"Sustainability" is more than just a buzzword; it has become a significant factor in almost all elements of production—including the way manufacturers print onto packaging materials. As consumers continue to demand greater variety on retail shelves, especially when it comes to sustainable, premium and convenience choices, manufacturers are forced to examine their own processes to keep pace with demand and extract every last second of productivity.
In order to achieve this, investment in ever-more efficient capital equipment is increasing. The world market for packaging machinery is projected to grow from an estimated value in 2016 of $36.8 billion to $42.2 billion in 2021, according to the 2018 Global Trends Impacting the Market for Packaging Machinery Report by PMMI, The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies. Labeling, decorating and coding machinery, vertical form/fill/seal machinery and horizontal form/fill/seal machinery markets are forecast to have the highest growth rates from 2016 to 2021, with compound annual growth rates of 3.0 percent, 3.1 percent and 3.2 percent, respectively.
Package printing technology lands at the top of this list, most likely because of the range of benefits it offers manufacturers, who continuously seek new methods for cutting costs and becoming more environmentally friendly. New at the PMMI-produced PACK EXPO International 2018 (Oct. 14-17; McCormick Place, Chicago), the inaugural PACKage Printing Pavilion (located in the South Building at McCormick Place) will display innovations in sustainable printing technologies and their myriad applications across various markets.