Online Exclusive: Ringier Honors Packaging Innovators

Twenty-nine companies won awards for 24 innovative technologies.

By Lisa Samalonis

Ringier Trade Media Ltd.’s International Packaging News for China, the leading packaging industry magazine in China, announced the winners of the 2010 Ringier Technology Innovation Awards for

Award winners included 29 companies.

Packaging Industry on July 14 at the Shanghai New International Expo Center. Twenty-nine companies won awards for 24 innovative technologies that contributed to the success of China’s packaging industry in the areas of Packaging Processing Machinery, Packaging Accessory Equipment, Printed-after-Processing Machinery, Injection Molding Technology, Packaging Materials, Packaging Printing Machinery, and Packaging Application. The winning companies included global and local market leaders such as OMRON, Piab, Matcon, Nordson and Siemens.

China International Exhibition Ltd., the organizer of The 16th International Processing, Packaging & End-line Printing Exhibition (PROPAK China) officially supported the awards program. This marked the third time the Ringier Technology Innovation Awards were held at PROPAK China. This year more than 120 representatives–including decision-makers of the winning companies, judging group, Ringier magazine readers and media–gathered for the 2010 Ringier Technology Innovation Awards for Packaging Industry.

“The Award results show that the packaging industry is undergoing a “Green” Revolution and increasing demand for convenience. Going “Green” means sustainable development, environmental friendly and low-carbon emission. And in fact, the sustainable packaging is a fast-growing segment in the global packaging industry, and will grow to 32% of the total market by 2014, up from just 21% in 2009,” said Mike Hay, President of Ringier Trade Media Ltd.

“Another highlight of the awards is that the number of entries from participating companies grew 30% over last year’s count,” said Hay. He noted that the awards categories have expanded to reflect the industry’s growth and now include the three new categories: packaging accessory equipment, after-printing processing machinery and injection molding technology.

“This shows that the packaging industry is continuously developing from being semi-automatic to fully automatic. The need to provide customers with complete solutions has also increased substantially. The whole industry is now making more and more effort to improve production efficiency and reduce production costs,” he explained.

Many international manufacturers participated in this year’s competition. The panel of 10 judges conducted the first round of screening and due diligence of the nominations. Next they convened three

OMRON Industrial wins top award.

times to narrow the top 75 entries down to 29 finalists. The judges then cast their votes based on each nominee’s impact on the marketplace, inventiveness, financial results, and the extent to which its innovation solves a consumer or customer need.

Ringier Technology Innovation Award was launched in 2005 as a tribute to companies in key industries such as food and beverage, packaging, plastics and metalworking. The Awards recognize those who have made the most significant contributions for the advancement of the industry through increased productivity, economic efficiency, market opportunity creation and the manufacturing process. Since its launch, the Awards have been highly regarded in the industries they served.