maconda at the Deutsches Verpackungsinstitut (dvi)
maconda News April 2016
maconda always strives to stay at the cutting edge of technology. We place great importance on our consultants having a well-founded background in the industries we primarily serve. This also applies to the complex and dynamic packaging industry! maconda recently participated in a further training seminar, this time at the renowned Deutsches Verpackungsinstitut (dvi). Against this backdrop, we would like to report on current developments in the flexible packaging market in 2016 and beyond.
Currently, three significant trends can be identified that will strongly drive the flexible packaging market now and in the medium term: (1) the reduction of wall thicknesses for cost optimization, (2) the development of high-performance films with specific properties, and (3) active or intelligent packaging, which are grouped under the umbrella term “Smart Packaging.”
Trend 1: Reduction of Wall Thicknesses
Flexible packaging requires significantly less material and energy, making it considerably more cost-effective to produce than rigid, form-fitting packaging. In addition, storage and transport costs can be significantly reduced through the use of flexible packaging solutions. To optimize cost structures and reduce waste volume, the industry demands increasingly thinner packaging solutions. This trend will continue in the coming years: a pioneer in this development is the stand-up pouch, which is becoming increasingly popular with consumers and is also being used more frequently by brand manufacturers. It combines the required criteria of versatility, safety, and a low price point with the ability to stand independently on the retail shelf. Due to these aspects, the stand-up pouch will become increasingly popular in the coming years and will represent a growth engine for the overall flexible packaging market. However, flexible packaging will also continue to challenge form-fitting solutions for market share in other application areas.
Trend 2: High-Performance Films with Specific Properties
Thinner wall thicknesses and higher demands on possible design languages require maximum performance from the materials or material composites used, known as multi-layer laminates. In the food segment, one of the main application areas for films as primary packaging, less air-permeable composite structures continue to gain importance. These significantly increase the shelf life of food and simultaneously reduce potential flavor loss. By combining different film layers, packaging can also be ideally adapted to the needs of the packaged products. Already today, film manufacturers can produce multi-layer films from a variety of layers and equip them with diverse properties regarding puncture resistance, oxygen barrier, and shrink characteristics. The sustained success of flexible packaging as a substitute for glass or metal packaging can be directly attributed to the significant improvement in barrier properties, especially of transparent plastic films. The development of increasingly sophisticated barrier materials for packaging will continue to be a driving force for the production of value-adding flexible packaging in the future.
Trend 3: Smart Packaging
Especially in the food sector, but also for pharmaceuticals, there are now a number of active and intelligent packaging solutions whose properties go beyond the mere protection of the product. Active packaging can either release certain substances to the packaged food or capture and neutralize unwanted gases. Special absorbers contribute to the reduction of oxygen and thus to the longer shelf life of fresh food or beverages. Intelligent packaging, for example, provides information about the condition of the product through color changes (e.g., so-called time-temperature indicators or freshness labels). Printed electronics even communicate with the user via light or acoustic signals, for example, through chips, LEDs, or mini-speakers integrated into pharmaceutical folding cartons. These remind patients to take their medication, thereby increasing user comfort and boosting product sales. RFID chips store data such as filling location or manufacturing date, ensuring seamless traceability of goods. Due to decreasing costs, especially for intelligent packaging solutions, we believe further growth in this market segment should be expected in the future.