The hot melt adhesive dispensing system supplied by Nordson has improved the packaging process for Lipton tea bags: plastic film wrapping has been eliminated, boosting both productivity and reliability.
Lipton Manufacturing Poland Sp. z o.o. is a major tea brand widely distributed across the European market. In the past, to protect tea boxes, preserve freshness, and ensure safe transport, the company used plastic film—though this proved difficult to recycle.
To tackle the issue, Lipton committed to reducing its environmental impact by seeking a more sustainable packaging method.
The company chose to replace plastic wrapping with Nordson’s hot melt adhesive dispensing system to seal cardboard boxes, aiming to cut waste and improve efficiency while maintaining product quality. Ensuring precise sealing of the upper cardboard flap with adhesive is essential.
Project steps and features: The proposed adhesive solution immediately provided secure box closure, meeting several new requirements, including ease of use, quick and clean cutting, remote PLC communication, local support, reduced adhesive consumption, fast heating, minimal material degradation, and an automatic refill system.
In 2021, Lipton began testing the Nordson system on a single line. Pleased with the outcome, the company rolled it out across 14 production lines, handling 11 different box types. Nordson supplied the ProBlue Flex melter with melt-on-demand applicators, MiniBlue II SureBead, and PureFlow hoses—technologies that ensured precise and efficient adhesive application with minimal maintenance, reduced glue degradation, and improved durability.
The adhesive system has significantly enhanced Lipton's packaging process, eliminating plastic waste and increasing overall reliability.
Today, Lipton produces two million tea boxes per day using this system, supporting its sustainability goals.
Since the project began in 2020, we have eliminated over 270 tonnes of plastic film annually,” says Robert Milej, Project Manager at Lipton Manufacturing Poland. “For the lines included in this project, we have fully achieved our goal, and we already plan to implement glue sealing on additional packaging lines in the near future to further replace plastic film.
