Interview with Ivan Grujovic, Sales Director and Simon Needham, Sales Manager.
What are you seeing in the industry today? How is your company responding to these challenges?
What we have noticed in recent months is the resurgence of e-commerce. We saw e-commerce flourishing during the COVID period, and after COVID ended, we saw e-commerce dropping substantially. However, this trend of decline has stopped at some point, and e-commerce has resurged—not to its former glory, but we still have a significant number of customers involved in e-commerce.
So what we have done is provide solutions in our machines specifically tailored to the needs of e-commerce customers. Specifically, we have introduced solutions that mitigate the need for die-cut boxes. We have applied solutions that allow customers to produce regular slotted boxes that can be used instead of die-cut boxes, like mailer boxes such as FEFCO 47 and similar.
Are you presenting some new technologies here?
The BOXmaker ULTRA is a machine that has been around for quite a while, but we have introduced several new technologies and improvements to the machine. These involve dynamic slotting, which is directly connected with the capability to produce boxes similar to die-cut boxes without using intricate die-cut solutions such as die-cut tools and specific machinery intended for die-cut technology.
Furthermore, we introduced a system for color management on our integrated Flexo printer. This means that even though customers usually think Flexo is quite slow, we have introduced solutions that allow Flexo to be used efficiently by introducing a system to automatically apply color to the printer and wash the printer automatically. Less physical labor and less complicated work mean less time for the operator to use the machine for printing.
Also, we have introduced a glue management system with an intricate system of pumps that allow the machine to run at a steady rate, with gluing being very fast. As a consequence, boxes come out with glue applied, providing the capability for the boxes to be produced at one working center within a reasonable amount of time.
EMproject89 is a company based in Vrnjačka Banja, Central Serbia, established in 2015. The company specializes in designing and producing advanced machinery for the corrugated cardboard industry.
What do you think will be the biggest challenge for your company in the next five years?
We are seeing increased demand for heavy-duty boxes in the automotive, aerospace, and military industries. This has led to a high demand for machines that can process very heavy corrugated materials, over two kilos per square meter.
We are developing prototypes for machines that can produce seven-layer corrugated cardboard of this weight and stackers for these machines. Once ready, we will showcase these products to the world.
Should the company support sustainability and eco-friendliness in the corrugated industry?
In our opinion, eco-friendliness comes from prioritizing energy saving and keeping nature happy. Our materials involve corrugated cardboard, which obviously comes from forests. This is why, for several years now, we have been planting trees for every machine we have installed at customer companies. We plant ten trees in our local forests.
We have also introduced systems to our machines that allow for the ecological use of electrical energy. We can also introduce systems that provide insight into how much electrical energy the machine has used. We have recently introduced solar panels to our factory, trying to mitigate our CO2 impact on nature. So, we’re working in several areas proactively to be eco-friendly and sustainable.
Thank you. What message would you like to share with our viewers?
The message is quite simple. I don’t say do what we say; I say do what we do. Keep it sustainable. And whatever you do, keep it on time, and everybody will be happy.
Hello, Simon. Hi, good morning. Could you tell us the rules of the game?
It’s a little promotional thing that we’ve put together for the show. Any customer who is looking to place an order for a machine either now or within the next month has a chance to play darts with us. The opportunity is to get something extra for free.
You have one opportunity to throw a dart, and you can get extra tooling, a free installation discount, additional die-cut modules, extra warranty, or slotting knives. Each of these has a different value. I think the 5% discount would be my favorite, but if you have a really good shot, you can get all of them. However, it’s difficult.
There is a dilemma here. If you hit the black area, you have to buy the whole team at the stand a drink and some cakes. So far, nobody has hit the black area; they’ve all been good shots. This one we can see is used and has three installations. We like our customers to come along and have a go.
Thank you!
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