European Tube Manufacturers Association

www.etma-online.org

Tube of the Year 2005 Competition

The European Tube Manufacturers Association (ETMA) is an association of producers of flexible aluminum, plastic, and laminate tubes for packaging purposes, representing the interests of 52 companies from 19 European countries. The association's activities focus on: representation of the European tube industry to third parties; supply of statistics and packaging market information for its members; supply of packaging and raw material market information; monitoring of the European packaging, food contact and environmental legislation; creation of European collapsible tube standards; and public relations. ETMA'S aim is to enter into an open dialogue with public and other stakeholders in order to promote tubes as packaging and the products of its members.

Plastic Tube First Prize

Tom Tailor Body Talk
By Tubex Germany

The Tom Tailor shower gel tubes integrate the plastic tube in a product family that combines feminine and masculine elements, and embody the spontaneity and lightheartedness of a couple in love. Analogous to the glass bottle and high-quality foil-laminated carton already in use, the new tube had to reflect the same product traits. The difficulty in screen printing was to render the diagonal quadrant grid pattern in the shape of a sail being in line with the glass bottle already in use. This task was accomplished on a new six-color, register-true screen printer by using the latest reprographic techniques and by selecting suitable screen webs and coatings. As a classy closure to the tube, Tubex selected a snap-on flip top cap oriented to and color coordinated with the printing.

Aluminum Tube First Prize

Tamper-Evident Eye Ointment Tube
By TUSA Switzerland

The pharmaceutical industry is especially interested in safe packaging designs for highly sensitive products. This eye ointment tube has a special tamper-evident closure. The innovative tamper-evident closure features a flanged 100% tight plastic cannula. It assures that the contents remain unadulterated and are safe to use. Aluminum also serves as an excellent barrier and thus provides optimum product protection. In accordance with the regulations of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the ring does not remain on the tube after the initial opening but detaches together with the cap. As a result, there is no chance of the ring falling into the user's eye when he is applying the product.

Laminate Tube First Prize

IGORA Hair Dye Tube
By Alcan Packaging Cebal France

The product is a two-component hair dye that needs a tailored packaging design to meet its special formulation requirements. The packaging has a cleverly designed two-chamber system and tube head. These features ensure that the two components do not come into contact with each other prior to being squeezed out of the tube, and that they are dispensed in an exact ratio of 1:3. The cloverleaf-shaped opening also creates a playful visual effect when the product is applied in stripes. The aluminum barrier layer in the laminate keeps the two components reliably separate in the tube and effectively prevents the penetration of light, oxygen, or hydrogen.

Prototypes First Prize

Tubex Aluminum Tube
By Tubex Germany

This embossed aluminum tube from Tubex Germany was singled out for its unique look and feel. Here, the use of innovative production processes opened the way to new design possibilities such as logos, fonts, and images with 3D effects. The embossing gives the packaging a premium appeal, an unmistakable feel, and eye-catching shelf appeal. The brand identity is expressed through these perceptible visual and tangible traits, which also make the product difficult to falsify or pirate. Possible decorations include transparent, white, or colored varnishes and printing with up to seven colors on a varnished or embossed tube shoulder.