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Clear Lam Packaging Inc. (Elk Grove Village, IL) and Frito-Lay Inc. (Purchase, NY) have settled a lawsuit related to Clear Lam's PrimaPak technology. The suit was filed in Federal Court in Chicago on Sept. 18, 2014, by Clear Lam against Frito-Lay accusing the food giant of stealing a packaging design for its promotional boxes of Doritos.

Clare Goldsberry

March 4, 2015

2 Min Read
Clear Lam Packaging settles lawsuit with Frito-Lay

Clear Lam Packaging Inc. (Elk Grove Village, IL) and Frito-Lay Inc. (Purchase, NY) have settled a lawsuit related to Clear Lam's PrimaPak technology. The suit was filed in Federal Court in Chicago on Sept. 18, 2014, by Clear Lam against Frito-Lay accusing the food giant of stealing a packaging design for its promotional boxes of Doritos.

Clear LamAs part of the settlement agreement reached on Feb. 11, 2015, Frito-Lay has acknowledged, among other things, that it will respect Clear Lam's patent rights. In addition, the parties may continue to explore additional business opportunities using Clear Lam's PrimaPak technology. Specific terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

PrimaPak is the industry's first-of-its-kind flexible, stackable and reclosable cubed, semi-rigid package produced from rollstock on custom vertical form-fill-seal equipment, said Clear Lam.

Clear Lam has made significant investments in it PrimaPak system, including a new Co-Packing Facility and Innovation Center near Chicago. The 25,000-sq-ft plant will open in the spring of this year at the company's Elk Grove Village site. Clear Lam has invested $2 million in equipment and technology to launch the new operation, which will support consumer products using its patented PrimaPak system.

The Co-Packing Facility will specialize in dry, free-flowing products using Clear Lam's revolutionary PrimaPak vertical form-fill-seal system with combination scale weigher. It will start with two state-of-the-art production lines with a combined capacity of 20 million units per year. Additional lines will be added in the future. Clear Lam also will assist on an as-needed basis with the sourcing and purchasing of raw materials, shipping, freight and logistics services, and inventory and warehouse storage of materials.

"The introduction of our new Co-Packing Facility and Innovation Center is an exciting development for Clear Lam and for the advancement of our PrimaPak system," said James Sanifilippo, President and CEO. "We understand that many of our customers are looking for opportunities to streamline processes and improve efficiencies in their packing operations without taking on new staff or having to purchase new equipment."

Clear Lam has made this strategic investment to provide customers with an end-to-end solution for the PrimaPak system, covering everything from the packaging materials to the design, printing, filling, sealing, labeling and packing services. The facility has the flexibility to handle small-batch test product runs as well as long-term packaging needs. Applications include salty snacks, nuts, candy, dried fruit, cereals, pet foods, detergent pods and fertilizer.

About the Author(s)

Clare Goldsberry

Until she retired in September 2021, Clare Goldsberry reported on the plastics industry for more than 30 years. In addition to the 10,000+ articles she has written, by her own estimation, she is the author of several books, including The Business of Injection Molding: How to succeed as a custom molder and Purchasing Injection Molds: A buyers guide. Goldsberry is a member of the Plastics Pioneers Association. She reflected on her long career in "Time to Say Good-Bye."

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