Ukrplastic, an Eastern European manufacturer of flexible packaging materials, cooperates with all the leading Ukrainian confectionery producers in the development of their twist films. These companies prepare technical requirements for the film, and provide the products and equipment needed for testing new materials. Ukrplastic is then able to develop film formulations and production techniques and can manufacture pilot samples, carry out laboratory tests, manufacture and test pilot batches of products, and provide technical and advisory support during implementation at the customer site.

Good packaging can act as an important sales promotion tool, making it worthy of detailed consideration, especially in premium branded products.

Chocotech's Frozenshell is said to offer an alternative for the production of high quality pralines. It promises reliability and flexibility, combined with innovative praline production technology techniques.

Suzanne Callander finds out about the Delta robot and finds out how these fast and flexible robots are being used in the confectionery market.

One of my favourite robots, the Delta is a type of parallel robot, consisting of three arms connected to universal joints at the base. A key design feature is its use of parallelograms in the arms, which maintains the orientation of the end effector. This style of robot is employed in many picking and packaging applications as it was designed for high speed.

Nestlé UK has awarded Crown Speciality Packaging, a business unit of Crown Holdings, with its 'Packaging Supplier Performance 2007' award. The company won the award based on its high marks in key areas of Nestlé's suppliers' performance scoring system, which covers product delivery, quality, innovation and sustainability and performance.

On the first day of Interpack 2008, hordes of still bushy tailed journalists joined the Packaging Machinery Manufacturers Institute (PMMI) to hear its views on the current and future condition of the packaging market in the US and beyond.