Thanks to the AlphaPro, flexible packaging can be tested immediately and in real time. Simply select and divert product samples from the production line to an inspection line, and perform AUTOMATICALLY a leak test without any human intervention whatsoever (i.e. a destructive test).Full digital results are immediately available (leaks > 5 μm are captured) and are instantly transferred to the manufacturing process control system or to a computer via an USB connection.

Designed to test packaging where there is little or no headspace like chocolate bars, the Astaara Product Line delivers extremely accurate results to enable rapid improvements of the process (leaks > 5 μm are detected and captured).Blocked needles  will not compromise the result of the test anymore: a solid thin conical stainless-steel pointer is built-in to the AlphaTower and the GammaTower (both patented perforating devices), and cannot get blocked or filled with food, unlike the hollow needle used today by all manufacturers.

Consumables for leak & O₂ traditional tests are mainly comprising of septa, which takes the form of a sticker that is adhered to the flexible packaging to be tested, and a hollow needle. A septum can only be used once. A leak septum is 2.5 times more expensive than a O₂ septum.With the Astaara range of products, consumables like septa and hollow needles are no longer needed. Each perforating tower has an integrated solid thin conical stainless-steel pointer which replaces the hollow needle used today, therefore, operates fully without any septum.

Implement the sealing’s integrity control of flexible packaging during the next ISO 22000 & HACCP review using the continuous improvement process.The sealing integrity of the flexible packaging being a Critical Point, the Astaara product range will assist you to identify the value of its Critical Limit, record and monitor the tests results. This will help to find the root cause of leaks above the Critical Limit, therefore enabling corrective action to be taken.

With the GammaLab, a relation between the size of the leak and the change of the O₂ content over a period of time of the specified Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP) gas mix in the packaging can be established.Therefore, the Critical Limit can be determined, and the product packaging will then be sealed within the acceptable range, ensuring that the content will be fully preserved until the last day of the shelf life.Thanks to the GammaPro, the O₂ concentration inside the packaging of the products can be automatically measured without any human intervention, in order to compare it with the O₂ concentration that the machine is delivering. Monitoring and reporting of this value is particularly useful when production is switched, during a nightshift, to another product with a different gas mix for example, which allows inspection to take place the next day by the Supervisor that the gas modification was correctly executed.

After manufacturing, products may be subjected to a certain number of harmful external factors, for example changes in differential pressure during air transport, extreme temperature changes, excessive compression due to manipulation, etc. etc… A mild leak may therefore increase and become excessive.As a result, humidity and bacteria could infiltrate the package and compromise the taste or the integrity of the content. For seafood packed under Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP) for example, the product may become unsafe for consumption.The Astaara range of products will assist you to monitor very precisely the reliability and consistency of the flexible packaging sealing integrity, therefore avoiding undesirable consequences.