North American manufacturers of packaging machinery devices accounted for twenty per cent of all global sales in 2006, a pattern expected to continue over the next two years, according to the US-based Packaging Machinery Manufacturers Institute (PMMI).

By 2009, global sales of packaging machinery technologies originating from within North America are expected to reach $6.68bn, up 3.1 per cent on the levels from 2006, the packaging association said.

The findings, which will form part of a larger report to be released by the PMMI at this years Interpack trade show, hope to highlight the leading upcoming trends within global packaging production, PMI said.

According to the institute, US exports of packaging machinery alone amounted to $707m for the twelve months between October 2006 and October 2007, with predictions that the figure could rise above $1bn over the whole year.

Studies also linked the growth to the weaker performance of the dollar in foreign markets, alongside other competitive advantages.

Flexibility and efficiency

In a survey of 486 decision makers at plants, PMMI says that in the US alone, 45 per cent of respondents said that the key drivers in purchasing new packaging equipment stemmed from a desire to step up productivity and efficiency in their operations.

Improved flexibility in widening the number of packaging uses for machinery was also highlighted as another area of concern by manufacturers, according to PMMI.

Robotics

In a related study, PMMI said that the use of robotics within the packaging industry, an area most commonly associated with food and beverage packagers, would continuer to rise to fulfil cost and flexibility requirements.