Atlantic Poly Blog

Home remodeling projects are on the rise. Which is good news for construction and remodeling companies. How can you keep costs down while your revenues increase? By getting competitive costs for supplies and by cutting down on labor costs.

Dust barriers or construction film is an important, but often overlooked part of construction costs for contractors. Those contractors who are interested in keeping their customers’ homes as clean and inhabitable as possible take advantage of dust barriers on the job.

Dust is a common problem in remodeling projects, and keeping your customers happy is very important for both repeat and referral business. However, dust works against you. To reduce clean up, and to keep your customers homes clean, contractors want to be able to contain dusty areas as much possible. The best way to do this is to invest in dust barriers or construction film.

Dust control products include temporary barrier systems, plastic sheeting, and floor protection. Contractors who use dust control supplies save money on labor while impressing customers. This is a great way to increase customer satisfaction and referrals. At the same time, construction film and other dust control methods make clean up quicker and more efficient, saving you money on labor costs.

For a competitive quote on construction film and floor coverings, contact Atlantic Poly.

With the increase in technology, the world has become smaller and smaller. Now it is quite common for companies to ship goods not only from state to state, but also from one country to another. To keep the shipping process running smoothly, the right shipping supplies and packaging materials are imperative.
 
Properly packaged goods are more likely to reach their destination unharmed. If you product is not packaged properly, the fault lies with you and not the shipping company, which means additional shipping costs will be incurred by your company as well.
 
The right shipping and packaging materials begins with corrugated boxes and bubble wrap and ends with packing list envelopes and the right packaging tapes.  These packaging materials and shipping supplies are important for smooth shipping of products and the safe arrival of the promised merchandise at an economical price.

Why take risk when shipping? Ensure that your company’s packages arrive at the right destination, on-time and safely. Contact Atlantic Poly for more information on packaging materials and shipping supplies.

Vinyl ID badges are becoming more and more commonplace in the workplace as our world environment changes. More and more hospitals, health care facilities, event staffing agencies, bio-tech companies, manufacturing firms and computer programing companies are requiring ID badges for their employees.
 
What started out in large international corporations that needed to effectively identify their different staff members has now become a need for medium sized companies and small businesses as well.

Vinyl ID badges help business owners give their staff members a secure work place that distinguishes employees from visitors and strangers. Most businesses use plastic ID holders or ID badges in order to identify their staff.

Plastic ID badges help building security keep track of people entering and exiting your building.  In most companies these plastic identification cards play an important HR role as well helping managers and business owners better keep track of employees' time and attendance as well.

At Atlantic Poly our vinyl ID badges can be made with pins or clips to attach to clothes, or they can be attached to a string to hang around your employees necks. For more information on ID badges or other vinyl pouches, contact us.

If you use plastic bags in your business, you may be contemplating making the switch to paper. Every time you go to the grocery store, you get asked, "Paper or plastic?" and after hearing and reading about the “impact” of plastic bags on the environment you might be leaning toward paper.

It isn't. Paper bags, although they decompose readily, also have a negative impact on the environment. To make paper bags, trees must be cut and used, adding to the possibility of deforestation issues. Trees absorb greenhouse gases and so fewer trees mean that there can be an increase in greenhouse gases. In fact, more of these gases are created during the paper bag manufacturing process.

According to the 1989 Plastic Recycling Directory, Society of Plastics Industry, it takes about four times LESS energy to make plastic bags. It also takes about 90% LESS energy to recycle plastic bags than paper. Unfortunately, most bags, regardless of if they are paper or plastic, simply are not being recycled.

In another paper, Comparison of the Effects on the Environment of Polyethylene and Paper Carrier Bags, it was reported that paper bags can generate 70 times more air pollutants and 50 times more water pollutants than plastic bags.

Also, degradability is not an issue with plastic bags or paper bags because very little materials of any kind decompose in a landfill because there is a lack of air and light.
 
If your business uses plastic bags, bring on paper if you wish, but don’t make the switch from plastic bags entirely – it’s bad for the environment.

For more information on plastic bags or for a quote, contact Atlantic Poly.

GreenLiving

With environmental concerns today, there is a high need to create packaging that can be recycled; biodegradable packaging is a new trend.
 
What defines biodegradable? This is an important question. There are special characteristics of biodegradable plastic bags and packaging:

• They consist of renewable resources
• Or they can be harvested directly from nature
• They can completely decompose, with the aid of micro-organisms, when placed in a composting area

Biodegradable is a buzz word these days. But many products that claim to be easily decomposed are not. This is because up until very recently there were no hard-fast rules, guidelines or regulations for products and many manufacturers were calling their plastics biodegradable, when they were not.  Biodegradable plastic bags are plant-based.

Moving Toward Biodegradable Packing

Prior to recent years, nearly all packaging for food, produce, and supplies were sold in plastics that were oil-based, made from petroleum. Now with the rising costs of oil, companies are looking for ways to save money.

It is believed that there will be a growing demand for this corn-based biodegradable product, causing the market to grow by about 20% over the next year. Consumers and environmentalists, along with national recycling regulations, are helping with the growth.

Increasing interest in the new PLA technology is because of these main factors which include:

• The improved quality of bioplastics
• The growing market share of these products
• Cost-competitiveness
• More competition as new bioplastic companies crop up around the world

Purchasing Biodegradable Plastic Bags and Packaging

Now that you are more familiar with what it means to be biodegradable and how easily products that are made of natural substances can filter back into the soil instead of piling up in landfills, why not agree to purchase these products?

For more information on biodegradable plastics and recycled plastic bags, contact Atlantic Poly.

Greenliving.com

There are many advantages of plastic grocery bags. While there is a perception that they are environmentally unfriendly, this is not necessarily true, see last week’s blog. Plastic grocery bags have advantages for retailers and consumers!

Consumers
Many consumers are finding plastic bags are a better option than paper bags. The numbers tell the story, Americans use 100 billion plastic shopping bags annually, and 10 billion paper shopping bags each year.

While there is an increase in the use of reusable cloth bags, plastic shopping bags have two big advantages:

• Plastic bags are more durable than paper bags. They are less prone to tearing, easier to carry, and are far more useful in bad weather.
• Plastic bags are reusable, as trashcan liners, as storage bags, or for picking up after the dog.  Plastic bags last longer than plastic bags and can be repurposed, unlike paper bags.

Retailers
Retailers have always preferred plastic shopping bags. For retailers, the main advantages of plastic bags are that they are cost-effective, easy to use, and easy to store.

Plastic bags are available in bulk for less than one cent. Paper bags are typically 5 cents or more per bag. Reusable cloth bags can cost a few dollars each. Obviously, plastic bags have a better effect on business profit margins.

Not to mention, plastic bags are faster and easier to open and pack. For busy clerks, this can help with efficiency. Plastic bags take up less space to store and weight far less, so they are easier for employees to stock.

For more information on plastic grocery bags, contact Atlantic Poly.

Greenliving

It is easy to overlook the advantages of plastic grocery bags because it is perceived that they are environmentally unfriendly. While they certainly have ecological drawbacks, plastic grocery bags can actually be beneficial to the environment. Every April we celebrate Earth Day. For Earth Day this year, we would like consumers and business to understand the real environmental impacts of plastic bags vs paper bags.
 
The reasoning for banning plastic bags is that they cause harm to the environment. There are many factors that this broad statement can cover, so let’s discuss it part by part.

In terms of energy produced during manufacture, plastic bags require 182,361 kcal but recover “2,581.3 through combustion.”

However, paper bags require “three times as much energy consumption as plastic bags (626,672.9 kcal), whereas only 6,859.5 kcal can be recovered through consumption.”

Environmental Impact of Plastic Grocery Bags
There has been a lot of conversation and disagreement regarding paper and plastic bags, and which are more detrimental to the environment. The truth is, each has advantages and disadvantages.

Advantages

There are several important ecological advantages of plastic grocery bags over paper shopping bags. Because they weigh so much less, they contribute far less solid waste to landfills when not recycled. According to the EPA, paper bag production requires 40% more energy than the production of plastic bags. Paper bag manufacturing also results in 50% more water pollution and 70% more air pollution than plastic bag manufacturing.

Disadvantages

The main ecological disadvantage of plastic shopping bags is that they are manufactured from petroleum, a non-renewable resource. Paper bags, on the other hand, are made from trees, a renewable resource. Plastic bags are also not biodegradable, and break down into contaminating particles over many hundreds of years.

Effect on Marine Life Myth

One of the more compelling arguments against the use of plastic shopping bags is that plastic bags result in the death of 100,000 marine animals and 1 million sea birds annually.

However, this argument is false. The myth originated from a 2002 study on plastic bags commissioned by the Australian government. In the report, the authors misquoted a previous Canadian study from 1987. The animal deaths cited were actually attributable to fishing lines and nets, not plastic bags.

Recycle

The best way to help the environment, regardless of what types of bags or other containers you use it to reuse your plastic bags as much as possible. Recycle the rest.

By recycling, consumers can avoid many of the drawbacks of plastic bags. There are numerous advantages of plastic grocery bags, and by recycling them diligently, consumers can profit from their use in a more environmentally sustainable manner.

For more information on plastic bags or on recyclable plastic bags, contact Atlantic Poly.

Statistics from greenliving.lovetoknow.com

Watch this video to know the truth...

source: Youtube.com

You name the industry, you name the product.  Atlantic Poly Inc. has a custom polyethylene bag solution for you at singularly the best value pricing available today!  Our products range from light density poly bags for light duty shielding all the way up to the most dense poly required to protect your products and capital from the most abusive environments imaginable. 

It goes without saying that the quality of your product’s packaging says volumes about the quality of your business.  In addition to custom sized and types of poly bags, Atlantic Poly will promote your brand with custom printed packaging in any size, shape, and poly material.  Just a small sampling of the various types of custom poly printing that we provide include:

• Printed Poly Bags
• Recycled Poly Bags
• Hi-Density Poly Bags
• Quick Zip Bags
• Polyethylene Roll Stock

Again, there is no single product that can’t be custom packaged by the skilled and experienced professionals at Atlantic Poly.  Take the guess work out of your product protection needs by calling us today at 866-342-6554, or requesting a direct quote which will be answered in very short order. 

There is quite a conversation going on nationwide about paper vs plastic. It seems like quite a bit of the public is uninformed about the impact that paper bags have on the environment. From manufacturing to transporting to storing and disposal, paper makes a huge impact on the environment, more so than consumers believe.

Did you know that paper bags use 300% more energy to produce and cause more waste in manufacturing? They are also bulky and heavy to store and transport. Paper bags emit methane in a landfill as well.

Recyclers can be playing a bigger role in letting a skeptical public know about the environmental advantages of plastics and plastic bags. That was some of the message to a major meeting of plastics recyclers in New Orleans.

In response to a question about the plastics industry's image problem and how recycling — one of the fastest-growing plastics sectors — can help, it was decided that recyclers can help combat some of the misinformation and "junk science" that hound plastic bags and plastic packaging.

There's an issue with the public’s perception of plastic, it needs to change. The critical role that plastics recyclers can play to help set the record straight about plastics was also discussed.

The plastic industry is spending "in excess of $5 million" to defend against bag bans.

72 municipalities have bag bans, but there are no statewide bans. There are 19,000 U.S. municipalities that have not restricted plastic bag use.

No matter how many plastic bag bans go into effect, we are not going to ban our way to a cleaner ocean. What needs to happen is better education about plastic, its effect on the environment and recycling.  A proper approach to plastics need to be approached regarding waste management and including recycling.

Shale gas is having on the U.S. economy, specifically the plastics industry. SPI is helping to sponsor a report that will come out later this year that will include detailed information about the impact of shale-gas on plastics.

Recycling plastic bags and plastic films is important because this valuable material can be made into dozens of useful new products such as low-maintenance fencing and decking, building and construction products, shopping carts, and of course, new bags!

Atlantic Poly’s Envirotech Recycling Division is ready and able to help reduce your business' carbon footprint and improve your company's bottom line. We manufacture AND recycle plastic product lines.  If your company disposes stretch film, pallet wrap, and or plastic bags and films, we can remove this material from your company's waste stream and turn that would-be waste into usable American-made products.
 
For more information on our Envirotech Recycling Division or on plastic products, contact Atlantic Poly.

Waste and Recycling News