The PackMach show was held from 4 – 6 October at New Delhi’s Pragati Maidan alongside Drink Technology India and World Tea and Coffee Expo 2023, where leading companies from the processing and packaging scene showcased their packaging and allied solutions to business visitors. With more than 20,000 square meters of exhibition space, 250 plus exhibitors, and more than 1,000 solutions on display, the exhibitions attracted a lot of visitors. Here’s a short round-up of what some of the leading brands had to offer.
Maharshi Group
The Maharshi Group, which has been in the packaging industry for more than 40 years, showcased packaging machinery, basically fillers, cappers and labelers for end-of-line packaging. Jigesh Dani, director of marketing at Maharshi Group, said the company keeps an eye on what’s happening across the world and makes sure its products have something unique.
“We entered the labeling industry in 1995, when, as a supporting activity, we used to supply labeling machines to our customers. Thirty years ago, when customers used to search for labelers, they did not have too many options in the market. They, eventually, started asking us to support them with their labeling equipment. It took us 4-5 years to understand the technical requirements for labels,” Dani said.
The labels industry is very competitive with a new entrant almost every day, he said, adding Maharshi’s label printing division has an edge over its competitors.
Sustainability is a buzzword in the industry, with all MNCs trying to reduce their carbon footprint by purchasing labels with a release liner or a processing mold in it. “We have introduced a cost-saving singer-liner dual-label technology, where instead of two liners a single liner is used,” he said, adding the new technology is still in the testing phase.
Shubham Flexible Packaging Machines
Shubham Flexible Packaging Machines was launched in 2000 by Virendra Sharma. The company showcased its TetraPack and horizontal form-fill-seal (HFFS) machine at its stand at PackMach 2023. Shubham Sharma, executive director – business development at Shubham Flexible Packaging Machines, said the TetraPack machine is used for aseptic liquid packaging. The HFFS machine, on the other hand, can be used for packaging powders and liquids. It can be used for four-side sealing, three-side sealing, standee pouches, spouts, and zippers.
Shubham Machines also has VFFS machines, both collar-type and multitrack. It can have 12, 10 or 6 tracks depending on the pouch width, Sharma said. The company has stickpack VFFS machines which are used to manufacture coffee or honey pouches or sugar sachets, along with bottling machines and jerrycan fillers. The company is also into end-of-line solutions such as case erection, case packing, case palletizing, and pick and place.
“We provide turnkey solutions from primary packaging to secondary packaging. Since 2000, we have seen good growth for the company and we are the global suppliers of companies such as Unilever, Proctor & Gamble, Nestle, Johnson & Johnson, and many other FMCG companies,” Sharma said.
The company has a global presence in more than 40 companies worldwide with 90% of its market being exports. ITC, Tops, and Haldiram’s are some of the major Indian clients. The company received an overwhelming response at the exhibition with many serious inquiries.
Mamata Machinery
Mamata Machinery has been in the flexible packaging industry since 1989. It showcased its fully automatic horizontal form-fill-seal (HFFS) machine at PackMach 2023. The company makes standard zip-up pouches inline, fills them, and discharges pouches at very high speeds of 200 packs/minute, said Apurva Kane, senior vice president, Mamata Machinery. Its other machine – the vertical form-fill-seal (VFFS) machine can go up to 180 packs/minute and is the fastest available in India today, he claimed.
Both machines are fully stainless steel, servo-driven and net-enabled, and can be connected from anywhere in the world, he said. As they are made from stainless steel, they can be cleaned very easily, which stops the growth of bacteria and fungi.
“All machines are enabled with technology that would allow a brand owner to run them with recyclable films. Mamata Machinery is currently focusing on the food segment with these machines. Thus, it is very important that food contamination is avoided as much as possible, particularly in namkeens (salted Indian snacks) and processed foods,” he added.
Ahmedabad-based Mamata Machinery’s machines have been installed by Haldiram’s in Nagpur as well as in Delhi, by Balaji Wafers in all their plants at Rajkot, Valsad, Indore and Lucknow, Kellogg’s, Hershey, Gits and Fit and Flex in Ahmedabad. These machines were developed in the US by Mamata Inc. and feature the latest global technology, Kane told Packaging South Asia. In 2017, the technology was transferred to the mother company Mamata Machinery India. Since then, the machines have been manufactured and sold in India as well as being exported to the US. The company has installed 150 such machines in India.
Inovance
Chennai-based Inovance showcased its wide range of industrial automation solutions, including VFDs, servo systems, PLCs, air compressors, and motion controllers at PackMach 2023. The company provides its automation products to several segments including textiles, printing, and packaging.
“The automation industry in India is growing because of new technologies coming up. We are looking at a high growth in this segment. We have a complete product basket for the automation industry including products for the execution layer, drive layer, and control layer and this is what sets us apart from our competitors,” said T Christopher, senior manager – business development, pan-India at Inovance.
