A new “dating-platform” for packaging machinery shows: Digital transformation in the packaging industry is taking shape
Thomas Reiner | 11.06.2021
The lights for the platform economy have been green for quite some time. Its promise of removing intransparency and inefficiency from the market is unbeatable. In the foreseeable future, therefore, large parts of the industry will move towards a platform economy. The only thing that is surprising is that so little has been done so far – especially in the mechanical engineering sector.
With Packpart, one of the first start-ups in this realm is now on its way. Its platform links project enquiries from customers with the know-how and offers of mechanical engineers, similar to a dating plattform. At the heart of the platform is an automated, digital matching system. It will be launched in the chemical, pharmaceutical, cosmetics and food sectors.
The platform’s promise: it simplifies the search for a suitable packaging machine manufacturer, reduces the effort for customers as well as suppliers and optimises the result.
How the “dating platform” works
- Customers start a project and specify their individual requirements for the packaging machine. An interactive list of questions guides them through the process. The information is directly transferred into a prepared, digital specification sheet, which is available for the remainder of the project.
- The information is automatically matched with the performance spectrum of the registered machine manufacturers. At the end, the customer receives an overview of the manufacturers that best fit his requirements.
- From the overview, the client selects the manufacturers to whom his project enquiry is to be forwarded. The transmission is anonymised.
- If necessary, the contacted machine builders obtain additional information about the project via the operators of the platform. If they are interested, the manufacturers receive the customer’s contact details and contact them directly.
Precursor of a profound change
The start-up Packpart is based in Rosengarten, Baden-Württemberg. The region in southern Germany is a centre of mechanical engineering. Founder Christian Baumann has recognised the signs of the times. His dating platform is the harbinger of a profound change that will affect the entire industry. Platforms bring transparency and efficiency to a market that is still far too often dominated by the opposite, especially in the packaging sector.
