TC Transcontinental Packaging, Chicago said it opened its ASTRA Center — the Art, Science and Technology Research and Applications Center — based in Menasha, Wis. This 12,200-square-foot facility is a key enabler for the company to innovate and identify sustainable solutions for its customers. It is home to a team of more than 20 engineers who are the driving force behind every challenge solved and innovation created for its customers.

“Over the past years, we have aligned our investments and strategy to meet our customers’ objectives and goals,” said Alex Hayden, senior vice president, R&D, innovation and sustainability for TC Transcontinental Packaging. “The ASTRA Center is at the core of our operations to drive growth and innovation and be the sustainability partner to our customers. The many tests, instruments and technology available to us provide enhanced product development knowledge through the entire process of flexible plastic packaging design, allowing the development of innovative films for sustainability, e-commerce and more.”

Thanks to four different state-of-the-art research and development labs and a team of sustainability gurus, brand owners and retailers can benefit from a deep expertise in compostable, recyclable and recycled content packaging, increased speed to market from concept to commercialization, optimized solutions for performance and cost, and turnkey packaging solutions, TC Transcontinental Packaging said.