The Importance of Antistatic Packaging During Dry Winter Months

The cold, dry air of winter is the culprit of a number of minor maladies; from chapped lips, to dry skin, to the occasional zap of static electricity as you open your car door. But these discomforts aren’t the only concern. For manufacturers, distributers, and suppliers of sensitive electric components and semiconductors, seemingly harmless static electricity can damage products.

 To counteract this issue, it’s important to make sure all electrical products are protected by a layer (or two) of antistatic packaging. The packaging is either silver if made of metallic PET film, or pink if polyethylene is used for production. While both materials can be used to make sheets or bags, polyethylene offers some versatility as the packaging can take the form of bubble wrap or foam, as well. So if a metallic film is used as the primary packaging around an electric component, a pink polyethylene layer of bubble wrap can offer added protection not just from electrostatic, but from physical damage as well.

But the physical form of the packaging is not the only consideration to keep in mind when selecting an antistatic material option. The pink polyethylene bags are effective in an Electrostatic Protected Area (EPA), while metallic, silver bags can be used outside of an EPA so long as the material is not creased or punctured, which would render the film useless against static electricity.

General Plastic Extrusions is a custom manufacturer of polyethylene bags, tubes, and sheets. We are an experienced supplier of antistatic packaging solutions, and will work with you to determine the best material for your needs. For more information, please feel free to contact us and follow us on Twitter for additional industry updates.