PolyOne collaborates with OXO

PolyOne GLS Thermoplastic Elastomers collaborated with kitchenware leader OXO to develop the OXO Tot line – an award winning family of durable, attractive feeding dishes that allow toddlers to feed themselves. The new line helps OXO further differentiate its brand in the competitive kitchenware market.

After considering other materials, OXO chose PolyOne GLS Dynaflex TPE for several components of this new offering. “In a collaborative effort with OXO, PolyOne custom formulated a Dynaflex TPE to meet the specific demands of this application,” said Charles Page, global marketing director, PolyOne GLS Thermoplastic Elastomers. “Our TPE formulation expertise enabled us to provide OXO with a tough, durable, attractive, food-safe solution that would stand up to the kind of abuse only a toddler can dish out.”

The OXO Tot feeding line, which OXO markets as free of BPA and phthalates, has received numerous accolades for its design, including a 2012 Bronze IDEA (International Design Excellence Award) in the Kitchen category. The custom Dynaflex TPE was used on several components of OXO’s new Tot dishes, including a removable lid that is used to store leftovers, a grippy non-slip base and a separable plate, ring and lid to allow for easy dishwasher cleaning.

In addition to offering a translucent base material that eases color matching for OXO’s vibrant color scheme, the material meets both U.S. FDA177.1210 and EU10/2011 standards for food-safe applications. Further, the material’s high tensile strength – up to 1100 psi (7.6MPa) – exceeds OXO’s stringent bite / tear requirement for infant care applications, enabling OXO to provide a safe and durable product for consumers and their families.

“At OXO, quality and safety are of the utmost importance. All materials are of the highest quality and all products are thoroughly tested to uphold and surpass the strictest safety standards,” said Alex Lee, president of OXO. “In addition to finding a food-safe, easily colorable TPE for this application, we needed to find a supplier that could provide us with type of consistency and reliability we require. PolyOne delivered on both counts.”