10 niche shows, 4 profit zones, 354 companies, 10,342 visitors, 20000 sq. mt of exhibition area and the evolution of Pack Plus 2009- the largest Packaging Processing and Supply Chain event is complete. Held from 8- 11 July, Pragati Maidan, New Delhi- Pack Plus 2009 showcased the largest gamut of running machines, product launches, new technology and information sharing platform ever seen in the country.

Packaging Zone

FFS machines took the lead in THE Packaging Zone at PackPlus 2009. Wrapping, Bagging, Capping, Weighing, Marking and Coding machines were the other major highlights of this segment.

Nichrome India Ltd. launched ‘Flexiblock’, bringing the first FFS machine of its kind in India. Flexiblock system is a combination of Nichrome Excel cup filler and the Flexiblock attachment. This system is the combination of form-fill and seal technology and specialized top shaping system for flat bottom bags with a variety of closing, and re-sealable options. “This machine delivers compact pouches for grains, rice, pulses, microni, pastas, etc and works at the speed of 40 bags of 1 kg per minute,” said Sanjay Deshmukh, Head-Solution Engineering, Nichrome.

Ishida India Pvt. Ltd. launched a complete new series of products including VFFS, checkweigher, bagmaker machines and retail solutions. Sharing his positive thoughts on the Indian market, Takayasu Yamada, Managing Director, Ishida said, “For the past 3 years, most of the production side including snacks and confectionry has been looking at higher efficiency machines. There is a lack of space in capacities, so the plant owners look for high speed machines to bring more productivity.” “We are dealing with solid, free-flow products and are also in wet food industry like poultries, ready-to-eat etc. India being an agriculture specific country, food segment has lot of prospects,” he added.

Bosch Ltd. launched two new products, ‘SVI- 2620’ – a cost effective high packaging system with the speed of packing 120 bags per minute and ‘Tera 40’, a higher weighted product for bigger volumes. “SVI 2620 is flexible, automatic, robust, reliable, provides quick changeover time and can develop new attachments. The up-stream and downstream system equipments can also be integrated easily,” explained VK Vishwanathan, Managing Director, Bosch Ltd. “‘The advantage of Tera 40 is that its drop time is on the lower side, which adds to speed and efficiency of the machine,” he added.

For Khosla Machines & Khosla Precision, a part of Khosla Group, PackPlus was a big hit. The company sold ‘Wrapper 6000T’ a toilet soap wrapping machine to Wipro, ‘ABM 1100’ banding machine was sold to ITC, ‘Logipac 22S’ another soap wrapping machine to Karnataka Soaps and ‘Logipac 21E’ biscuit packaging machine was sold to Dukes, Hyderabad. “All machines on display have been sold to esteemed clients and we have further leads too. What more can one expect from an event!” said Ashim Khosla, Director, Khosla Machines.

Fabcon launched Spiroflow dust free filling and weighing stations at the event. The machine comes with features like stainless steel filling nozzle and dual concentric filling spout that combines venting system with integral bag inflator. It has adjustable rise and fall loop support arms and has a capacity of filling 20 bulk-bags per hour.

Samarpan Fabricator & Select Packaging Machinery, a part of Samarpan Group, showcased ‘Prime PS 96’ – a servo driven multi track sachet packing machine, ‘Speed Wrap’- the new servo driven HFFS machine and the Lotus HFFS machine.

During the event, the company received order of five servo driven fillers from Select all used to pack flour and three oil packaging machines from Samarpan Fabricator. “We see a great number of customers coming in from the west, which is a great thing for an event held up north. Besides the on-spot buying of machines, we have received more future orders from our clients,” declared Atul G. Amin, Vice President Marketing.

Ronchi Mario, Italy is consolidating its international reach by opening a new branch in Asia. “We are at PackPlus to show our presence in this region,” said Maurizio Donini, Sales Manager, Ronchi Mario. The company launched ‘Exacta’ filler series at the event.

Checkweigher from CAS India and VFFS machines from Hassia were the other attractive launches at the Show.

Inkjet solutions from Domino Printech, Bakshi Enterprises, Bhavmark, Muktavan Digital Solutions, and Forbes added value to the packaging zone with several running machineries on display. Sachin Kumar Mall, Business Development Manager, Domino felt that the show had all serious customers and the company got a chance to have one to one interaction with them.

Visitors for this zone not only got a chance to see the new machines in the market but also to meet the higher level management from the companies for business talks. “The companies in such events are totally dedicated towards the customers. This helps in satisfying our queries,” said Naresh Kumar, Shri Krishan Rice & Gen Mills, a visitor at the Show.

Converting Zone

Product launches and running machineries at the converting zone of PackPlus added colour to the event. Kody Equipment Pvt. Ltd. chose PackPlus to launch its new duplex slitting machine ‘Nuzen’. “And it was a right move!” declared Sunny Patel, Director, Kody Equipment. “We received orders for three machines, each from S S Resins, Priya Gold and Kapiz PrintPack,” he revealed.

SP Ultraflex Systems, who came with the objective of meeting potential customers at the show where more than satisfied with the results. “It would be too early to name our clients, but yes, we have got in some good deals and have several follow-ups,” shared Biku K, Director of the company.

Kodak Packaging Solutions chose the PackPlus platform to launch its new Flexcel NX laminator. Nick Price, Packaging Segment Director, Kodak Singapore had arrived to have one to one interaction with the potential customers. Suhas Kulkarni, National Business Manager, Kodak India believes that such exhibitions give a global platform to launch new products.

The Converting Zone gave the exhibitors a chance to formulate several ideas on what the industry needs and what should the new products be. “Once you get to know what the customer needs, you have a clear view on what you should come up with, so, this event help in our future plans,” said Vijay Shah, Director, Pelican Rotoflex.

Not only for the products and the brands, PackPlus’ 09 opened the doors for new concepts like rental and lease based IBC for shipping. Goodpack Limited, the world leader and the pioneer in this segment was present at the show to introduce the concept and to establish the company, which is relatively new in the Indian market.

Green was the colur of the season at PackPlus’ 09. The event encouraged eco-friendly packing materials and this was supported by the presence of Packraft Container India Pvt Ltd, showcasing the Safepack and Safecore ranges. The company provides variety of packaging products, which are totally paperbased, reusable and recyclable. It offers corrugated cartons, angle-boards and honeycomb packaging products. The company is the pioneer of paper honeycomb technology in India.

While, PackPlus came as an ideal platform for launching a new product for many, for industry giants like Alcan, it was a perfect place for visibility and connectivity. “Coming to this Expo gave us an opportunity to make our presence felt as one of the leading players of the industry. Every one knows Alcan here! But coming as the Indian chapter of the company gives us a first hand experience. It’s great to meet your clients and share the feedback about the product”, said Anant Gadre, Managing Director, BU, India. The company provides spatiality packaging solutions.

Other launches in this zone included precut rubber using waterjet & CNC cutting systems from Trident Packaging and eco slitter range of slitting machines from Uflex Ltd.

Converting equipment from W&H, Jandu Paper Machines, Uteco Converting, SS Packaging were major attractions. “I have never seen a show having so many running machineries on display. The event has added a lot to my technical knowledge,” said Sandeep Babbar, Aanshul Graphics, a visitor to the Show.

Processing Zone

Product launch in this segment included the Safeline range of metal detectors from Mettler Toledo. These detectors detect all metal contaminants including non-magnetic stainless steel. They are used either in-process or at the end of packing line.

Think of complete automation process and one can realize the significance of the sensors. Wenglor comes with a large number of varieties here. The company launched two products – InoxSens Sensors and ODX Sensors at PackPlus’ 09.

“Through this Expo, the company has presented the world’s first optical sensor system with hygienic design, which assures better hygiene and smooth packaging process for the food, beverage and pharmaceutical sectors,” said Reena Chakravarty from the company.

Schmersal, launched its Safety Light Curtains at PackPlus’ 09. They are available in different sizes of up to 2 mtr of height and 30 mtr of proximity. They sense human getting inside any restricted zone of the plant or shop-floor and halt the process to avoid any accident. “The latest addition is the slim Safety Light Sensors, which fit in the smaller places. The company also manufacturers the safety switches, which could be attached to smaller machines individually.“PackPlus’ 09 has been a great platform for us. It not only spread the know-how about your products to the target clients; but at the same time, they spread the awareness about the motive of the product too! And for products like ours, awareness is the first step in the decision making process,” said Mr Samir Kanchan, Regional Sales Manager, Schmersal India.

Vega Conveyers presented its latest version of ‘Flexible Powered Roller’ Conveyer. Part of its standard machines, it manufacturers more than 22 types of conveyers. The company has its own R&D department. It exports these indigenous products to Bangladesh and Srilanka.

Hilda Automation, a Mumbai based company presented its new version of BOPP Hotmelt labeling machine at the show. The company manufactures range of fully automatic machines for filling, labeling and cutting with self adhesive facility. According to Sanjay Shetye, Marketing, Hilda Automation, PackPlus is a gateway for them to enter into the NCR market, which has a huge potential. “With the good response at the Expo, the company may think to set up its office in NCR to boost up the sales in this region,” he conveyed.

For NKP Pharma, an Ahmedabad based company too; PackPlus comes as the entry point to the NCR markets. The company that has been Pharma centric so far is also looking forward to tap the diversified clientele from various industries like food, dairy, personal care, etc. “The Company offers large variety of fully automatic machines for various stages of filling and packaging. It exports its products to more than 22 countries,” said Vishal Upadhyay, RSM-North, NKP Pharma.

‘Warade Automation launched the Optiweigh’ weighing solution at the event. “The product offers all latest features like optimum design, value for money, Industrial Touch Screen Computer, strain gauge weight cell, 99 product memory and some others,” explained Ravi Rothe from the company.

PackPlus’ 09 came as an ideal launch-pad for the industry leader Sintex. The company, which is familiar to every household in India, has a huge variety of industrial and export packaging products. It launched its new racking system at the event, which is made of powder coated MS. The Company offers customized production of these racks. “We look towards the Indian market as one of the most potential markets. We are present in more than seventy countries in the world. Due to its geographical position also, India is a very important market for us and with Pack Plus we find ourselves in the right place here,” said Wilfred Tan, Regional Sales and Marketing Manager, SEA.

Jencoder displayed precise pacer for automation. “This is the first time we have participated in PackPlus and yes, we have made a right decision,” asserted Milind Bapat, Director Technical from the company. “The event gave us a platform to showcase our whole range of products,” he added. The company has already started to plan its approach in the next year’s event.

“As automation is an integrated part of any industry these days, companies look for highly efficient products. We are here to get in best of the deals,” said Hemant Shah, Anup Tools, a visitor to the show.

Supply Chain Zone

It was a moment of pride for the PackPlus’ 09 when the industry giant Honeywell unveiled its bar-code sensor as part of its global launch. The Dolphin 6100 is the newest addition to the family of bar-code sensors from Honeywell and comes with all latest features like Wi-Fi, radio, blue-tooth. “Now- a -days quality and appearance go hand in hand. So this comes as a compact and stylish bar-code sensing solution,” said Prakash Jethwa from the company.

Talking about his experience at Pack Plus, Anil Gupta, President, Honeywell India said, “Our presence at the Expo shows our commitment towards our brand! We also get the first account of feedback here. This time we wanted to rebrand Metrologic and HandHeld devices. And this show has proved to be the best platform for us to do so.”

ID Technology, a Pune based company launched its complete indigenously made automatic label printing machine called Apache. Every industry including Packaging, Automobile, Chemical, Pharma, Retail, etc. need labeling! “And ID Technology takes care of this requirement with its variants of Apache, the automatic label printing machines. These variants are speed and resolution based and offer value for money solutions for label printing. The company is looking forward to explore the NCR market through the PackPlus’ 09,” said Vinay Kulkarni, Business Development Manager, ID Technologies.

Deepak Kaushik, Satish Enterprises has been a regular visitor to the show since last 3 years. “I never miss this opportunity to see what is new in the market. This show gives me a chance to view all industry leaders under one roof,” he said.

Pack Plus has been known to give value added packages to its exhibitors and visitors alongside the main exhibition. This year the organizers packed a double punch with the annually held PackAge Conference with ‘Packaging for Changing Markets’ as the main theme and the debuting Automation4Packaging- A Technology Forum organized in partnership with Automation Association of India. Both events saw the best of Indian and International speakers sharing their thoughts and knowledge with the industry.

“We are very happy with the response Pack Plus 2009 received. We took the event to a new level after the show last year and we hope to up the ante in our 2010 edition too,” says Anil arora on behalf of the Organizers. Pack Plus 2010 will be held at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi from 7- 10 July.