CASE STUDIES

 

Pumping paste

Although Guala Dispensing's toothpaste pump hasn't fundamentally changed in  around 15 years, the company is still confident it can see off the competition. The Italian company has been keeping a close eye on the launch of Aquafresh in an aerosol can, but argues the traditional pump dispenser still has advantages.

 

"It dispenses almost perfect toothbrush-sized amounts of toothpaste. Then you take your finger off the actuator and the overcap cuts off the flow of toothpaste with no mess," says UK, Ireland and Scandinavia sales manager Matt Lucas. He adds that toothpaste can build up around the mouth of the pack on aerosol dispensers. The Guala pump seals with a vacuum, meaning any toothpaste left on the outside of the tube can be rinsed off without risk of getting water into the container. The vacuum also ensures there is no loss of flavour.

 

The Guala toothpaste dispenser uses a plastic tamper tear strip to secure the opening. "Ours is one of the few that have a tamper. A lot just use a sticky label on the overcap," says Lucas. He adds that this removes the need for an overcap. "The cap can be thrown away or dispensed with altogether. Once open it is designed to be a one-hand action."

 

As well as holding strong in the toothpaste category, Guala's pump is also finding other applications, says Lucas. "It's used a lot more for haircare, like gels. We also have some automotive clients that are using the pumps for coloured paste to paint over scratches on cars."

 

Quantex

If your bottle of hand lotion dispenses too much cream, it can be annoying. If a hospital machine dispenses too much medicated cream, it can be much more serious. Current peristaltic pumps use a flexible tube, which is squeezed by a motor to push the fluid out. Quantex licensing director Peter Ross says it can be difficult to get accurate dispensing at different temperatures and pressures. The London-based product design agency wanted to create a pump that could dispense exact quantities. Ross explains the Quantex pump has a hard shell with a central rotor. The rotor has indents that pick up fluid from the input side and transport it to the output port. Because the indents hold a fixed volume, and the emptying is very efficient, high accuracy is achieved.

 

"We set out looking at medical uses, but it fits into a very wide range of applications, from dispensing detergents into washing machines through to hand soap dispensers or even food and drink, such as bag-in-box," says Ross. The pump can be made air-tight, which is important to protect food from contamination. The company also had to make it from entirely non-chlorinated materials, because for medical applications pumps need to be able to be incinerated.

 

"The Quantex pump can also generate enough pressure to drive a spray head, which surprised us," he adds. The pump can be manufactured to fit diameters as small as 12mm and can be produced at costs roughly equivalent to a sports cap on a soft drink bottle.