In this paper, the work reported has concentrated upon a laminated metallised polymer film. A vacuum deposited aluminium layer (similar to 0.5 mu m) is sandwiched between two layers of oriented polypropylene (OPP) film whose thickness varies from 20 to 40 mu m Aluminium has been removed from selected areas of this sealed system without breaking the seal or causing damage to the OPP film using a 75 W Q-switched Nd:YAG laser. The mechanisms involved in this new process have been investigated.