Industry Reports
Quantifiable outlook of specific markets or trends as it pertains to the packaging and processing industry.
2023 Achieving Vertical Startups
Achieving Vertical Startups, published by PMMI – The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies in October 2023, examines insights from a PACK EXPO discovery session and participant surveys to evaluate barriers and enablers of moving lines from installation to production. The analysis indicates three focus areas: stakeholder coordination and project governance (clear ownership, scope definition, cross-functional communication), technical validation and testing (FATs, replicating production conditions, equipment capability verification), and workforce and knowledge management (training, documentation, onboarding). Emerging patterns show that early, documented planning and end-to-end project leadership tend to reduce delays, while charts highlight recurring gaps in expectations and resource allocation. The report reveals where engineering teams are prioritizing investments to strengthen operational resilience.
The importance of communication, involving all relevant stakeholders early in the process, ownership of tasks, and robust planning all came out clearly as key factors in achieving successful vertical start-ups.
2023 Moving to Sustainable Packaging: Closing the Innovation Gap
Moving to Sustainable Packaging Materials: Closing the Innovation Gap, published by PMMI – The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies, examines the operational, regulatory, and market dynamics that are accelerating packaging-material changes via a September 2023 PACK EXPO discovery session synthesizing expert panels, roundtables, and participant surveys. The analysis indicates key focus areas—standardization and metrics such as recyclability, recycled content and carbon accounting; operational readiness and scalability including testing protocols, pilot projects and equipment compatibility with lead-time management; and collaboration and governance such as OEM–CPG alignment, cost sharing and external recycling partnerships—while charts highlight trade-offs and readiness gaps. The report reveals where engineering and supply-chain teams are prioritizing investments to strengthen operational resilience.
Global sustainable packaging policies and swiftly changing domestic legislation are impacting the rate at which manufacturers need to change packaging materials and the discussions revealed clear movement towards more sustainable packaging and practices, such as reducing carbon footprints.
2023 Building an Effective Talent Strategy for the Packaging Industry
Building an Effective Talent Strategy for the Packaging Industry, published by PMMI – The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies in October 2023, examines talent attraction, hiring, and retention trends across member companies using industry interviews, candidate surveys, and public labor‑market data to benchmark practices and outcomes from late 2022 into 2024. Focus areas include pipeline development and employer branding—partnering with schools and co‑op programs—hiring efficiency and assessment frameworks, and retention approaches tied to compensation, management quality, and engagement. The analysis indicates organizations that use targeted outreach, data‑driven scorecards, and pay benchmarking tend to hire and retain more effectively; charts highlight these patterns. The report reveals where engineering teams are prioritizing investments to strengthen operational resilience.
This white paper provides recommendations based on over 30 years of recruiting industry experience and features firsthand accounts from companies in the packaging industry, detailing their resources and strategies for talent attraction, hiring, and retention. Using these insights, your organization will be able to improve your strategic approach to its greatest asset - the people that make up your business
2023 Packaging and Automation in the Warehouses of the Future
2023 Packaging and Automation in the Warehouses of the Future, published by PMMI – The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies, examines how rising D2C and e‑commerce demand, labor and skills shortages, and legacy facility constraints are reshaping warehouse and packaging automation. Based on a 2023 survey and executive interviews informed by Interact Analysis benchmarks, the analysis indicates three focus areas: workforce development and retention, facility and layout readiness, and automation and packaging adoption, including palletizers, mobile robots and automated labeling. Emerging patterns show firms tend to favor piecemeal deployments, RaaS and micro‑automation where ROI is clearer, while charts highlight growing interest in secondary‑packaging and material‑handling solutions. The report reveals where engineering teams are prioritizing investments to strengthen operational resilience.
Many consumer packaged goods companies' (CPGs) warehouses are still highly manual and often operating from outdated buildings with unsuitable layouts, causing bottlenecks in their operations. Warehouse automation offers a wide range of opportunities and benefits to CPGs and the third-party logistics companies (3PLs) many choose to carry out direct-to-consumer (D2C) fulfillment on their behalf.
2023 Dairy Industry Report
Dairy Industry Report, published by PMMI – The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies in September 2023, examines recent industry dynamics using 115 interviews plus survey and secondary data spanning 2019–2022 with near‑term forecasts. The analysis frames four focus areas—packaging sustainability and format innovation, machinery investment and automation readiness, workforce and knowledge capture with OEM collaboration, and product/channel diversification—and indicates emerging patterns such as softer legacy fluid‑milk demand alongside growth in extended‑shelf‑life and plant‑based formats. Charts highlight comparative trends from USDA, US Census, Euromonitor and Federal Reserve sources, and findings generally show processors favoring flexible equipment and enhanced traceability; download the full report to see where leading teams are allocating capital to build resilience.
The dairy industry has faced numerous obstacles in the last few years - from supply chain struggles to fluctuating consumer demand, dairy producers have been challenged to maximize efficiency in their operations. Despite these difficulties, the future of the dairy industry is bright – especially for those producers open to innovation and collaboration.
2023 Sustainability and Technology - The Future of Packaging and Processing
Sustainability and Technology – the Future of Packaging and Processing, published by PMMI – The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies, examines industry responses to sustainability mandates and technology adoption based on 2023 Top to Top Summit questionnaires and executive survey inputs. The analysis indicates three focus areas: regulatory and ESG strategy alignment (EPR readiness and materials strategy), workforce development and retention paired with knowledge capture and training, and digital-tool adoption including predictive maintenance, automation, and cloud/on‑premise analytics. Emerging patterns show organizations at varying maturity levels, with benchmarking and panel discussions providing comparative context; charts highlight cross‑industry tradeoffs and implementation priorities. The report reveals where engineering teams are prioritizing investments to strengthen operational resilience.
2023 The Impact of Global and Local Standards on OEMs & Suppliers
The Impact of Global and Local Standards on OEMs & Suppliers, published by PMMI – The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies in April 2023, examines how regulatory and normative standards affect machinery design, market access, and product liability across jurisdictions. Drawing on standards updates, guidance, and PMMI’s analysis through 2023, it focuses on risk assessment and validation; machine- and environment-specific requirements such as hygienic design and hazardous-location rules; and compliance and legacy-equipment management. The analysis indicates suppliers tend to prioritize early-stage risk assessment and documented validation, while charts highlight regional benchmarks, including CE marking, ATEX/IECEx, and ANSI/PMMI B155.1. The report reveals where engineering teams are prioritizing investments to strengthen operational resilience.
2023 Purchasing Plans & Priorities
2023 Purchasing Plans and Priorities, published by PMMI – The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies, examines a late 2022 survey and early 2023 interviews and uses PMMI’s Purchasing Index to assess investment intentions, projects and SKU plans across major CPG sectors. The analysis indicates increased investments versus 2022 and benchmarks vary by sector. Focus areas include operational cost and modernization, including automation and predictive maintenance; material flexibility and sustainability, such as recyclable materials and package performance; service and integration, including spare-parts availability and aftermarket support; and workforce and knowledge capture, including training and intuitive HMIs. Charts highlight these patterns. The report reveals where engineering teams are prioritizing investments to strengthen operational resilience.
2023 Packaging Compass
2023 Packaging Compass, published by PMMI – The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies, examines U.S. packaging design trends and implications for a circular packaging system using multi-source 2023 data, including public and private forecasts, CPG surveys and industry interviews across 3-, 5- and 10-year horizons. The analysis indicates three focus areas: material trends (growth in flexible films and shifts toward mono-materials and compostables), infrastructure needs (collection, sortation, chemical recycling and AI-enabled sorting), and policy implications (recycled-content supply, EPR and universal access). Charts highlight comparative growth patterns and gaps between design and recovery, emerging patterns show where investment and policy alignment tend to matter most. The report reveals where packaging stakeholders are prioritizing investments to strengthen recovery and circularity.
2022 Future of Packaging and Sustainability
2022 – The Future of Packaging and Sustainability, published by PMMI – The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies, examines industry trends and strategic responses across materials, production, use and end‑of‑life based on industry surveys and market data through 2021–2026 from Euromonitor and Omdia, benchmarking recent performance against prior periods. Key focus areas include materials and recyclability (PCR and compostable alternatives), production and design optimization (weight reduction and e‑commerce packaging), and consumer behavior plus regulatory drivers shaping circularity. The analysis indicates emerging patterns—such as shifts between PET bottles, paper cartons and flexible pouches—and charts highlight share and forecast trajectories that generally show pressure on single‑use plastics. The report reveals where brands and engineering teams are prioritizing investments to strengthen resilience.
2022 The Future of Automation in Packaging and Processing
The Future of Automation in Packaging and Processing, published by PMMI – The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies, examines 2022 primary survey and interviews on automation adoption across CPG operations and benchmarks adoption trends over three‑year and near‑term horizons. The analysis indicates three focus areas: workforce development and skills enablement paired with simplified machine design and OEM‑led training; asset resilience strategies such as predictive maintenance, spare‑part sourcing and 3D printing combined with remote diagnostics and cybersecurity; and flexible automation adoption including robots, cobots and warehouse solutions to support the D2C shift. Charts highlight adoption gaps and comparative ROI signals, and emerging patterns show partnership models gaining traction. The report reveals where engineering teams are prioritizing investments to strengthen resilience.
2022 Challenges and Opportunities for Packaging and Processing Operations
Challenges and Opportunities for Packaging and Processing Operations, published by PMMI – The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies in October 2022, examines evolving operational priorities using insights from Vision 2030 focus groups and a pre-event survey at PACK EXPO International 2022. The analysis indicates four cross-cutting focus areas—sustainability (material machinability and supply consistency), workforce development and retention (automation, training and knowledge transfer), remote access and cybersecurity, and predictive maintenance (including thermography, vibration analysis and CMMS)—and provides comparative context across CPGs, OEMs and suppliers; charts highlight trade-offs and implementation barriers. The report reveals where engineering teams are prioritizing investments to strengthen operational resilience.
2022 Meat - Poultry - Seafood & Alternative Proteins
Meat, Poultry, Seafood, & Alternative Proteins, published by PMMI – The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies in September 2022, examines how protein manufacturers are adapting operations amid post‑pandemic shifts and near‑term capital planning. Drawing on dozens of interviews and aggregated industry sources through 2022, the analysis indicates supply‑chain pressures and labor constraints are accelerating automation and targeted capital spending over the next 12–24 months. Focus areas connect workforce development and retention with automation and machine innovation; packaging sustainability and preservation, including vacuum skin packaging and HPP; and supplier engagement centered on TCO and traceability, while charts highlight format demand shifts. Download the full report to see where engineering teams are prioritizing investments to boost operational resilience.
2022 Robotics And Cobots - An Automated Future
2022 Robots and Cobots: An Automated Future, published by PMMI – The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies in June 2022, examines adoption, capability, and strategic implications of robotics across processing and packaging lines. Drawing on interviews and industry sources and benchmarking global installation trends, the analysis indicates priority focus areas including workforce development and retention alongside knowledge capture and upskilling; AI-enabled vision and end-of-arm-tooling advancements that expand delicate handling; and integration, connectivity, and ROI/TCO considerations for deployment. Emerging patterns show suppliers moving toward turnkey, cloud-enabled and SPE/ethernet platforms for applications such as case packing, palletizing, and AMRs, and charts highlight adoption trajectories and integration challenges. The report reveals where engineering teams are prioritizing investments to strengthen operational resilience.
2022 Achieving Packaging Sustainability
Achieving Packaging Sustainability, published by PMMI – The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies in June 2022, examines industry responses to packaging circularity and operational decarbonization through roundtable insights, manufacturer audits, and case studies from OEMs and CPGs. Analysis indicates four focus areas: collaborative R&D and retrofit strategies to enable new materials; material innovation and consumer/retailer acceptance; recycling infrastructure and circular-feedstock integration; and energy and material-waste reduction combined with machine-level benchmarking. Emerging patterns show pilots and partnerships tend to de-risk capital projects and inform business cases, and charts highlight trade-offs between durability and recyclability. The report reveals where engineering teams are prioritizing investments to strengthen operational resilience.
2022 Shaping the Future of Packaging Operations
Shaping the Future of Packaging Operations, published by PMMI – The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies in March 2022, examines insights gathered from the Top to Top summit, pre-conference questionnaires and industry benchmarks including PMMI surveys, Visier and labor statistics to map near-term priorities for CPGs and OEMs. Analysis indicates four focus areas—strategic collaboration and early supplier engagement; workforce development and automation-enabled skills retention; productivity through flexible machinery, training and remote diagnostics; and sustainability spanning material choices and energy efficiency—where emerging patterns show joint R&D, modular design and operator-centric tools tend to improve outcomes. Charts highlight comparative trends and case-based examples, including modular systems and AR-enabled training. The report reveals where engineering teams are prioritizing investments to strengthen resilience.
2022 Pharmaceutical Manufacturing: Trends Shaping the Future
Pharmaceutical Manufacturing: Trends Shaping the Future, published by PMMI – The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies, examines evolving production and packaging priorities across the industry using interviews with manufacturers and aggregated market and shipment data through 2021–2022. Key focus areas include format evolution including injectables and personalized packaging, throughput-driven automation and robotics, digitization and data integrity for serialization, sustainability and direct-to-consumer e-commerce packaging. The analysis indicates manufacturers tend to favor machine flexibility, stepped digital integration, and targeted robotics and AI for inspection, while emerging patterns show greater use of contractors to manage smaller runs. Charts highlight supply-chain pressures and integration benchmarks across operations. The report reveals where engineering teams are prioritizing investments to strengthen operational resilience.
2021 End-of-Line Equipment: Purchasing Trends and Design Insights
2021 End-of-Line Equipment Purchasing Trends and Design Insights, published by PMMI – The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies, examines end-of-line machinery dynamics using interviews and PMMI State of the Industry data spanning 2015–2020 with directional forecasts through 2026. The analysis indicates several focus areas—sustainability and material variability, supply-chain visibility and enhanced labeling, and workforce development alongside automation strategies—where manufacturers generally seek greater machine flexibility, integration, and reliability. Emerging patterns show OEM demand for modular, multi-function machines, AI-enabled inspection, and streamlined integration services; charts highlight growth drivers and tradeoffs from robotic palletizing to compact wrapping and labeling examples. The report reveals where engineering teams are prioritizing investments to strengthen operational resilience.
2021 Key Challenges for Packaging and Processing Operations
Top to Top Report 2021, published by PMMI – The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies, examines operational priorities and challenges across packaging and processing by synthesizing insights from the 2021 Top to Top Summit, CPG and OEM survey responses, and industry benchmarking gathered over the prior 12 months. Focus areas include workforce development and retention, including re-skilling and career pathways; automation and IIoT adoption with data and cybersecurity implications, such as remote access and predictive maintenance; packaging formats, design and sustainable materials; and third-party services such as machinery-as-a-service and contract packaging. The analysis indicates firms tend to accelerate automation to address labor gaps, emerging patterns show demand for machine flexibility and open architectures, and charts highlight rising interest in outsourcing and remote support. Download the full report to discover where teams are prioritizing investments to strengthen operational resilience.
Packaging & Processing - Coming Through COVID-19
Packaging & Processing – Coming Through COVID‑19, published by PMMI – The Association for Packaging and Processing Technologies in June 2021, examines how the pandemic reshaped CPG operations across 2020–2021 using survey and focus‑group insights from manufacturers, OEMs and systems integrators. The analysis indicates three focus areas: workforce resilience and skills retention, including training and third‑party maintenance; accelerated digital and automation adoption, such as remote diagnostics and virtual FATs; and shifting operational priorities and investment drivers, from throughput to lead times and pricing, with sustainability often temporarily deprioritized in favor of continuity. Charts highlight adoption trends and benchmarks versus pre‑COVID norms. The report reveals where CPGs and OEMs are prioritizing investments to bolster agility and operational resilience.
