Packaging Manufacturers Using Industry 4.0 See Increased Productivity

Successful packaging innovations require flexibility and fluidity, as well as a growth mindset that is open to change.  

Packagers who adopt new technologies and future-proof their operations will be able to increase productivity, efficiency, and profitability — now and into the future.

Benefits of Industry 4.0 and smart manufacturing solutions in the packaging industry include:

• empowering companies to produce the right products at the right time,  
• optimizing processes and workflows as much as possible
• and support decisions about what to produce next.  

Put simply, there are three key sets of information: material availability, equipment/workstation status, and current order priority in the context of all possibilities.

Real-time information shared across all relevant departments about materials, equipment/labor and order priority is critical for strategic decision-making.  

Join our O3ai online seminar on Wednesday, February 22, 2023, at 9:00 CET, showing the use of digitalization and smart manufacturing in the printing & packaging industry.  

Smart manufacturing solutions like O3ai Smart Manufacturing share real-time data and integrate with all departments — from planning and scheduling to quality and shop floor control. Digital solutions improve the ability to plan, execute, monitor, and adapt — quickly. ‍

Smart solutions help to reduce costs, achieve good quality and deliver exceptional customer experiences.  

Challenges Facing Packaging Manufacturers

Oftentimes, the reality of the packaging industry is as follows:  

The planning department has a view of what needs to happen on the factory floor to satisfy demand regarding current customers and channel priorities. The operations department has the same view.  

However, the message often gets lost in a spreadsheet that is only updated once a week during a meeting. Technology and the adoption of digital transformation means that decisions are based on reality and facts – “one version of the truth” – rather than gut feeling or doing what was always done in the past.

Outdated legacy solutions create stumbling blocks for manufacturers seeking optimal decision-making. So often they have competing versions of “the truth”.

For example, material status and inventory levels may only be available from a disconnected warehouse system. Manual paperwork processes for recording equipment status and active order status happen at the end of the day or shift rather than real-time. Spreadsheets are only updated for the weekly production meetings and don’t reflect changing priorities.  

The result?

• Wasted resources to prep machinery and labor without the necessary raw materials or components
• Far too much work-in-progress inventory
• Over or under-production of orders that don’t align with customer needs.

Packaging manufacturers are expected to innovate with new and tailored product offerings while remaining sustainable and able to adapt quickly. The packaging industry also faces a constant barrage of new items, strong demand for sustainability that can overwhelm supply chain resources and logistics, warehousing and transportation issues, and the fickle nature of customer demands and fads.  

Investing in smart manufacturing solutions enables packaging manufacturers to improve information flow and real-time data, foster collaboration, and achieve better decision-making. Smart manufacturing means real-time visibility into every part of production operations including inbound shipments, inventory, production, finished goods, and outbound shipments.

Join our O3ai webinar to discover how smart manufacturing can revolutionize the printing & packaging industry

Packagers will benefit from digital transformation, which provides “one version of the truth” and optimizes decision-making and future planning.  

For asset-rich packaging manufacturers, the goal is to have aligned operations using the perfect balance of resources, energy, and labor.

In our webinar we share insights into benchmarking, best practices, and requirements for digital transformation in the printing & packaging industry. Discover more!