SMURFIT Kappa has launched its new Design2Market Factory, aimed at creating a ‘fast and seamless’ process from packaging design through to market launch.
Located in the Netherlands, the investment, which includes a digital printer and die cutter, is said to provide ‘rapid’ prototyping for pilot production, packaging performance analysis, and field lab facilities under one roof.
The Design2Market Factory will cater to two of the biggest trends within the packaging industry: sustainability and eCommerce.
Starting from the initial design brief, Smurfit Kappa explained that a team supports the process with customers, resulting in customised prototypes. This production run gives the flexibility to quickly ‘test, refine and adapt’ the packaging on a smaller scale before market launch.
The team in the Design2Market Factory has so far created solutions including frustration free packaging for wine, shelf ready packaging for detergent, and several of Smurfit Kappa’s Better Planet Packaging products including a replacement for shrink wrap.
Arco Berkenbosch, VP of innovation and development at Smurfit Kappa, said, “The Design2Market Factory provides our customers with the fastest way to launch their new packaging solutions and has revolutionised the development process. It’s set up to provide them with a tangible prototype that can be tested with consumers and subsequently refined and honed before moving to large-scale production.
“We bring all the relevant stakeholders together on the design journey from inception through to production and, if appropriate, certification, enabling customers to use robust data and insights to get their products on to platforms such as Amazon and Alibaba.”
