All 17 of the machinery categories that PMMI tracks in its annual review experienced growth in 2004. Double-digit growth occurred in seven categories: converting machinery, 24.6%; skin and blister packaging machinery, 23.8%; filling machinery, liquid products, 22.8%; labeling machinery, 22%; capping, overcapping, lidding, and sealing machinery, 13.8%; form/fill/seal machinery, bag/pouch, 11.1%; and palletizing, depalletizing, and pallet-unitizing machinery, 11.1%.
In addition, exports of U.S.–made packaging machinery increased by 12.5% to $1.071 billion in 2004, compared with $952 million shipped in 2003. Exports as a percentage of total U.S. packaging machinery shipments reached 20% for the first time since 1997, when exports were 21% of total U.S. shipments.
Canadian packaging machinery shipments grew 8.4% in 2004 to $323.7 million. Most notably, PMMI says, shipments of filling machinery for dry products rose 113.5%.
