Industrial Packaging & Transport Packaging Information 

What is packaging?

As defined by the Wikipedia “Packaging is the science, art, and technology of enclosing or protecting products for distribution, storage, sale, and use.”
 
However the role of packaging products has changed over time. There are many different types of packaging including; hazardous materials packaging, industrial packaging, transport packaging, and much more. Although the use of packaging products will always be to protect its contents, more and more marketers and companies see product packaging as a design to portray their products/image. Packaging today is expression at its finest, colours, shapes, etc… some would even argue it’s a form of art.
 
With all of the above in mind, Nefab packaging designs and develops optimal industrial and transport packaging solutions with a strong focus on total cost take-out. The standard industry nailed wooden crate is only one example. If you place a nailed wooden crate beside Nefab's ExPak (plywood box), you can clearly see from a marketing angle the advantages. In taking it a step further from simple looks, you'll notice many more benefits. Nefab outer packaging products are all collapsible, lightweight and go through stringent tests to ensure strength and reliability among all flows the packaging will face.

 

Quick Packaging Facts on Transport & Industrial Packaging

  • The global packaging market is estimated at $564 billion in 2009. The compound annual growth rate is 4.2 % from 2004 year’s levels. (2004 year’s levels was in turn 23% ahead of 1999 levels)
  • In 2004, North American markets, including the US, Canada and Mexico, accounted for the largest share of global packaging at $135 billion (29%), ahead of western Europe (27%) and Asia (27%).
    By 2009, these numbers are projected to change and Asia will have the largest share with $166 billion (29%) before North America (26 %) and Western Europe (25 %).
  • The largest single national packaging market during 2004 was the US ($115 billion in sales), Japan was second ($55 billion), followed by China ($35 billion), Germany ($23), and France ($21 billion).
    This ranking is estimated to remain in 2009 with the US as the largest in projected sales ($126 billion), Japan ($59 billion), China ($51 billion), Germany ($25 billion) and France ($24 billion).
  • The four largest European packaging markets are Germany, France, Italy and the UK. These countries and their relative order are projected to prevail in 2009.
  • The world’s projected top 10 packaging markets (2009) from largest to smallest; USA, Japan, China, Germany, France, UK, Italy, Russia, Canada, and Spain.
  • Fastest growing national packaging markets between 2004 and 2009 are Turkey, India, Poland, Brazil, Philippines, Indonesia, Taiwan, China and Lithuania.
  • Industrial & Bulk Packaging global market for packaging was valued at $99 billion in 2004. Asia had the single largest market with a 29% share. By 2009, the global market for Industrial & Bulk is forecasted to just under $115 billion with Asia still as the biggest market increasing its share to 33 %.
  • In Western Europe, the country with the largest packaging consumption per capita is Switzerland… and by a wide margin!
  • In Eastern Europe, the region’s largest single market is Russia, where the value of packaging consumption amounted to about 11.4 billion in 2003, growing by an annual average of 34% since 1999. This growth is predicted to slow down between 2004 and 2009 to average 6.9 % which gives a total value of the packaging consumption of about $18.5 billion in 2009. 
  • The North American market for packaging products was valued at $131.9 billion in 2003.  By 2009, this number is expected to rise to 148.7 billion. The country with the largest packaging consumption per capita is Canada.
  • Paper and board will remain the single largest element of the packaging market into 2009, driven on the one hand by rising demand in fast-growth national markets as well as steady growth in secondary/bulk packaging across the globe.
  • Metal packaging accounted for 17% of the market in 2004, and is expected to maintain at this level until 2009.
The “Quick Packaging Facts” information was given to Nefab to use from The Future of Global Packaging, a market study published by Pira International and the World Packaging Organization. Pira International (
 www.intertechpira.com ) is a leading publisher, conference organiser and research organisation specialising in graphic arts, media and technology-led industries. The World Packaging Organisation is a not for profit, non-governmental, international federation of national packaging associations, institutes, regional packaging federations and other interested parties including corporations and trade associations.

Packaging Info Articles (in alphabetical order):

 

Packaging Design Checklist  

Product Damages  

 

Did you know...

All articles in the Packaging Information section are written by either industry contributors or Nefab's own packaging experts. The concept of the Industrial & Transport packaging information section is to share our knowledge to the industry as a whole. As the saying goes, for every question asked there are always a lot more people simply too afraid of asking the very same question... so let us help!