Last month the trade organization PMMI released a list of the top 10 trends in the packaging and container industries. The analysis is based on focus groups conducted by PMMI at its trade show PACK EXPO International, which took place at the end of October in Chicago.
The report indicates that companies that deal with consumer packaged goods are feeling guarded optimism as business and manufacturing enters 2013, and that the New Year will be filled with both opportunities and challenges, according to a press release available online at https://www.pmmi.org/News/ . The entire Vision 2020 report is available to Packaging Machinery Manufacturers Institute members for download at the PMMI.org site.
The executives from the consumer packaging companies noted that recruiting and retaining quality employees will still be a cause for concern, as will continuing to find ways to implement lean manufacturing practices while staying “green” – being responsible as corporate citizens in all areas of manufacturing. Consumers are (in some cases) more and more willing to pay for environmentally-friendly products, which means green packaging and products are becoming more “mainstream” strategy than they are “on the fringe.”
Consumers born between 1975 and 2000 now make up more than 1/3 of the population of the United States, and this generation highly values convenience, product safety and quality. But it’s also the task of companies to understand the members of “Gen Y” and its behaviors and attitudes towards the marketplace. Part of that challenge, as you likely know if you’re reading this Bahrns blog article, is that marketing and communication lines now run through social media to this generation of consumers. The report points out that this first online generation – many of whom were born into homes with the Internet and cell phones – are choosing social media for purchasing products and for information gathering.
Regulatory compliance is a huge issue affecting the packaging industries, and the focus groups said they expect even more federal, state and local regulations to be implemented. They pointed to the Food Safety Modernization Act as a major example.
As customers demand speed and efficiency from the manufacturing level through the retail level, machinery has to be efficient and reliable, said the focus groups. Innovations in materials and packaging such as new designs and new ideas have to be balanced with the need for reliability in quickly changing business environments.
Another trend predicted in the PMMI report is globalization, with the focus groups saying that all corporate actions must take global strategy into consideration in 2013. Likewise, machinery purchases must still be carefully considered before each decision on the investment of capital is made. The packaging professionals also emphasized using retrofits and upgrades to prolong the life of existing machines.