Purchasing cosmetic tube packaging materials, these basic knowledge should be understood

Introduction: In recent years, the application areas of tube packaging have gradually expanded. Industrial products, such as lubricants, silicone sealants, and caulking adhesives, have chosen hoses; foods, such as mustard and chili sauce, have chosen hoses; pharmaceutical ointments have chosen hoses, and the hose packaging of toothpaste is also constantly evolving. An increasing number of products in various fields are being packaged in hoses. In the cosmetics industry, hoses are particularly popular for cosmetics, daily necessities, and skincare products due to their ease of use, portability, and customizable specifications and printing.

The tube is made of PE plastic, aluminum foil, plastic film and other materials. It is made into sheets using co-extrusion and compounding processes, and then processed into a tubular packaging container using a special tube-making machine. The hose has the characteristics of being light in weight, easy to carry, strong and durable, recyclable, easy to squeeze, and has good processing performance and printing adaptability. It is favored by many cosmetics manufacturers.

1. Molding Process

A. Aluminum-Plastic Composite Tubes: Aluminum-plastic composite hoses are made by co-extruding aluminum foil and plastic film into sheets, which are then processed into a tubular shape using specialized tube-forming machines. Their typical structure is PE/PE + EAA/AL/PE + EAA/PE.

Aluminum-plastic composite tubes are primarily used for packaging cosmetics requiring high hygiene and barrier properties. The barrier layer is typically aluminum foil, and its barrier properties are determined by the foil's porosity. With continuous technological advancements, the thickness of the aluminum foil barrier layer in aluminum-plastic composite hoses has been reduced from the traditional 40μm to 12μm or even 9μm, significantly conserving resources.

B. All-Plastic Composite Tube: Made entirely of plastic, they are categorized into all-plastic non-barrier composite hoses and all-plastic barrier composite hoses. All-plastic non-barrier composite hoses are generally used for packaging low-end, fast-consumer cosmetics. Due to the side seams associated with tube production, all-plastic barrier composite hoses are typically used for packaging mid- to low-end cosmetics. The barrier layer can be a multi-layer composite material containing EVOH, PVDC, oxide-coated PET, or other materials. The typical structure of all-plastic barrier composite hose is PE/PE/EVOH/PE/PE.

C. Plastic co-extruded tubes: utilizes co-extrusion technology to co-extrude materials of different properties and types into a single-piece mold. Plastic co-extruded hoses are categorized into single-layer and multi-layer co-extruded hoses. The former is primarily used for packaging fast-consumption cosmetics (such as hand cream) that require high aesthetics but less practical performance, while the latter is primarily used for packaging high-end cosmetics.

2. Surface Treatment

Tubes can be made in colored, transparent, frosted, or pearlescent finishes (pearl, silver, or gold). They come in UV, matte, or glossy finishes. Matte finishes may appear elegant but are easily stained. The difference between colored tubes and those with extensive printing can be determined by the cutout at the end. Tubes with white cutouts have extensive printing, and the ink used must be high quality, otherwise they will easily peel and crack, leaving white marks when flexed.

3. Graphic Printing

Commonly used methods for tube surfaces include silk screen printing (using spot colors with small, limited color blocks, similar to printing on plastic bottles, requiring overprinting, and commonly used in specialty product lines) and offset printing (similar to paper printing, with large, multi-color blocks, commonly used in consumer product lines). Hot stamping with gold and silver foil is also possible.

Offset printing is commonly used for tube processing, and the inks used are mostly UV-curable. Strong adhesion and discoloration resistance are generally required. The printing color should be within the specified depth range, the overprint position should be accurate, the deviation should be within 0.2mm, and the font should be complete and clear.

The main body of a plastic hose consists of a shoulder, barrel (body), and tail. The barrel is often decorated with direct printing or self-adhesive labels to carry text or graphic information, enhancing the value of the product packaging.

Currently, hose decoration is primarily achieved through direct printing and self-adhesive labels. Direct printing includes screen printing and offset printing. Compared to direct printing, self-adhesive labels offer advantages such as printing versatility and stability. Traditional extruded hoses are manufactured first and then printed, typically using offset and screen printing. Self-adhesive printing, however, can utilize a variety of printing processes, including letterpress, flexographic, offset, screen, and hot stamping, resulting in more stable and superior color reproduction even on challenging applications.

1. Tube Body

A. Classification:

By Material: Aluminum-plastic composite hose, all-plastic hose, paper-plastic hose, high-gloss aluminum-plated hose, etc.

By Thickness: Single-layer hose, double-layer hose, five-layer composite hose, etc.

By Shape: Round hose, oval hose, flat hose, etc.

By Application: Facial cleanser hose, baby box hose, hand cream hose, hand cream hose, sunscreen hose, toothpaste hose, conditioner hose, hair dye hose, facial mask hose, etc.

Common Tube Diameters: Φ13, Φ16, Φ19, Φ22, Φ25, Φ2 8. Φ30, Φ33, Φ35, Φ38, Φ40, Φ45, Φ50, Φ55, Φ60

Conventional capacities: 3G, 5G, 8G, 10G, 15G, 20G, 25G, 30G, 35G, 40G, 45G, 50G, 60G, 80G, 100G, 110G, 120G, 130G, 150G, 180G, 200G, 250G, 250G

B. Tube Dimensions and Volume Reference

During the hose production process, it undergoes multiple heating processes, including pipe drawing, jointing, varnishing, offset printing in an oven, and UV light exposure for screen printing drying. These processes cause the product's dimensions to shrink to varying degrees, with varying shrinkage rates. Therefore, it's normal for the hose diameter and length to fall within a certain range.

C. Schematic diagram of the structure of a five-layer plastic composite tubes

2. Tube Caps

Some products require a capping system after filling. Capping systems can be broadly categorized into straight-grain, diagonal-grain, umbrella-shaped, and custom-shaped caps. You can also request a date code to be printed on the cap.

3. Accessories

A. Conventional tube: caps come in a variety of shapes, generally classified as screw-on caps (single-layer and double-layer. Double-layer caps are often electroplated to enhance product quality and aesthetics; professional lines often use screw-on caps), flat caps, round caps, spray-on caps, flip-up caps, extra-flat caps, double-layer caps, spherical caps, and lipstick caps. Plastic caps can also be finished with a variety of finishes, including gold-stamping, silver-stamping, colored caps, transparent caps, spray-on caps, and electroplating. Pointed-nose caps and lipstick caps typically come with inner plugs.

The tube cap is an injection-molded product, and the hose is a drawn tube. Most hose manufacturers do not manufacture hose caps themselves.

B. Multifunctional Accessories: With the diversification of user needs, products that effectively integrate content with functional structures, such as massage heads, ball bearings, and rollers, are becoming a new market demand.

Tubes are lightweight, easy to carry, durable, recyclable, easy to squeeze, and have good processing performance and printing adaptability. They are favored by many cosmetics manufacturers and are widely used in the packaging of cosmetics such as facial cleansers (facial cleansers, etc.), skin care products (various eye creams, moisturizers, nourishing creams, vanishing creams and sunscreens, etc.) and beauty and hair care products (shampoo, conditioner, lipstick, etc.).

Procurement Critical Control Points:

1. Tube Design Drawing Review

For those unfamiliar with hoses, designing a drawing on their own can be a daunting task, and mistakes can be devastating. A high-quality supplier will create a simpler drawing for those unfamiliar with hoses. After the hose diameter and length are determined, they'll provide a design area diagram. Simply place your design within the area and center it.

A high-quality supplier will also review and provide advice on your design and production process. For example, they'll notify you if the sensor is positioned incorrectly; they'll remind you if the color isn't right; and they'll repeatedly remind you to make changes if the specifications don't meet the design. They'll also check for minor errors like barcode orientation and legibility, color separation, and process reliability for hose production. Even minor errors like the design being curved are carefully checked.

2. Tubing Selection: 

The materials used must meet relevant hygiene standards, and hazardous substances like heavy metals and fluorescent agents must be within specified limits. For example, the polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) used in hoses exported to the United States must meet U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) standards 21CFR117.1520.

3. Understand the filling method. 

Tubes can be filled with either end-fill or mouth-fill. If the hose is mouth-filled, careful consideration should be given when purchasing the hose. The nozzle size should be compatible with the filling nozzle and ensure it can be inserted flexibly into the tube. For end-fill, the hoses need to be arranged carefully, and the product orientation should be considered to ensure easy and quick insertion during filling.

Secondly, you need to understand whether the contents are hot-filled or at room temperature. Furthermore, the process for this product is often closely related to the design. Understanding the nature of filling production beforehand can help avoid problems and achieve high productivity and efficiency.

4. Tube Selection: 

If daily chemical companies are packaging products that are particularly oxygen-sensitive (such as whitening cosmetics) or have highly volatile fragrances (such as essential oils or certain greases, acids, salts, and other corrosive chemicals), they should choose five-layer co-extruded tubing. This is because the oxygen transmission rate of a five-layer co-extruded tubing (polyethylene/binder resin/EVOH/binder resin/polyethylene) is 0.2-1.2 units, while the oxygen transmission rate of a standard single-layer polyethylene tubing is 150-300 units.

Over a given period of time, the weight loss rate of co-extruded tubing containing ethanol is several dozen times lower than that of single-layer tubing. Furthermore, EVOH, an ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer, possesses excellent barrier and fragrance-retention properties (a thickness of 15-20 microns is ideal).

5. Price: 

Tubes prices vary significantly depending on quality and manufacturer. Platemaking fees typically range from 200 to 300 yuan. The tubing can be printed in multiple colors and silk-screened, and some manufacturers have thermal transfer equipment and technology. Hot stamping for gold and silver is priced per area. Silk-screen printing produces better results, but is more expensive and available from a smaller number of manufacturers. You should choose a manufacturer based on your needs.

6. The tube production cycle is generally 15-20 days (starting from sample confirmation). 

The order quantity is 5,000-10,000 units per item. Large manufacturers typically have a minimum order quantity of 10,000 units. Smaller manufacturers with a wide variety of products may also accept a minimum order quantity of 3,000 units per item. Few customers make their own molds; most use public molds (a few specialized caps are privately molded). There is a ±10% deviation between the contracted order quantity and the actual delivery quantity in this industry.

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