The hidden packaging economy

Let's do a little experiment. Ask yourself the following questions?

Can I name 2 of the top 3 North American automobile companies?
Can I name 2 of the top 3 North American metals companies?
Can I name 2 of the top 3 North American petro-chemical companies?
Can I name 2 of the top 3 North American packagers?
Can I name 2 of the top 3 North American packaging machinery?

If you are like me, you probably did ok with the first three questions. If you are a packaging insider, you MAY have felt ok with the last two. But, in an informal survey of packaging insiders that I conducted over the last month, I was amazed at the lack of answers to the last two questions. Typically, the response included a cocked head, a wrinkled brow and an answer something like; "Wow, that's an interesting question!" Most generally informed Americans could answer the first 3 questions, but few if any, can do more than take a wild guess at the last two.

So what? I think that the implications are great, and will highlight three areas where I have concern.

First, the automobile, aerospace, metals and petro-chemical industries have set the technology educational agenda in America for decades, to the exclusion of the skills and knowledge needed by packagers and packaging machinery manufacturers. Packagers need a workforce suitably educated for their needs.

Second, the impression held by Americans (professionals, parents, students, legislators) of manufacturing as an industry has been established by these relatively dirty and sometimes in-decline industries. American parents do not want their children to go to work in manufacturing because they don't like the impressions conjured up by foundries, machine shops, chemical plants or auto plants. Packagers are being denied the talent they need in their operations due to these misunderstandings of manufacturing.

Third, packaging is not getting its share of government funding in support of high-growth jobs, workforce development and manufacturing support. Packagers can compete and succeed in obtaining this funding.

Is packaging an industry? PMMI calls it an economy. That might be a better word for it, because the amount of spending for packaging rivals the GDP of many countries. I have seen global numbers of 2 to 4 trillion dollars for packaging's value added (labor, energy), materials and machines. But, how many of us understand economies?

People don't generally understand how their actions impact an economy. Industries are easier to grasp. Although packaging may justifiably be viewed as a hidden economy, I think that treating packaging as a hidden industry will open up more opportunities to impact and support packagers, materials suppliers & converters and machinery manufacturers.

If you have insight regarding the size of the packaging industry in North America, I'd like to hear from you. How many packagers are there? How many people do they employ in their packaging operations? What is the cost of machinery, supplies, materials and energy that go toward packaging operations? Who are the largest packagers, largest material suppliers and largest machinery suppliers?

If you are interested in knowing more about the three concerns I listed above and what can be and is being done to address each, read my posts on each of these topics:

Getting technology education suited to packaging - A how-to guide

Packagers deprived of talent by misunderstanding of manufacturing

How packaging can compete for workforce development $'s

If you think that I am nuts for pursuing this issue, let me know that as well. One way or the other, I hope to hear from you.

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Comments Keith, Forever we have called "packaging" a function. I like the PMMI's term. Good thought provoking newsletter. Thanks. Don Neumeister Packaging World Posted by: Don Neumeister on May 30, 2007 Hi Keith: I enjoyed your article and i am really glad to see that you are still supporting OMAC. I have been promoting PC based controls since the mid 80's with MTS systems and then with Nematron. I put servo controls (integrated motion Data&Logic) on some of the first packaging machines, FMC and Doboy back in the early 80's. I have always promoted open structure software suc a "C" and more recent IEC61131. Posted by: Ed Schultz on June 1, 2007 Post a comment (If you haven't left a comment here before, you may need to be approved by the site owner before your comment will appear. Until then, it won't appear on the entry. Thanks for waiting.) Name: Email Address: URL: Remember personal info? Comments: (you may use HTML tags for style)