Packaging industry [Oct 2011]

By admin November 11, 2011 5:17 am IST

“Indian  packaging industry is lagging behind developed countries by more than 10 years. However, with changing lifestyle and increasing consumer consciousness, the trend is to follow new, hygienic and world class decorated containers to build brand image for the products”, said Laxman Rao, MD, Moldtek Packaging in an interview with OEM UpdateDiscuss about latest advancements in packaging technology and your capabilities.In mold labelling is the latest development in packaging industry all over the world. Though developed countries use IML decoration for last 5-10 yrs it has been brought in recently to India by Moldtek. IML technology involves ROBOTS placing pre printed labels inside the mold with plastic material flowing underneath the label, fusing it to the top surface. Thereby IML label becomes integral part of the containers, hence irremovable. As decoration happens while molding itself, the containers do not require any post operations, thereby avoiding contamination or human touch.
We at Moldtek have not only established the robotic facilities but also established in house IML labels manufacturing and even in house ROBOT manufacturing to quickly expand capacity and control costs.
Keeping pace with rapid progress in packaging technology how did the packaging industry in India transformed?Indian packaging industry is lagging behind developed countries by more than 10 years. However, with changing lifestyle and increasing consumer consciousness, the trend is to follow new, hygienic and world class decorated containers to build brand image for the products. IML decorated thin wall containers are going to rule the rigid packaging in coming years.
In which are the sectors you find maximum business opportunities for packaging business?The purchasing power and the disposable income in the Indian economy has grown rapidly in the last few years. Changing lifestyle patterns has shifted consumer preference towards branded, well packaged and presented products including packaged /ready to eat food products. In this sense, packaging plays a crucial role in the marketability of a product. Having said this, we see a huge opportunity for the packaging business, especially rigid packaging, in food, paint and FMCG space.
Currently, the major clientele at Moldtek consists of players in the paint and lubricant industry but we have initiated entry into the Food and FMCG space by supplying packaging to players in the food industry. We are discussing with manufacturers of Ice creams, Food products, cosmetics, Chocolates, T Shirts and many other FMCG to move to In-Mold label (IML) decorated containers. In Europe alone the consumption of IML containers crossed 10 billion pieces a year and even a part of this is adopted in India mean huge business opportunity where we are positioned as the front runner in India.
India’s FMCG sector is poised to reach US$ 43 bn by 2013 and US$ 74 bn by 2018. Within this the packaging demand will be about US$ 2.5 bn. These numbers are enough to give an idea about the business opportunity in the FMCG segment.
Having acquired the in-house ability to manufacture moulds, labels and robots, an advantage no other packaging company can offer, we plan to go full haul into this segment in next few years.