Packaging machinery is special industrial equipment that can complete all or part of the commodity packaging process. It deeply integrates advanced technologies in many fields such as mechanical processing, electrical automation, intelligent control systems, industrial robots, and visual sensing. It has outstanding application value: it can not only effectively improve production efficiency, reduce labor costs, stably control product packaging quality, complete high-standard and refined packaging operations that cannot be achieved manually, but also comprehensively improve the informatization and intelligence level of production and manufacturing links.
Packaging is an indispensable and important link in the field of commodity circulation. The complete packaging process not only includes core packaging processes such as forming, filling, sealing, and wrapping, but also includes pre- and post-processing processes such as cleaning, drying, sterilization, labeling, bundling, and assembly, as well as auxiliary packaging processes such as material transportation and sorting.
Facing the diversified needs of the downstream market, packaging equipment manufacturing companies can develop and supply various customized equipment products based on customers’ personalized packaging process requirements to fully meet the needs of enterprises for automation and large-scale production and operation.
At present, the international general classification standard is based on the packaging process as the core basis. Packaging machinery is mainly divided into five categories: forming, filling and sealing series equipment, bundling, palletizing and winding series equipment, labeling and coding series equipment, intelligent packaging production lines and other supporting packaging equipment.
From the perspective of the industrial chain structure, the upstream of the packaging machinery industry mainly includes raw material suppliers such as steel, aluminum alloy, copper, plastic, rubber, and adhesives, as well as PLC, HMI, servo controllers, reducers, motors, solenoid valves, sensors and other component suppliers; the midstream of the industry is the packaging machinery industry.
Packaging machinery research and development, design, production and other links; the downstream application scenarios of the industry are broad and can adapt to the production needs of multiple scenarios. It is widely used in the product packaging process of many industries such as food and beverages, medicine and health, daily chemicals and cosmetics, chemical agricultural materials, e-commerce logistics, etc., comprehensively covering the entire process of commodity production and circulation.
Before the 1980s, my country’s packaging machinery was mainly imported from manufacturers in developed countries such as Italy, Germany, and Japan. With the development of my country’s economy and the rise of the machinery industry, domestic packaging machinery companies have gradually broken through the monopoly competition pattern of international manufacturers. The gap between machinery manufacturing levels and foreign developed countries has continued to narrow. The main technical indicators of products, such as working speed, positioning accuracy, operational stability, and automation, have reached or are close to the international advanced level.
At the same time, my country’s packaging machinery production capacity is also constantly expanding. In 2025, my country’s output of special packaging equipment will reach 1.9758 million units, a year-on-year increase of 21.0%, and supply capacity has increased significantly.
With the continuous enhancement of technological strength, the global recognition of domestic packaging machinery has significantly increased, and the penetration rate of overseas markets has increased rapidly: According to customs statistics, the export value of my country’s packaging machinery will increase from US$2.967 billion in 2020 to US$5.527 billion in 2025, nearly doubling in scale, while the import value will fall from US$1.572 billion to US$902 million, and the trade surplus will continue to expand.
This change not only marks a significant acceleration in the substitution process of domestic equipment for imported products, but also highlights the simultaneous rise in the technological competitiveness, internationalization level and local supply capacity of my country’s packaging machinery industry.
From the perspective of industry competition, the threshold for R&D and production of complete sets of packaging machinery equipment is relatively high, and there are strict requirements for technical aspects such as CNC system application, mechatronics design, and precision parts finishing. Although my country’s packaging machinery manufacturing strength has continued to rise in recent years, well-known overseas companies such as Italy, Germany, and Japan still have advantages with their leading core technologies and mature processes, and foreign brands still occupy a large market share in my country’s high-end packaging equipment market.
Domestic domestic companies represented by Yongchuang Intelligent, Tech-Long, Newamstar, Central Asia Co., Ltd., Huayan Precision Machinery, Dongfang Precision, Jingshan Light Machinery, and Chunguang Intelligent are currently deeply involved in the mid-to-low-end market. At the same time, they continue to strengthen technology research and development and product upgrades, and actively extend their layout to the high-end market. The speed of domestic substitution in the industry continues to accelerate.
Overall, my country’s packaging machinery industry has formed a competitive landscape in which foreign capital dominates the high-end market, local companies firmly occupy the mid-range market, and local smart equipment companies accelerate their breakthrough.
Currently, domestic leading listed packaging machinery companies have formed a clear differentiated layout: Yongchuang Intelligent is a comprehensive service provider, covering the whole process of general packaging solutions; Tech-Long, Newamstar, and Zhongya Co., Ltd. focus on high-barrier fields such as liquid food and aseptic filling; Dongfang Precision and Jingshan Light Machinery are deeply involved in the corrugated packaging equipment track; Chunguang Intelligent specializes in special intelligent packaging equipment in the fields of pharmaceutical preparations and specialty foods.
The above-mentioned enterprises have established a full industrial chain layout covering packaging base material molding, core filling equipment, and back-end full-line integration. The business scenarios extend to multiple downstream fields such as food and beverages, medicine and health, daily cosmetics, and paper product processing. Each entity has established solid technical barriers and competitive advantages in market segments by virtue of precise track positioning. At the same time, it is accelerating breakthroughs in the direction of high-end and intelligence, becoming the core force to promote domestic substitution and industrial upgrading of the industry.
Industry insiders pointed out that with the advancement of the intelligent transformation of the global manufacturing industry and the further improvement of the technical strength of domestic packaging machinery, the space for domestic substitution in the industry will continue to be released in the future. At the same time, the growth in demand in overseas emerging markets will also provide broader space for domestic packaging machinery to go overseas. The long-term development trend of the industry is clear.
