Ultrasonic Sealing by Herrmann: A Smarter Approach to Flexible Packaging

As packaging evolves toward sustainability and higher performance, manufacturers face new challenges: sealing recyclable mono-materials, reducing energy consumption, and ensuring leak-proof integrity (especially for liquid products). Proven traditional heat sealing, often struggles with these demands due to its reliance on high temperatures and long dwell times.

To address these challenges, at Mespack, we have partnered with Herrmann Ultraschall, a global leader in ultrasonic technology, to integrate advanced ultrasonic sealing into our packaging machinery. This collaboration combines Herrmann’s expertise in precision sealing with Mespack’s innovative equipment design, thus delivering a solution that ensures stronger seals, lower energy use, and improved compatibility with modern, eco-friendly films.

At‑a‑Glance: Why Ultrasonic on Your Mespack Machine?

• Use of hermetic seals with fewer leaks, especially in liquid applications or whenever a product can contaminate the seal area. 
• A premium appearance combines the ultrasonic hermetic seal with a second thermal (“cosmetic”) seal to deliver both integrity and shelf appeal. 
• Energy savings and fast start‑up that requires no warm‑up; power is mainly and solely consumed during the brief sealing pulse. 
• Mono‑material friendliness due to lower heat transfer and precise energy control, which minimizes film shrinkage and carrier‑layer melting. 
• Higher OEE and less waste are results of fewer rejects and more stable performance on high‑speed lines. 

How Herrmann Ultrasonic Sealing Works (in simple terms)

Ultrasonic sealing not only converts electrical energy into high‑frequency mechanical vibration (typically 20, 30, or 35 kHz), but also delivers it through a converter–booster–sonotrode stacked onto an anvil. The localized vibration generates heat inside the seal interface, fusing the seal layers with minimal external heat transfer. Average vibration amplitudes are on the order of 9–35 μm, hence enabling very precise, short energy pulses. 

As heat is internally generated at the polymer interface, the outer web surfaces remain comparatively cool. Subsequently, ultrasonic is particularly tolerant to light product contamination in the seal area and helps protect sensitive, thinner, or mono‑material structures from distortion. 

The Location of Ultrasonic on Mespack Machines

In reference to Mespack equipment, ultrasonic sealing is applied at the top sealing station in order to create the hermetic seal. A second thermal station adds the cosmetic seal, thus delivering a sleek appearance and touch while simultaneously preserving seal integrity. This “precision first and premium finish next” approach combines performance with branding aesthetics. The setup is especially effective on high‑speed platforms, including continuous motion (e.g., HCRM660) and intermittent motion (e.g., H570), and usually requires no changeover or only simple height adjustments when switching between standard and ultrasonic operation. 

Best‑Fit Applications

• Stand-up pouches (with or without corner spout) 
• Frontal spout and frontal valve formats when top‑seal integrity is critical 
• Sustainable materials (including recyclable mono‑materials and paper‑based laminates) 

When liquids or products that are prone to contaminating the seal area are used, the sealing of the ultrasonic internal heat generation and vibration‑assisted expulsion of residues help establish a robust hermetic seal. 

Mono‑Materials Made Easier

With heat sealing, mono‑materials can suffer carrier‑layer melting, untight seals, or poor appearance if the thermal window is narrow. Ultrasonic sealing minimizes heat conduction through the web, reducing film shrinkage and giving you a tighter, more controllable process window. 

Mespack’s TSM with COS configuration combines hermetic sealing, cosmetic sealing, and cooling in a compact sequence, hence delivering safe, consistent sealing and a visually attractive finish, while simplifying maintenance by consolidating three functions. 

Measurable Impact: Quality, Energy, and CO₂

Fewer Leaks and Less Waste

In a representative case of a four‑lane filler at 60 cycles/min, the move from heat to ultrasonic sealing cut top‑seal leakers from 40–200 per 100,000 to ~1 per 100,000. This is a reduction of roughly 127–633 bad pouches/day to ~3; daily material waste shrinks from 12.7–63.4 kg to approximately 0.32 kg. (values depend on product, format, and operating hours).

Energy Consumption

As ultrasonic sealing is “instant on”, power is concentrated in the ~20% of each cycle where with an occurrence of sealing (vs 100% for heat). At 60 cycles/min and over 16 production hours/day, the example comparison shows approximately 1 kWh/day for ultrasonic versus 8 kWh/day for heat (scaling to ~300 kWh/year vs ~2,600 kWh/year over 300 production days). 

CO₂ Footprint

If the same duty profile is used, the illustrative CO₂ impact falls from approximately 3.36 kg/day (heat) to 0.403 kg/day (ultrasonic), or ~1.008 t/year to ~0.121 t/year. When multiplied across 10 lines, this is roughly 10.08 t/year vs 1.21 t/year (actual values depend on the mix of

local electricity mix).

Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)

Fewer rejects, less rework, lower energy, and no warm‑up losses translate into a favorable TCO on stand-up pouch applications and beyond. The webinar’s TCO example highlights the manner in which these factors compound over time to improve payback. 

Implementation Notes for Engineers

• Frequencies & Amplitude Control: Ultrasonic stacks commonly operate at 20/30/35 kHz with controlled amplitudes (~9–35 μm) to match film structures and seal geometry. 
• Stack & Tooling: The converter–booster–sonotrode assembly places energy into the jaw profile, and the anvil supports the web, thus assisting in the concentration of heat at the interface. 
• Process Robustness: Internal heating and rapid energy delivery make the process tolerant to light contamination and reduce the risk of external web heating. 
• Line Integration: On Mespack lines, use Top Sealing Station 1 is used for the ultrasonic hermetic seal and Top Sealing Station 2 is used for the cosmetic thermal seal. In reference to numerous cases, only simple height changes are needed when adjusting between formats. 

When to Choose Ultrasonics

Consider specifying ultrasonic sealing when you need:

• Maximum seal integrity in the presence of product contamination (typical for many liquid fills). 
• High‑speed throughput with stable performance and minimal rejects. 
• Compatibility with recyclable mono‑materials and paper‑based laminates, while protecting package appearance. 
• Lower operating energy and a reduced CO₂ footprint without sacrificing look and texture.

Sealing the Future with Confidence

Ultrasonic sealing is more than a technological upgrade; it is a strategic move toward efficiency, sustainability, and superior product quality. By reducing waste, cutting energy consumption, and enabling the use of recyclable mono-materials, this solution helps brands meet both operational and environmental goals without compromising speed or aesthetics.

Are you ready to explore ultrasonic sealing for your packaging lines?
Contact our Mespack experts today to discuss your project, request sample tests or schedule an operational demo. Watch the video HERE.