From:Packaging World

A new six-pack paperboard carrier for Canadian craft brewer West Shefford uses a unique design with a retractable handle that enables stacking on pallets and at retail.

A new six-pack carrier for West Shefford's craft beer uses a retractable handle that enables stacking.

A new beer carton with a retractable handle has proved a clever and cost-effective solution for craft brewer West Shefford Brewing Co. of Bromont, Quebec, in marketing its three canned beer varieties.

In 2014, the company was looking for a convenient way to create six-packs but was reluctant to invest in plastic ring-carrier application equipment. A traditional beer bottle carrier was not an option either, as its fixed handle would prevent stacking on pallets and at retail. To develop a custom solution, West Shefford turned to paper-based packaging supplier PaperWorks.

Among West Shefford’s requirements were that the paperboard selected could withstand the high moisture conditions found in a wet brewery environment. The brewer also wanted a carton design that featured a convenient carry handle, with the package made from recyclable materials.

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To meet the brewer’s objectives, PaperWorks designers developed a two-piece carton—an auto-bottom base and a separate die-cut handle—made from 26-pt SBS. The carton base, which holds the 12-oz beer cans, is manually erected by West Shefford operators by pulling open the glued and die-cut structure, which allows the base and the can partitions to fall into position.Once the cans are loaded into the carton, the die-cut handle blank is manually inserted.

To create a double thickness for additional carton stability, the handle is folded onto itself. The assembly features tabs at the bottom that slide into channels located on both sides of the carton interior.The “center of the side panel” location of the channel allows the handle to slide up and down vertically, once the tabs are slid into place behind sidewall flaps.

Both the structural design and the caliper thickness provide the performance strength required to lift the six-pack via the carrying handle.The handle’s ability to slide back down into the middle of the carton also delivers the stacking attributes that West Shefford desired.

The cartons are offset-printed in six colors. Because the handle and base are separate, West Shefford has the flexibility of adding a promotional message to the handle, without having to reprint the base.

West Shefford launched its beers in the new carrier in November 2014. In November 2015, the package was honored with a Judges’ Award from the Paperboard Packaging Council. Said PPC of the carrier: “A masterful design, this carrier is a testament to the outstanding solutions that emerge when creative design acumen meets the unmatched structural versatility of paperboard.”