Mumbai-based academy to drive technology shift across India and the MEA (IMEA)
Mumbai Henkel Adhesive Technologies – a business division of Germany’s Henkel AG – inaugurated the Henkel Flexible Packaging Academy in Mumbai on 18 February to offer a certified training programme for professionals in India, the Middle East and Africa (IMEA).
The academy, opened in association with the Indian Institute of Packaging (IIP) will provide formal training on lamination technology to entrepreneurs, production managers, supervisors, operators and quality control professionals through a ‘training by doing’ approach, said the company.
At the inaugural ceremony, Ralf Grauel, global head for flexible packaging adhesives at Henkel, said the academy will cater for a shift to flexible packaging within the region.
“With the dynamic packaging trends in different segments like FMCG, F&B, and pharma, there is a growing demand for advanced packaging solutions,” he said.
“Conventional materials have been replaced with flexible packaging materials. Addressing these demands, we have introduced Henkel Flexible Packaging Academy to enable manufacturers to fulfil the demands of the growing industry.”
The academy’s modules have been designed to cover all aspects of flexible packaging lamination techniques through practical experience on commercial-scale lamination machines, said Henkel Adhesives. Training will include troubleshooting and methods of producing healthy laminates and cover printing, lamination, web handling, finished product testing and substrates as well as material handling.
With proven success in Europe and China, Henkel Adhesive Technologies claims an industry-wide reputation for taking the lead in changing the dynamics of the industry with an emphasis on quality control, wastage control and skills upgrading.
The academy will be steered by an internatioanl team of experts including an in-house technical team from Henkel, each of which has more than 20 years of experience in the industry. As a knowledge partner, IIP will also be involved in giving training.
Jeremy Hunter, Henkel Group’s president for India and Pakistan, said the academy will propel the industry forward “towards sustainability and innovation”. “The standardised learning processes and modules will form a benchmark for customers in the region,” he said.
Two forms of certificates will be awarded: participation certificates after a five-day training programme and completion certificates after three months of reviewing the participant’s shop-floor performance following training. The certificates will be jointly issued by Henkel and the IIP.
According to the latest reports, the IMEA region’s flexible packaging industry remains very fragmented. More than 350 converters were identified by a PCI Films Consulting study, which found that the top 20 players account for about 40% of production.
The Indian flexible packaging industry is pegged at about USD3.8bn (Assocham Report) and the MEA flexible packaging market at almost USD4bn. With ever-changing consumer preferences, organised retail chain formats and the evolving dynamics of the population, the demand will further increase in the coming years.
Forecasts suggest that MEA flexible packaging demand will expand at 5% per year over the next five years. Five countries – South Africa, Nigeria, Iran, Egypt and Saudi Arabia – currently account for more than half of the region’s total consumption. Smaller markets such as Tanzania and the UAE have also seen above average growth.
Henkel claims its Flexible Packaging Academy will prove to be a significant foundation for the development of the industry.