Packaging Machinery and Automation

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About Machinery

There's no doubt about it, machinery is a huge part of what defines the modern packaging industry - the sheer volume of materials used and the items produced for the consumer and business sectors are mind-boggling.  It's fairly clear that the packaging industry couldn't survive today without incredibly fast, productive machines to hammer out boxes, jars, bottles, caps, and the myriad other products required.

Some machines create the product, such as Plastic Moulders, some assemble, like Cap Affixers.  Some decorate, others ensure the packaging is filled.  Still others take packaging and put it in packaging.  The variety of machines made for the packaging industry is nigh-infinite, but they ensure that EVERYTHING that is produced for consumption is somehow wrapped, boxed, or contained.

Machinery types

Some more examples of the amazing machines at work in the packaging industry include (in a very general sort of process order):

• Primary packaging machinery, starting with Preparation machines, including Choppers, Crushers, Cutters, Molders, Peelers that take raw materials and prepare them for creating packaging components.
• Fabricating machines, such as Molders, Blow Molders, Extruders, Combos, Assemblers, Compression Molders, Roll-Formers, Form/Fill/Sealers, Blister Molders, and many, many more.  These machines create some sort of packaging component that will then have a product placed in it.
• Then we have a variety of Decorating machines that include Hot-Stampers, Coders, Printers, Silk-Screeners, Markers, and Imprinters, that take the packaging component and make it look pretty.
• Filling or Assembly machines, that take products and insert them, pour them, or somehow fit them into a covering or container.  The product can be a solid, a liquid, a gas - you name it.  Here, there are also subsidiary machines such as Cleaners, Sterilizers, Coolers and Driers that treat the product or package in some way prior to being sealed.
• Closing machines, along with their cousins the Seaming, Sealing, Lidding, Capping, Over-Capping, and Wrapping machines, put some sort of closure on the package once the product has been put into it.  You can't have a bottle without a cap, a jar without a lid, a box without sealed sides, etc.
• Then, we get into Secondary Packaging machinery, where the packaging is put into packaging.  Wrapping machines take over from Closers, they put another layer of security over the assembled product/container/closure ensemble.  This step can also include Bundling, and if it hasn't already occurred, the addition of Security Measures and/or Tamper Evidence.
• Finally, we have the Tertiary Packaging machinery set, that includes Over-Wrappers, Shrink-Wrappers, Banders, Palletizers, and Loaders that put all the products together and prepare them for delivery/shipping/warehousing.

That's a LOT of machinery, and it's only a sample of some of the more popular types available on the market today.  There are myriad examples of targeted and custom machines that perform very specific  functions not normally found in standard production lines.

If you need to find a machine, we recommend using our PACkfind utility.

So, what's on the horizon for 2011?

Well, the three biggest concerns seem to be faster, faster, and faster, whether we're talking about filling lines, capping machines, or decoration.  All of the machinery companies we've spoken to have plans to add new machines to their lines to replace outdated items.  Many of them offer the ability to upgrade existing lines to take advantage of new technologies.  Other machinery providers are moving toward offering full-service solutions that provide complete lines for companies wishing to focus on one particular technology.

Whatever the strategy, in a world tentatively emerging from economic crisis, we expect to see machinery suppliers sell more units in 2011 than in 2010, though not as much as we expect to see sold in 2012.  We also expect to see a LOT of upgrades this year, as companies that don't wish to make major investments opt for less costly additions to their lines.  Watch out for new decoration options and decorating incorporated into lines rather than as afterthoughts.

Finally, we can expect to see a lot more machines purchased in Europe and North America as many large companies realize that outsourcing to Asia isn't for everyone.  Many soft costs are surfacing, resulting from transportation and stricter payment policies.  Also, long distances mean bigger CO2 footprints, and that's always a no-no.  Many companies will be purchasing their own machines to ensure lower transport costs, quality control, and lower emissions numbers.  Sticking close to home runs counter to the global outsourcing trend of a couple of years ago, but it makes more sense in a post-crisis economy - especially when the cost of automation has gone down to attract customers.