", thick and hard, and looks like glass. It is often used to make injection molding bottles, but it has poor chemical resistance and cannot be directly filled with paste, and needs to be separated by an inner liner. It should not be filled too full during filling to prevent the paste from entering the gap and causing the bottle to crack. Acrylic bottles have high packaging requirements during transportation, and they will become very conspicuous after being scratched. Although the price is high, the transparency is very good.
In cosmetic packaging, acrylic bottles are relatively less used, but its transparency is very high, allowing consumers to clearly see the color and status of the product. For example, some high-end brands of cosmetic bottles use acrylic materials. This bottle is not only highly transparent, but also thick and hard, giving people a high-end feeling. Although acrylic has poor chemical resistance and cannot be directly filled with paste, its transparency and high-end feel make it used in some high-end products.
Every year, 30 million tons of plastic waste is generated worldwide, which is equivalent to dumping a truckload of garbage into the sea every minute! What's more worrying is that only 14% of plastics are recycled now, and only 2% are truly effectively used. Replacing some new plastics with PCR plastics can not only reduce landfill incineration, but also save about 30% of energy in the production process, which is equivalent to helping the earth "reduce the burden".
HDPE has become the cornerstone material for cosmetic packaging due to its cost-effectiveness, plasticity and environmental protection properties. Despite its shortcomings in transparency and temperature resistance, its application scenarios continue to expand through material modification, process innovation and recycling technology.
1. In terms of color, acrylic bottles are mostly transparent and look very bright. The bottle wall can be sprayed with color, which looks very beautiful. PP and ABS bottles are often solid colors, while PETG bottles are mostly transparent and look very clear.
2. In terms of printing, silk screen printing is the most commonly used, and UV ink is particularly popular because it looks very shiny and has a strong three-dimensional sense. Before printing, the color must be determined first, and the printing effects of different materials are also different.
Hot stamping and hot silvering can also make the bottle look more high-end. These processes are suitable for hard and smooth materials, and the gloss after hot stamping is very good.
3. The pump head and outer cover are also very important. There are electroplated pump heads, electroplated aluminum pump heads and plastic pump heads, which are matched with outer covers of different materials to form the top of the bottle. The outer cover has two types: double-layer and single-layer, and the material and process requirements are also different.
In general, the bottle body process includes color selection, printing, hot stamping and hot silvering, etc. These processes can make each bottle unique and beautiful.
The selection of cosmetic packaging materials and process design need to comprehensively consider multiple factors, including material performance, cost, production cycle, etc. Only through scientific and reasonable planning and design can we produce cosmetic packaging that is both beautiful and practical to meet market demand.
1. The cost of mold development is different. The cost of blow molding mold is about 250USD to 800USD, and the cost of injection molding mold is 1200 to 3000USD. Although stainless steel molds are expensive, they are more durable.
2. The order quantity is recommended to be more than 10,000, so that the production cost will be more cost-effective. Generally speaking, the larger the order quantity, the lower the unit cost. It is recommended that customers order more than 10,000 products, so that they can make full use of the scale effect and reduce production costs.
3. The production cycle is also an important consideration. Generally speaking, the shorter the production cycle, the faster customers can get the product, so that it can be brought to market faster. We offer a relatively short production cycle of about 15 days, and we will try our best to complete it on time to ensure that customer needs are met.
4. In terms of printing costs, there will be screen or fixture fees for the first silk screen printing. Therefore, when designing packaging, it is necessary to comprehensively consider printing costs and design effects to achieve the best cost-effectiveness.
As a well-known plastic packaging supplier in China, MGG Group has its own mold factory and can change molds according to customer requirements. We have our own factories in Dongguan and Vietnam. Currently, the Vietnamese factory is expanding its operations to facilitate orders from new and old customers and reduce watering costs.