Packaging Solutions
Tomorrow sees the start of FachPack, the European trade fair for packaging, processing and technologies, which will open its doors at Exhibition Centre Nuremberg.
Over a three day period, 1644 exhibitors will showcase innovative packaging solutions for consumer and industrial goods for the first time in 12 exhibition halls. More than 40,000 trade visitors will take advantage of the opportunity to get comprehensive information on the new German packaging law before it takes effect in January 2019. Sustainability, digitalisation, e-commerce and packaging design will be the hot topics discussed at the stands and at numerous forums, special shows and events.
‘This year too, the lifeblood of FachPack is the highly efficient German packaging industry represented by 1,021 exhibitors. However, there is a noticeable trend towards a more European flavour,’ said a delighted Cornelia Fehlner, the new exhibition director for FachPack. This year, 623 exhibitors will travel to Nuremberg from other European countries, primarily Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, Austria and Turkey. The total 1644 exhibitors consist not just of established companies but also a number of start ups. At the pavilion in Hall 3A subsidised by the German Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy, 16 young innovative companies will get the opportunity to present themselves and their products to the professional community.
FachPack covers a comprehensive range of products along the packaging process chain, from packaging materials and machines to printing and processing, logistics systems and services.
The largest exhibition segment, consisting of a total 780 exhibitors, is dedicated to packaging materials and packaging (eg paper, cardboard, paperboard, plastic and glass) and packaging accessories (eg labels, caps and closures). There will be 560 exhibiting companies showcasing the technical side, ie machines for producing and processing packaging, labelling and marking technology, and equipment for quality control, testing or recycling. There are also another 297 firms from the logistics segment with solutions for the storage, loading, order picking and transport of packed goods. Another 224 exhibitors will show the options available for the printing and processing of packaging.
Professional audience from commerce and industry
FachPack is an interesting event for all companies that produce and/or pack consumer or industrial goods. It attracts manufacturers and users of primary, secondary and tertiary packaging along with their sub-suppliers and equipment providers. They come primarily from the food and beverages, pharmaceuticals and medical technology, cosmetics, chemicals and automotive sectors.
Numerous forums and special shows offer education and in-depth knowledge on the various aspects of packaging. The two forums TechBox und PackBox, consisting of more than 90 presentations by renowned industry experts, are a real crowd puller. The TechBox Forum in Hall 3 puts the spotlight on packaging technology and logistics and covers topics such as intelligent packaging carriers, data security on packaging lines, or the ‘Digitalisation Campaign’. The PackBox Forum in Hall 7 focuses on packaging topics like printing and processing and includes presentations on innovative packaging solutions for e-commerce, the packaging design of the future or sustainable trends in the European packaging market. All items on the programme are free and there is no need to register. Simultaneous German/English translation will be provided.
How can design help create a successful brand image? What are the trends in brand communication? And what new packaging materials and technologies are available? Issues such as these will be explored in the
FachPack 2018: Industry gathering of packaging specialists in newly populated Hall 8, where more than 90 exhibitors will highlight various aspects of high-quality packaging design, printing and processing.
Centrepiece of the hall is the special show ‘Premium Packaging’ (booth 8-314). Organised in partnership with bayern design, it features around 40 innovative exhibits from all around the world that are sure to impress through their outstanding design or groundbreaking materials. The items on display include: the packaging for an exclusive bottle of wine in the form of a gnarled vine; ‘smart’ food packaging consisting of an innovative sealing film that shows the consumer when the use by date for the food has expired; or the biodegradable household cleaner ‘Clean the ocean’, which comes in readily degradable porcelain bottles in various shades of blue.
The exhibition stand of the Deutsches Verpackungsinstitut (German Packaging Institute, dvi) in Hall 6 (booth 6-459) is always well worth a visit, as it displays the winning products from the German Packaging Award 2018. This award acknowledges outstanding and innovative solutions from the entire packaging supply chain in 10 categories, including functionality/convenience, sustainability, design/processing, young talent. The award ceremony will be held on the first day of the fair.
According to information from the Gemeinschaftsausschuss Deutscher Verpackungshersteller (Joint Committee of German Packaging Producers, GADV), the packaging market grew again in 2017. Around 19 million metric tonnes of packaging was manufactured. The production volume increased by 1.1 percent and sales rose by 4.6% to around €33 billion. Similar to previous years, plastic packaging was the biggest earner at around 44%; in terms of volume, packaging made from paper, cardboard and paperboard took the lead over all other packaging materials at around 47%.
In respect of production, the strongest growth was in plastic packaging, which was up 2.1%, followed by paper, paperboard and cardboard packaging (+2%) and glass (+1.7%). All packaging categories saw increased sales: In 2017 metal packaging enjoyed the highest growth (+7.8%), followed by paper, paperboard and board (+5.6%), plastic (+3.9%), aluminium (+3.2%) and glass (+2.4%).
Strong export performance for food processing and packaging machines German packaging machine manufacturers are in a good position worldwide. According to the VDMA Food Processing and Packaging Machinery Division, they generated more than 80% of their revenue abroad. By way of comparison, this is the case for only 73% of general machinery manufacturers. For a long time, and with a share of currently 21%, Germany has been the largest exporter of food processing and packaging machinery. In 2017, the worldwide export volume was in the region of €41 billion. The sector is benefiting from the growing middle class worldwide. In India and China in particular, millions of people are managing to move up into higher income classes, a development that is associated with increased consumption.
Towards the middle of 2018, exports of food processing and packaging machines were also enjoying guaranteed demand. A low volume of domestic orders was more than compensated by the demand from overseas, so that order inflow grew by 3% from January to June 2018 compared with the same period in the previous year. The prospects for the year overall are equally positive. Also sustained by international business, order inflow for packaging machines (excluding beverage packaging machines) saw real growth of 1% compared with the previous year.
Output for food processing and packaging machines rose by 4.8% to €14.9 billion in the previous year. This makes this segment the fourth strongest in a total of 32 machine engineering sectors. Exports increased to €8.5 billion (8.4 in the previous year) and the biggest customers were the USA, France and China. Packaging machine production alone grew by 3% to €6.6 billion (6.4 in the previous year), of which beverage packaging machines account for €2.2 billion (2.1 in the previous year).
