by N.S.
In this context, two trends are emerging. The first concerns the growing demand for flexible systems capable of rapidly adapting to new products, different formats and production changes. The second involves technological simplification. Companies are increasingly looking for intuitive machines that are easy to use and capable of reducing operational complexity without compromising performance, reliability and production efficiency.
Flexible packaging and technological transformation: Volpak’s vision
Added to this scenario is the difficulty in finding specialized technical skills. A widespread phenomenon across numerous markets is influencing the way production lines are designed, managed and optimised.
Packaging machines are therefore being developed with increasingly advanced levels of automation and greater operational simplicity. The goal is to provide efficient, intuitive and easy-to-use production solutions. Xavier Montana, Industrial Marketing Director at Volpak, explains the group’s approach to supporting customers throughout the evolution of flexible packaging, balancing sustainability and new materials.
“The question lies in turning change into value. This is Volpak’s vision in a scenario shaped by evolving demand and the entry of new competitors. The real difference lies in technological expertise and the ability to anticipate future production needs. With almost fifty years of experience in flexible packaging, Volpak develops high-performance technologies designed to evolve alongside the market and international regulations. The company invests in the development of advanced pouch packaging systems to ensure greater production efficiency, operational simplicity and adaptability to different market scenarios,” explains Xavier Montana.
“One of the key topics is the PPWR (Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation), which is accelerating the transition towards more sustainable packaging solutions. Volpak began this journey years ago, and today many of its machines are ready to support this direction and operate with mono-material structures. At the same time, the market is demanding reduced material consumption and greater optimisation of the production process in order to increase overall line efficiency and reduce material and product waste.”
This is innovation: turning data into value
Artificial intelligence plays a strategic role. Production lines generate enormous amounts of data that must be processed accurately, “but the real innovation lies in the ability to transform data into operational value,” explains Xavier Montana. “Constantly monitoring the actual condition of machines makes it possible to identify signals that can anticipate anomalies, inefficiencies or future operational issues.”
Even when production appears to be running normally, intelligent systems can detect minimal variations in operating parameters and intervene before failures, unexpected downtime or efficiency losses occur.
Montana emphasises that the predictive approach represents a major change. “Reducing downtime, improving plant reliability and optimising production performance are key objectives. The challenge lies in understanding how to use artificial intelligence to generate concrete and measurable benefits.” In the coming years, AI will become increasingly integrated into production systems to develop efficient, interconnected and predictive factories through the continuous analysis of production data.
PPWR and the opportunities of an evolving market
The packaging industry is evolving. In Europe, the PPWR is accelerating this transformation through new standards related to sustainability, material reduction and production efficiency. For some companies, this represents a complex challenge; for others, it is an opportunity for innovation and competitive growth.
“Volpak’s approach starts from this vision: turning new regulations into a tool for developing more efficient, sustainable and internationally competitive packaging solutions,” explains Xavier Montana. “The needs of the European market are influencing numerous countries, encouraging global convergence towards sustainable models.”
In flexible packaging, one of the most important factors remains the final cost of the package. For this reason, technological research focuses on reducing raw material consumption, optimizing materials, and improving overall efficiency.
“The energy issue is central,” continues Xavier Montana. “Companies are looking to reduce energy consumption to contain operating costs. In this scenario, one direction involves the gradual reduction in the use of pneumatic energy, which has traditionally been less efficient and more expensive to manage.”
The new generations of packaging machines are therefore being designed to deliver greater energy efficiency, reduced maintenance complexity and higher long-term performance, helping to make industrial production more sustainable, reliable and competitive.
Interpack 2026: new technologies for sustainable pouches
At Interpack 2026, Volpak presented its latest generation of solutions for pouch production and flexible packaging. The main solutions included the SM+, D17 Fill & Seal and SI190 platforms, together with the WATL 30 system for secondary packaging and integration within complete production lines. Designed to ensure high production flexibility, operational simplicity and compatibility with recyclable materials and mono-material structures, these solutions meet international sustainable packaging regulations and the global industry’s requirements in terms of material reduction, efficiency and sustainability.
Volpak SM+: high versatility for continuous production or small pouch batches
The SM+ platform (for stand-up and flat pouches up to 4,000 ml and speeds of up to 240 ppm) is one of Volpak’s most technologically advanced solutions. It is a modular and scalable platform designed to produce pouches from Reel-fed film, premade and even hybrid, the company’s historic core business for more than fifty years, while also supporting preformed pouches and hybrid configurations. Today, it is the most automated solution in the Volpak range, designed to integrate with cloud systems, intelligent maintenance programs, and advanced operational monitoring and production data analysis tools.
Its technical features include outstanding production versatility for both continuous high-efficiency production and more dynamic operations, such as market testing, new product launches or small production runs using preformed pouches. Recently introduced, the SM+ platform continues to evolve through the integration of increasingly advanced levels of automation.
Volpak D17 Fill & Seal: continuous packaging machine for stand-up flexible pouches
The second solution presented was the D17 Fill & Seal, an horizontal Fill & Seal packaging machine. It is designed to form, fill and seal stand-up flexible pouches for packaging with preformed pouches. It is the response to the growing premade market, a segment that has recently become increasingly valuable.
Its technical features include excellent application versatility, operational simplicity and high performance. The machine handles dry applications as well as liquid products, with different configurations for multiple industrial sectors. Among the platform’s main strengths are compactness, flexibility and production competitiveness. Despite its compact dimensions, the D17 delivers high speeds and competitive performance in the preformed pouch technology market.
Volpak SI190: the four-lane form-fill-seal platform for mono-materials
The SI190 is a form-fill-seal machine for stand-up pouches up to 1,500 ml, with speeds of up to 120 ppm. The platform is a recent evolution of the Volpak range, designed to ensure high production performance, versatility and a significant reduction in format changeover times, while being capable of handling different applications. It was developed with mono-materials and sustainable packaging requirements in mind, particularly addressing the challenges involved in the forming and sealing phases of the packaging process.
Its technical features include customized process optimizations designed to improve pouch quality and stability, increase packaging strength and maintain high performance even when using complex materials that are difficult to handle. Format changeover times have also been significantly reduced, bringing operational flexibility and production efficiency to a level above the traditional standards of this technology.
Casepacker WATL 30: integration for complete packaging lines
Alongside its pouch production platforms, Volpak presents the WATL 30 casepacker, designed to optimize integration within complete packaging lines for different industrial sectors. The machine is engineered to improve operational continuity, production flexibility and overall line efficiency, supporting integration between packaging lines through smooth and coordinated process management.
Its technical features include an automatic secondary packaging system designed for pouch-to-shelf processes requiring format flexibility, handling precision, production continuity and high-quality shelf presentation. It manages flexible pouches in different formats and configurations, transferring them in a synchronized and controlled way into the final carton. The system integrates carton forming, loading and closing in a continuous cycle for the food, pet food and pharmaceutical industries.
Digitalisation is driving the future of flexible packaging
For Volpak, the future of pouches will increase by the integration of advanced automation, digital connectivity and intelligent management of production data. “We are developing connection systems between installed machines and customers’ production departments in order to improve operational monitoring, technical support and production continuity,” continues Xavier Montana. “This makes it possible to collect real-time information and more effectively support maintenance activities, advanced diagnostics and line performance optimization.
The company’s vision goes beyond immediate needs and aims to shape the future of industrial pouching. Digitalization, intelligent automation, predictive maintenance and advanced data integration will play an increasingly strategic role in the next generations of flexible packaging machines.”
Volpak and Coesia, the value of global support throughout the entire machine lifecycle
More sustainable materials are making new packaging technologies and increasingly specialized technical support necessary. “To meet these needs, Volpak relies on the international experience of the entire Coesia group, which can support numerous production sectors with different technologies, from pet food to confectionery, from pharmaceuticals to ceramics. The goal is to improve plant performance, reliability, efficiency and service life, enabling companies to address market evolution without completely replacing existing lines.”
“The added value for Volpak customers and the entire Coesia group extends to the whole installed base worldwide through upgrading, rebuilding and technological update activities,” explains Xavier Montana. “Customers can access our continuous support throughout the entire machine life cycle, including original spare parts, upgrades, integration of new functionalities and complete rebuilding interventions. This extends the value of the investment, improves production continuity and adapts plants to the new production, energy and regulatory requirements of the international market.”
Volpak’s PouchLab: material testing and validation for flexible packaging
With the evolution of materials and the introduction of the PPWR, technical support for customers has become strategic. Volpak has been working on this for years, having anticipated early on how the future of pouch packaging depends on the interaction between materials, material sealing technologies, production dynamics and the final quality of the package.
“This vision led to the creation of PouchLab in 2019, Volpak’s laboratory dedicated to testing, validating and optimizing new materials under real operating conditions. The principle behind the laboratory is clear: innovation in packaging can only happen by simultaneously studying material behavior and machine dynamics. New recyclable films, mono-material structures and new pouch geometries cannot be evaluated separately. Their performance depends on the interaction with complex production parameters such as temperature, film tension, pressure, sealing technologies and the mechanical movement of the line. For this reason, Volpak has developed an environment in which these variables can be measured, analyzed and controlled using real production data. The laboratory integrates complete industrial HFFS (Horizontal Form Fill Seal) lines with advanced analysis systems, including:
- Tests to verify packaging strength;
- Vacuum and pressure testing;
- Tools for mechanical stress and long-term durability analysis;
- Advanced microscopy;
- Thermal imaging systems;
- Seal quality analysis;
- Verification of microleaks and compatibility between materials and sealing systems.
This approach allows companies to validate pouch performance under real production conditions and verify how recyclable materials respond to temperature and tension. In addition, sealing processes can be optimized in terms of stability and mechanical strength, accelerating the development of new sustainable solutions.
“The goal is to transform research and development into a data-driven process, reducing the risk of redesign during the production cycle while increasing the reliability, repeatability and quality of new packaging solutions,” concludes Xavier Montana. “Over time, Volpak continues to invest in the evolution of the laboratory, progressively expanding its operational capabilities. In 2026, a second machine dedicated to testing activities was installed, further strengthening the role of PouchLab as an international reference center for sustainable pouch packaging.”
