From Smurfit Westrock’s $13.46 billion combination to 20,000-kph material handling, digital twins, AI, retrofits and quality control, Fort Worth will bring the industry’s investment choices into one room.
More than 1,100 corrugated professionals. More than 145 suppliers. An opening keynote from the North American CEO of Smurfit Westrock, created through one of the packaging industry’s largest combinations. And on the show floor: technologies ranging from 20,000-kph material handling and digital twins to machine retrofits, AI, quality control and short-run boxmaking.
That is the scale of Corrugated Week 2026, taking place September 28–30 at the Fort Worth Convention Center in Texas and jointly hosted by TAPPI and AICC.
For corrugated box manufacturers evaluating converting equipment, automation and plant software, the important question is not how many booths can be visited. It is which production problem deserves investment first — and which solution can improve output, uptime, quality, labor efficiency or cost on the real plant floor.
Why this event matters to box plants
TAPPI’s June 15, 2026 event preview projected more than 1,400 corrugated professionals from over 25 countries and more than 145 suppliers. In a September pre-show update titled “Corrugated Week 2026 Is Just Two Weeks Away,” TAPPI says more than 1,100 professionals will gather in Fort Worth.
These are pre-show estimates, not final attendance figures. The 1,100+ figure is the more recent public number and is the one corruga.expert uses here.
The program is built around familiar operating pressures: lost capacity, avoidable downtime, labor constraints, setup time, waste and the challenge of proving that a new technology actually improves production economics.
Sessions include AI for Plant Floor Management, AI for Customer Service/Admin, rotary die-cutting output, die-cutting workflow and visual inspection. A full-day die-cutting workshop on September 28 will focus on setup, tooling, machine condition, throughput, waste and downtime.
The previous Corrugated Week: useful context, not a direct comparison
The previous Corrugated Week was held in San Antonio in 2022. Industrial Print Magazine reported more than 1,500 registrants and an exhibit hall with over 160 vendors.
A direct numerical comparison with 2026 would be misleading because the 2022 numbers are post-show figures while the 2026 numbers are still pre-show estimates.
What stands out in the 2026 program is the technology mix. AI, connected-machine intelligence, digital twins, automated material handling and plant software now sit alongside corrugators, flexo folder gluers and rotary die cutters. The investment conversation increasingly extends beyond one machine to the performance of the entire production flow.
The money story begins with Smurfit Westrock
Laurent Sellier, President & CEO of Smurfit Westrock North America, will deliver the opening keynote on September 29.
Smurfit Westrock was formed through the combination of Smurfit Kappa and WestRock. In SEC reporting, the company recorded aggregate merger consideration of approximately $13.46 billion for WestRock.
For independent converters, the scale is different, but the questions are familiar: when to add capacity, when to automate, when to standardize, when to modernize older equipment, and how to protect margin when labor, maintenance and downtime all carry a cost.
That gives the event a strategic frame before visitors even reach the show floor.
The supplier floor is broader than one machine category
BOBST will exhibit at Booth 126 with solutions spanning flexo printing, rotary die cutting, folding and gluing, automation, digitalization and service. The company reported 2025 sales of CHF 1.622 billion, down 14.2% from 2024.
BW Papersystems will be at Booth 501. Advantive will bring Kiwiplan to Booth 801. Valmet will demonstrate its Corrugated Quality Control System at Booth 713. SUN Automation Group will be at Booth 101, while A.G. Stacker will exhibit at Booth 507.
TAPPI has also identified EMBA Machinery and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries America Corrugating Machinery Division among prominent sponsors, with Alliance Machine Systems and Geo. M. Martin also represented.
The important point is not the logo count. A plant director can move from converting equipment to robotics, software, quality measurement, material handling, service and machine intelligence within the same event — all competing for attention and capital.
Replace the machine — or make the machine you own perform better?
SUN Automation Group’s Corrugated Week program puts one of the industry’s most practical investment questions into focus.
At Booth 101, SUN will highlight the SUN625 HD Rotary Die Cutter, LMC Mini and Jumbo flexo folder gluers, PARA automated material-handling solutions including the CRAB system, and the Kolbus BX Motion Pro for short-run boxmaking.
The press release provided to corruga.expert also emphasizes extending the life and performance of existing equipment through SUN lead edge feeder upgrades, PLC and controls modernization, and Langston counter-ejector and folder-exit upgrades.
“Box plants are looking at their whole operation: what they need to replace, what they can upgrade, where automation makes sense, and how they’re going to keep that equipment running,” said Greg Jones, Executive Vice President at SUN Automation Group.
A targeted retrofit can be a very different capital decision from full machine replacement. The relevant question is whether it can recover enough reliability, control, speed or useful equipment life to justify the investment.
SUN will also highlight PERFORM+ preventive maintenance and Helios, its IIoT-enabled connected-machine intelligence platform.
“The real value comes from knowing what the machine is telling you and being able to act on it,” said Gokul Gopakumar, Vice President of Technology and Business Development at SUN Automation Group. “Helios gives plant teams greater visibility into machine performance, while PERFORM+ and SUN Automation’s broader support capabilities help turn that visibility into smarter maintenance and equipment decisions.”
For a plant manager, the test is straightforward: does connected data change a maintenance or production decision before a stoppage, quality loss or missed order occurs?
20,000 kph: when the bottleneck moves downstream
A.G. Stacker is bringing one of the strongest production numbers to Fort Worth.
Its eXT Front End System is rated by the manufacturer at up to 20,000 kph. At Booth 507, the company will also present the eBREAK-eXTENDER for applications up to 65 inches and a new 100-inch eBREAK-XL.
Visitors will be able to operate digital versions of A.G. equipment through DUO digital-twin technology, while SIMCORRA is designed to model factory layouts, job configurations and production flow before equipment is installed.
A faster converting section does not automatically create more sellable output. If stacking, bundle breaking, load forming or downstream handling cannot keep pace, the constraint simply moves.
Material handling, in other words, is a capacity decision — not an accessory decision.
Software arrives with hard claims
Advantive’s Kiwiplan brings another type of investment into the same conversation: software rather than steel.
According to Advantive’s own published product data, Kiwiplan has more than 500 production installations globally. The company says users can achieve 1–2% efficiency gains and reduce work in process by up to 25%.
Those are supplier-reported figures, not independently audited Corrugated Week results. But they show the standard software vendors increasingly have to meet. A dashboard alone is not enough; the value has to appear in scheduling, WIP, machine utilization, inventory, service or another quantifiable operating result.
The same standard should apply to AI.
Office AI can be judged by faster responses and lower administrative workload. Plant-floor AI has a harder job: it has to improve a real decision involving machines, operators, board, maintenance, scheduling or quality.
Quality control moves upstream — with a real plant case
Valmet will be at Booth 713 with a live demonstration of its Corrugated Quality Control System.
The significance is not only the measurement technology itself. A separate AICC/INSCO training program during Corrugated Week focuses on how corrugator defects and sheet quality affect downstream converting performance.
Valmet also published a real corrugated plant case in May 2026. The company says Inter Eastern Container in Thailand reduced board warping by around 90% after investing in a Valmet IQ Quality Control System.
That is a supplier-reported result, but it gives the quality-control discussion a concrete production consequence.
Warp, moisture or inconsistent board can appear later as a printing, die-cutting or folder-gluer problem even when the root cause began earlier in the process. Detecting that problem upstream can reduce waste and troubleshooting while protecting downstream converting performance.
Why die cutting is getting so much attention
TAPPI is giving die cutting unusual prominence in the 2026 program.
The September 28 workshop led by Rick Putch will examine setup, tooling, machine condition and operating practice, with direct attention to throughput, quality, waste and downtime. BOBST’s Bryce Cookson is also scheduled to participate in an FFG/DRO roundtable focused on performance, productivity and future equipment investment.
That focus is especially relevant for plants running shorter jobs and more frequent changeovers. In that environment, setup discipline and repeatability can be as important economically as rated machine speed.
The better question is not “what is the maximum speed?” but “what is the sustained output on the jobs we actually run, and what happens between those jobs?”
Dieco G2 / The Die Guy, Booth 106, adds another part of the die-cutting equation: tooling. The company specializes in rotary and flat cutting dies for corrugated production, flexographic printing plates and related tooling services. For converters, Booth 106 is a reminder that die-cutter performance is not only a machine question — tool design, stripping behavior, setup and die life can directly affect throughput, waste and downtime.
Seven minutes to prove something is new
Corrugated Week’s “What’s New” sessions may be one of the sharpest filters at the show.
Suppliers receive just seven minutes to present a new product, technology or service.
Seven minutes is enough to explain one real production problem and one documented result. It is also short enough to expose a story that depends mainly on adjectives.
For converters, the useful question after every presentation is the same: what actually changes in the plant — throughput, changeover time, waste, labor, uptime, quality, maintenance or scheduling?
Five questions to carry from booth to booth
- What production problem does this technology solve, and how is the result verified?
- What has it delivered on a real production mix, not only an ideal demonstration job?
- What changes in staffing, operator workload or skill requirements?
- What happens to changeover time, waste, downtime and sustained output?
- What is the realistic payback once installation, training, service and integration are included?
Those questions can separate a true bottleneck solution from a faster machine, smarter dashboard or new automation layer that simply moves the problem somewhere else.
One show, one capital question
Corrugated Week 2026 matters because investments that used to be discussed separately are now competing inside the same plant plan.
A converter can buy a new machine or modernize an old one. Add robotics or improve workflow. Add connected intelligence or improve maintenance discipline. Install faster equipment or remove downstream constraints. Add quality measurement or continue absorbing defects later in the process. Buy software or keep using people to bridge gaps between systems.
The technologies are different, but the final test is the same:
Where does the next dollar invested in a corrugated box plant create the greatest return?
With more than 1,100 industry professionals and 145+ suppliers expected in Fort Worth, Corrugated Week 2026 will offer plenty of answers. For plant directors, owners and equipment buyers, the real job will be deciding which of those answers survives contact with their own production floor.
Sources
TAPPI — Corrugated Week 2026 official updates and program.
SEC / Smurfit Westrock; BOBST; SUN Automation — company filings and releases.
A.G. Stacker; Advantive / Kiwiplan; Valmet — official product and case materials.
Industrial Print Magazine — Corrugated Week 2022 recap.
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