Blow molded squeeze tube stands on its own.

Upside-down stand-up tubes help consumers fully evacuate the contents and provide retailers with a space-saving and attractive graphic presence on store shelves. Yet these tubes are typically difficult and costly to make: They require laminated films and separately molded ends that are joined by complex welding techniques. They also use oversized caps to achieve stand-up stability.

Graham Packaging Co. in York, Pa., has now developed a one-piece, extrusion blow molded LDPE tube that incorporates a flexible pop-up dome and small integral cap. Graham's version was recently adopted for a hair gel in Argentina and for beverage and motor-oil products in Brazil. The first U.S. application will surface in early 2004 with a home-repair product.

Geoffrey Lu, Graham v.p. and general manager, says this technology opens broad potential in blow molded packaging for creams, lotions, toothpaste, household chemicals, and foods like dressings, sauces, condiments, and spreads.

Graham's Flexa Tube incorporates a thin-wall dome and hinge zone in one end of the tube to create a flexible pop-up section. Squeezing the tube extends the pop-out dome and integral cap. After use, the dome and cap are pushed back into the tube body so that the tube can stand up. Lu says precise control of wall thickness in the dome and hinge areas is critical to this achievement. The tubes are offered in diameters of 40, 50, and 58 mm and in lengths up to 10 in.