How It’s Made: A Look into the Tyvek Envelope

When you send something through the mail, you want to be assured that your package will arrive safely to your recipient. However, the problem is that mailed envelopes can and do get damaged in transit, especially if you are using regular envelopes. This is the reason why you need to invest in stronger, more durable envelopes if you’re sending fragile or highly valuable content. Tyvek envelopes are the solution that you are looking for, and luckily, there are different Tyvek envelope sizes that you can choose from.

What is Tyvek?

Tyvek is a material that’s manufactured by Dupont. This company also owns the patent to making this product, as well as the trademark to the name and logo. Although the material has been around since 1933 when it was originally made in the United Kingdom, it wasn’t until the 1950s when it became popular for commercial use. What’s more, the original design was tweaked until around 1967, when it finally became the product that we know today.

Tyvek is an amazing material that has the qualities of both paper and fabric. It is thin, light, and can be folded and used like paper, but it is breathable, flexible, and resistant to wrinkling-like fabric. However, the main advantage that Tyvek has over its competitors is the ability of the material to withstand tears, rips, and moisture.

How is Tyvek Made?

Tyvek is made from sheets of thin polyethylene fibers pressed together with extreme heat and pressure until the layers have completely bonded. Polyethylene is made from long chains of ethylene molecules, and the structure of the compound is what gives the substance the desirable qualities when it comes to flexibility, durability, and strength.

Since the material is the same type of material used for plastic bottles, this means that Tyvek envelopes are completely recyclable. In fact, there are specific recycling centers that Dupont has created all over the USA, and you simply need to visit their website to find the one that’s nearest to you. This means that after you are done using your Tyvek envelope, it can be recycled and the material reused for other uses, such as for construction, insulation, or being made into new packaging materials. In fact, the average lifespan of any Tyvek-based item is around 4-5 usage cycles before the material starts to break down and weaken.

How Can Using Tyvek Help Your Business?

Here are the great advantages of Tyvek envelopes and how they can help give your business a boost:

• Comes in a Wide Variety of Sizes: Whether you are sending out bills, contracts, or blueprints, there is a Tyvek envelope size for you! You won’t need to worry about documents that cannot be folded or wrinkled; you will be able to find the right size with Tyvek envelopes.
• Strong and Durable, but Acts like Paper: Tyvek envelopes are resistant to rips, tears, and can even stand up to light abuse with sharp objects. However, you won’t be sacrificing weight and flexibility for strength and durability. A Tyvek envelope weighs as much as your conventional envelope, so you will be able to send it using regular mail at the same rate.
• Resistant to water and chemicals: One of the most common sources of damage incurred by envelopes is from water and snow damage during transport, but due to poor storage and transport conditions, there can also be chemical damage in the form of mildew. Tyvek is resistant to all forms of common liquid damage during transport, so even if the envelope is accidentally exposed to the elements, you can be sure that the contents are kept safe and dry.
• Printable with Wide Array of Mediums: This is one of the most interesting features of Tyvek envelopes: you can print on them using a wide range of different printing methods. You can manually write on the surface of the envelopes using a pen, pencil, or Sharpie. You can add an image using silk screen printing or laser printing. You can even thermal transfer an image or company logo on the surface of the envelope without damaging the structure of the envelope.
  The ability to customize your Tyvek envelopes will help increase brand visibility and awareness with your customers.
• Customizable: Aside from printing on the surface of the Tyvek envelope, you can also customize the envelope itself. You can have an image or logo embossed; you can laminate the envelope, or have it stitched to increase strength even further and prevent tampering. If you have very sensitive documents inside, you can have the envelope welded and heat-sealed. The material of the envelope is versatile, and will not degrade under a variety of different customization conditions.