Corrugated packaging is ‘seen as waste’

The announcement comes as the firm, which produces 1 million boxes per day and counts Tesco, White & MacKay and SK Chilled as customers, prepares for the arrival of its £3.2m ‘game changer’, a Göpfert Impression seven colour printing machine.

It is expected the first job for the company that makes corrugated products, boxes, fitments, flat and pre-glued trays and double wall combinations, will roll off the press for the poultry, snacks, fresh produce, food processing and drinks and beverages sector next month.

More awareness is needed​

“The biggest threat to corrugated packaging is the perception of it as a waste material; greater understanding of its benefits needs to be continually communicated​,” said Mark Ryan innovations manager TRM Packaging.

“Keeping up with industry trends while maintaining stable costs for our customers is paramount to success, we always focus on being involved at the front-end rather than playing catch-up​.”

He added the biggest opportunities revolve around innovation and pro-activity; “Understanding the retailer requirement before you’ve been handed a brief from your customer​.”

Augmented reality codes​

But the biggest advancement in 10 years’ time will be to introduce augmented reality codes onto secondary packaging, and a move to digital printing as cost and efficiencies improve over time.

Speaking about the 82-tonne Göpfert Impression machine, Trevor Maund, CEO, TRM Packaging said the investment means the company can provide shelf-ready packaging to its retail and packer-filler clients.

The print press is being shipped from the Göpfert manufacturing plant in Germany to TRM in the UK where it will be reassembled and commissioned before being put into service.

It includes camera print registration control, full infra-red drying and Kleenplate technology for dust free printing.

Göpfert Impression​

With a maximum feed size of 2,400mm x 1,600mm and a capacity of 10,000 feeds per hour, the Göpfert Impression has a registration accuracy of 0.2mm between colours.

“It allows us to deliver the quality only previously reached with pre-printed liner packaging or litho-laminated board but achieved in a single pass printed directly onto die-cut corrugated packaging​,” said Maund.

“It is a real game changer for us and for the UK secondary packaging market as a whole​.”