While 2024 was a challenging year in the packaging industry as a whole, there was a positive outlook in November at Pack Expo, the world’s largest packaging and processing show of 2024.
The show attracted a record attendance of 77,500 people and 2,700 exhibitors. International attendance was up 19% over the previous edition in 2022, according to PMMI, The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies.
The optimism echoed throughout Combi Packaging’s exhibit space, where longtime customers and prospects alike got the message that Combi is on the move.
The theme of the booth was “Grow with us,” and it was brought to life with a demonstration system that showed off the company’s highly configurable end-of-line (EOL) packaging capabilities.
“The message we wanted people to take away is that we can help them succeed with customized packaging systems that meet their specific needs,” said Product Manager Chris Rempe. “We wanted people to know and really feel that they – as customers – are an integral part of our journey. Every piece of equipment we ship is built to their requirements and is designed to make it easy and affordable to upgrade as they grow.”
The booth was co-branded for the first time with Siat, the highly regarded Italian equipment manufacturer that in 2023 purchased 3M’s equity stake in Combi.
That change was accompanied by a larger presence at Pack Expo than Combi has had, and an all-new booth that echoed the bold graphics and modern appearance of Combi’s hard-working machines—design language that says, “Let’s get to work.”
“If you saw our booth two years ago you would have noticed a lot of change,” said Jeff Guritza, Combi’s vice president of marketing and product management. “The visual look reflects our commitment to quality, innovation and world-class performance.”
The booth featured a fully automated packaging system that demonstrated Combi’s entire range of expertise, from case erecting to packing to sealing to palletizing to wrapping, including integrated robotics.
It also reflected Pack Expo’s focus on sustainability by featuring compatibility with 3M paper-based recyclable sealing tape; reusable corrugated cases from Orbis for closed-loop supply chains; and 100% recyclable stretch wrap with at least 50% recycled content from Sigma Stretch Film.
“When we started working on concepts for our exhibit, we knew we wanted to create motion to attract people, but we didn’t want to create a mess with a bunch of empty boxes that we’d ultimately have to discard,” Rempe explained. “Combi’s reputation is built on solving problems, and in this case the problem we solved was our own: We set up a functional closed system that demonstrated our capabilities without generating a lot of waste.”
While Combi’s automated EOL packaging line attracted a lot of interest and exceeded the company’s ambitious goal for sales leads, the star of the show was its BeeWrap+ robotic mobile stretch-wrapper.
“It doesn’t need to be fenced off behind safety barriers, so we had the BeeWrap+ working right in the booth throughout the show,” Rempe said. “People were fascinated watching it work. It’s the thing they couldn’t stop talking about.”
Unlike turntable stretch-wrappers, which Combi also provides, BeeWrap+ is easily moved from one location to another. Once the stretch film is affixed, the machine navigates by itself around oversized and irregular loads – and pallets, of course – for consistent load protection and optimal stretch for maximum efficiency in the use of film. It has a long battery life and requires minimal maintenance, making it the right solution for operations where flexibility, mobility and automation are needed.
Visitors also got a preview of Combi’s new handheld strapping tools, which will be a new area of focus for the company in 2025.
“Overall, our visitors showed us that the Combi exhibit was inviting, cohesive and immersive,” Guritza said. “End-users, channel partners and supplier partners tended to stick around and ask a lot of good questions. Our self-serve information kiosk provided the content people wanted to see, and our video screen created a lot of ‘wow’ moments.”
“Even the booth graphics drew comments for incorporating caricatures of actual employees,” Rempe added. “People thought it was super-cool that a company would recognize its employees in that way. I think the point got through that we are people-focused and easy to do business with.”
Contact us to learn more about Combi’s newest offerings, thoughtful engineering and customized EOL packaging solutions.