PACK EXPO East 2026 Draws Robust, Dynamic Crowd Signaling Strong Industry Growth and Investment | RoboticsTomorrow

(Herndon, Virginia, Feb. 20, 2026) Celebrating its https://www.roboticstomorrow.com/news/2026/02/20/pack-expo-east-2026-draws-strong-dynamic-crowd-signaling-strong-substitute-increase-and-investment/26173/tenth year, PACK EXPO East returned to Philadelphia, drawing greater than 7,300 attendees and 2,700 exhibitor personnel — totaling over https://www.roboticstomorrow.com/news/2026/02/20/pack-expo-east-2026-draws-strong-dynamic-crowd-signaling-strong-substitute-increase-and-investment/26173/10,000 packaging and processing professionals — for three dynamic days of innovation, training, and enterprise-constructing connections. Produced by PMMI, The Affiliation for Packaging and Processing Technologies, the tournament (Feb. https://www.roboticstomorrow.com/news/2026/02/20/pack-expo-east-2026-draws-strong-dynamic-crowd-signaling-strong-substitute-increase-and-investment/26173/17-https://www.roboticstomorrow.com/news/2026/02/20/pack-expo-east-2026-draws-strong-dynamic-crowd-signaling-strong-substitute-increase-and-investment/26173/19; Pennsylvania Convention Center) showcased the latest advancements in automation, tidy manufacturing, sustainable materials, and AI-driven alternate recommendations shaping the substitute’s future.

“The energy for the length of the repeat modified into extra special,” says Jim Pittas, president and CEO, PMMI. “PACK EXPO East brings collectively evolved applied sciences and decision-makers keen to make investments. The stage of engagement this year underscores the strength of our substitute and the inquire of for innovative, automation-driven alternate recommendations.”

The regional tournament supplied attendees with three high-energy days to explore cutting-edge machinery, leap forward materials, evolved automation, and tidy manufacturing applied sciences reworking the substitute. This atmosphere facilitated meaningful discussions, enabling exhibitors to greater designate attendees’ wants and lift tailored innovations. Attendees enjoyed seeing contemporary applied sciences, innovations, materials, and dealing machinery on the repeat floor. Exhibitors were joyful with the quality of the leads they generated for the length of the repeat.

“That is my 2d time at PACK EXPO East, and it be unbelievable to verify how unheard of the repeat has grown — from the resolution of exhibitors to the amount of kit working dwell on the floor. As an exhibitor, the expertise has been very excellent. We now hang connected with many high-worth potentialities who might perchance per chance perchance additionally now not hang identified about us sooner than, and we’ve got generated strong leads,” says Suzanne Bakiewicz, senior enterprise pattern representative, SourceAmerica.

Additionally, attendees came with initiatives in hand, keen to source alternate recommendations. “We now hang participated in PACK EXPO East since its commence, and this year has been especially strong for us. Traffic has been fashionable, and what’s most fun is that customers are arriving with keen applications, even bringing sample aspects, so we’re going to be in a position to starting up constructing alternate recommendations as we divulge. Past the describe floor, the training classes, MaX Advertising and marketing and marketing Breakfast, and Packaging & Processing Ladies folks’s Leadership Network Reception add trusty worth to the total expertise,” says Stacy Johnson, vice president of enterprise pattern, Hoosier Feeder.

Having decision-makers on-region made the distinction for deal of exhibitors. “PACK EXPO East delivered exactly what we were hoping for. The foot traffic modified into strong for the length of the repeat, and more importantly, the particular investors were right here. We met our lead targets, which speaks to the quality of attendees. From cross-in to booth products and providers and total exhibitor facilities, your complete expertise modified into seamless,” says Travis Nelson, gross sales engineer, ParityFactory, an Advantive Firm.

PACK EXPO passe and manufacturer of conveyor aspects Lisa Khoury, president, POBCO, Inc., agrees: “We now hang had mammoth foot traffic. The conversations hang been region-on. We’re talking to the particular of us. They’re bringing their concerns, and we’re taking a verify forward to offering them a resolution.”

Solutions for one of the most indispensable substitute’s prime trends filled the describe corridor. Packaging and processing professionals witnessed the benefits that applied sciences equivalent to AI, automation, and versatile machinery can lift, along side improved efficiency, decreased downtime, and attend for long-time length increase.

Attendees came to PACK EXPO East shopping for alternate recommendations. “A number of of the challenges I’m taking a verify to solve right here at PACK EXPO East involve sanitation and automating our processes, since manual operations became a bottleneck. Or now not it is handiest day one, and we’ve got already found a resolution that I would like lets lower a PO for this present day. We’re coordinating a region lunge to after the repeat and are alive to on the next steps. I modified into truly offered on what I noticed and truly liked the presentation at PACK EXPO East,” says Ijon Stewart, repairs engineer supervisor, Entire Foods Market. “PACK EXPO East is local, which makes it unheard of more uncomplicated for our crew to aid. For our engineers and production managers, we should be strategic about time some distance from the facilities, and PACK EXPO East gives us a clear scrutinize into what the substitute has to provide and how we’re going to be in a position to lift those innovations abet to our crew.”

PACK EXPO East gives local ticket householders with the replacement to uncover about key applied sciences and innovations. “We’re a startup shopping for ideas on secondary packaging alternate recommendations that are mark atmosphere friendly and provide more automation than what we’re at the 2d doing. We heard about PACK EXPO by design of an e-mail from one amongst the exhibitors, and since the repeat is correct in our backyard, it made sense to aid. That is our first PACK EXPO, and there are a ton of distributors to network with, in conjunction with mammoth training alternatives,” says Colleen Nestler, venture engineer/COO, GMP Liquid Substances.

Education classes are a key allotment of the PACK EXPO East expertise. “My role is centered on sustainability, so I’m shopping for alternatives to cut abet materials, especially with EPR [extended producer responsibility] regulations in mind. That is my first PACK EXPO tournament. Whereas equipment is now not my level of curiosity, it be been captivating to verify how the material and automation aspects match collectively. We thought to aid loads of Innovation Stage classes to be taught more, and we’ve got additionally been utilizing the PACK EXPO app to navigate the repeat,” says Amelia Flintrop, senior shopping supervisor, sustainability & innovation, Saint-Gobain.

“Or now not it is my first time at PACK EXPO East, and I modified into blown away by the machine demonstrations — especially in robotics. I came in assuming these alternate recommendations would be some distance exterior the budget for a runt batch facility, however after talking with the representatives, it be determined there are alternate recommendations for each person. It modified into absolutely definitely worth the drive, especially with the repeat being so discontinuance,” says Abdiel Sanchez, assistant distiller, Trippy Goat Distillery.

Quite quite a bit of contemporary parts successfully debuted on the repeat floor, along side the Containers and Offers Pavilion — a dedicated destination for paperboard, glass, metal, flexible, and resealable packaging innovations supporting ticket refreshes and sustainability initiatives. The Incubator Hub, presented in partnership with Ben Franklin Know-how Partners, spotlighted Pennsylvania-basically based startups and rising applied sciences shaping the next wave of substitute increase. The SMB FastTrack Program persisted to attend runt and medium-sized producers by identifying exhibitors offering flexible financing, discounts, and worth-added products and providers tailored to smaller enterprises.

Education classes were in high inquire of for the length of PACK EXPO East, as attendees packed theaters to designate insights into the substitute’s most pressing trends and challenges. Among the many most smartly-attended modified into Trends and Challenges Shaping the Way forward for Pharmaceutical Manufacturing. Basically basically based on PMMI’s latest substitute myth, the session examined the operational hurdles going by design of producers and highlighted the expanding role of automation, connectivity, and files-driven equipment in utilizing efficiency, compliance, and long-time length increase.

Two standout classes centered on getting keen the packaging substitute for the swap from venerable https://www.roboticstomorrow.com/news/2026/02/20/pack-expo-east-2026-draws-strong-dynamic-crowd-signaling-strong-substitute-increase-and-investment/26173/1D barcodes to 2D barcodes by the GShttps://www.roboticstomorrow.com/news/2026/02/20/pack-expo-east-2026-draws-strong-dynamic-crowd-signaling-strong-substitute-increase-and-investment/26173/1 Smash of day 2027 closing date. One session defined how Amazon Transparency and GShttps://www.roboticstomorrow.com/news/2026/02/20/pack-expo-east-2026-draws-strong-dynamic-crowd-signaling-strong-substitute-increase-and-investment/26173/1 are working collectively to aid producers exhaust one barcode for product tracking, anti-counterfeiting protection, and customer engagement. The 2d session coated the radiant steps firms must take now to manufacture sure that the switch occurs smoothly across the provide chain.

Networking receptions gave key groups the replacement to loosen up and join. Both the Younger Experts Networking Reception and the PPWLN Reception introduced collectively myth numbers of pros.

“The engagement we witnessed at PACK EXPO East confirms that the substitute is actively investing in contemporary technology equivalent to automation, digitalization, and smarter manufacturing systems,” says Laura Thompson, vice president, substitute shows, PMMI. “Our fair is to invent an atmosphere the attach innovation is accessible, conversations was partnerships, and suggestions translate into trusty operational progress.”

An Abundance of Solutions

Up next, the most complete packaging and processing repeat in the Americas this year, PACK EXPO Global 2026, gives in-particular person interaction with dwell machinery, materials, and other products linked to pharmaceutical packaging and processing. With attendees from 40+ vertical industries and 2,600 exhibitors convening, the potentialities for connection and innovation are limitless.

Held Oct. https://www.roboticstomorrow.com/news/2026/02/20/pack-expo-east-2026-draws-strong-dynamic-crowd-signaling-strong-substitute-increase-and-investment/26173/18-2https://www.roboticstomorrow.com/news/2026/02/20/pack-expo-east-2026-draws-strong-dynamic-crowd-signaling-strong-substitute-increase-and-investment/26173/1, 2026, at Chicago’s McCormick Position, PACK EXPO Global brings collectively forty eight,000 attendees from world wide and gives a bunch of networking and tutorial alternatives as smartly as seven repeat floor destinations admire the Healthcare Packaging Pavilion, Food & Beverage Processing Zone, and the Containers and Offers Pavilion, showcasing cutting-edge applied sciences.

The repeat additionally gifts a multitude of free tutorial stages with greater than https://www.roboticstomorrow.com/news/2026/02/20/pack-expo-east-2026-draws-strong-dynamic-crowd-signaling-strong-substitute-increase-and-investment/26173/150 classes on the repeat floor, the attach attendees can dive into specialized topics and be taught from international substitute leaders. Themes range from automation and AI to regulations and present chain management.

Be taught more about PACK EXPO Global 2026.