Hispack and Graphispag, referent events for the Spanish packaging and printing industries, have met expectations by recovering the atmosphere of the large industrial halls. The two halls Fira de Barcelona, which closed its doors last Friday, have added 725 direct exhibitors, from twenty countries, and more than 30.000 visitors, 11% of them international.
After four days of intense activity, Hispack and Graphispag leave good feelings among companies, speakers, international buyers and professionals. The sustainability It has been the thematic axis of the two fairs that have exhibited solutions in technology, processes and materials to reduce the environmental footprint of containers, packaging and printed products. The current context, marked by ongoing legislative changes that promote the circular economy and that especially affect packaging, accelerates the implementation of these innovations. Also the digitalization and the automation of processes – shown in the machines and equipment on display – are focused on improving eco-efficiency, as well as the productivity and competitiveness of companies.
In this sense, there is a greater attendance at Hispack of manufacturing brands, especially from the food and beverage, pharmaceutical, chemical or cosmetic sectors, among others. In the case of Graphispag, graphic services companies and other sectors with printing needs have also focused on learning about graphic technologies, supports, finishes and more ecological inks.
As a complement to the commercial offer, it is worth noting the interest aroused by the more than 147 conferences, sessions and round tables with 322 speakers held within the framework of Hispack and Graphispag.
The next editions of Hispack and Graphispag are scheduled for May 2024.
Five international projects, chosen “Best in Class”
There are five international projects chosen by the Hispack “Best in Class” program, which recognizes companies that, thanks to the packaging innovation, have managed to multiply their efficiency, access new markets or transform their business model. The cases presented at the show come from Denmark, England, Germany, Scotland and the Faroe Islands.
Within the framework of the fair, Hispack has dedicated recognition to these five companies in an act that has been attended by the president of Hispack, jordi bernabeu, and its director, Xavier Pascual.
The Danish company Grow Up Farm, dedicated to the cultivation and marketing of sprouts and sprouts, has been recognized for having transformed its proposal for the production, presentation and sale of the product through a new container format. Under the slogan "Eat, grow, repeat", the innovative packaging solution, implemented in collaboration with Schur Star Systems, allows customers to grow their own sprouts at home, using the same sales container. This system meant for the company a rapid increase in sales and the beginning of exports.
For its part, the British multinational of the cosmetic sector The Body Shop has relaunched on a global scale a proposal developed internally, already devised and used in the 70s, which is based on the reuse of packaging in order to improve sustainability: it is by Refill Station, an in-store dispenser through which customers can fill their own containers with the desired product.
In Scotland, the manufacturer of microcultures for the pharmaceutical and cosmetic sectors E&O Laboratories, has implemented state-of-the-art collaborative robots from Universal robots, through the local integrator Olympus Technologies, to automate the end of the packaging and packaging line, managing to increase the safety, precision and speed in the handling of this type of highly sensitive products. This improvement in efficiency and productivity has translated into a significant increase in its market share.
bakkafrost (Faroe Islands), one of the large international companies in the aquaculture sector, has developed its own packaging manufacturing line by adding a laser coding and printing system supplied by the Spanish company limitronic and integrated by MP Teknik with which it achieves comprehensive traceability that connects the manufacturing and marketing of its products while generating brand value. The Faroese firm produces one million pieces of salmon a day that are packaged, coded and ready to sell from the moment of fishing.
Finally, the German company Ice Age Ice has been recognized for demonstrating how perfect automation of the manufacturing and packaging process is key to adding value to a product and increasing sales, even when it comes to ice cubes. Thanks to the efficient packaging solutions supplied by the Spanish Coalza Systems, the German company is the market leader in this product category, supplying all kinds of formats.
