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PACK EXPO bash celebrates ELAU customers

At an exclusive off-Rush Street venue, Europe’s packaging automation leader thanked a hundred ELAU customers for helping them achieve critical mass in North America.

ELAU employees are 'interviewed' by Second City performers during ELAU's PACK EXPO customer event.
ELAU employees are "interviewed" by Second City performers during ELAU's PACK EXPO customer event.

Humor underscores serious business relationships at ELAU’s PACK EXPO customer event

In ELAU’s first major PACK EXPO special event the company’s North American management team hosted some one hundred friends and customers at the exclusive new Hotel Sofitel Water Tower the night before the show opened.

While guests admired the award-winning architecture and view ELAU Inc. President Patrik Hug reassured the crowd that there would be “no PowerPoints this evening only good food refreshments and a few laughs to charge our batteries for the week ahead.”

Following dinner surprise guests arrived from The Second City the Chicago institution where so many famous comedians got their start. A packaging ‘talk show’ ensued in which customers were introduced in a light hearted way to members of ELAU’s applications engineering and training departments. In reality the engineers were familiar faces to many in the audience who’d attended training courses or worked together to develop a new machine.

With the festivities concluded Sunday was all business as the exhibitors reported quality booth traffic that increased in volume on Monday and Tuesday.

A week of new machinery introductions

The week saw market-shaping new product introductions by a growing number of North American machine builders including Capmatic Douglas Machine Pneumatic Scale and Sentry Equipment (for more information see the packworld.com article North America ‘discovers’ ELAU at PACK EXPO)

In addition some 50 leading European OEMs introduced their latest ELAU PacDrive-equipped designs at this year’s show. Highlights from A to Z included:

A+F Automation’s fast heavy lifting TwinLine robot system www.afautomation.com

ACMA GD’s new 500 bpm servo labeler and servo capper www.acmagd.com

Bosch Sapal’s new buffer/feed systems and wrappers www.sapal.ch

Harro Hoefliger’s new modular capsule filling and closing machine www.hoefliger.de

IMA Group’s new 15 cpm case packer and 60 cpm overwrapper www.ima.it

IWKA with their new BP20 blister machine www.iwkapacsystems.com

The economical new Kallfass 80 cpm Servo Jet side sealing wrapper featuring the new PacDrive C200 automation system www.kallfass.com

KP Aerofill’s new Servopak technology leveraging PacDrive automation for aerosol production www.kpaerofill.com

Marden Edwards’ new servo infeed systems www.mardenedwards.com

Norden Pac’s 120 tpm tube filler and cartoner featuring its new Scope sealing method www.norden-pac.com

Pester’s innovative new case packing machine concept www.pester.com

SIG Beverages’ fillers and labelers including the new Alfa servo labeler equipped with 16 PacDrive servos and 4 labeling groups www.sig.biz

Uhlmann’s new vertical cartoner and bottle cartoner www.uhlmannpackaging.com

Zucchini’s turnkey case packing and palletizing systems [email protected]

What’s next?

At Interpack (April 21-27 2005) visitors should expect at least twice as many ELAU customers to exhibit. ELAU itself can be found in Hall 7a Booth E17.

And as for PACK EXPO Las Vegas next year what does ELAU have in store? John Kowal ELAU’s global marketing manager and planner of this event isn’t saying. But he did smile when asked.

For more information visit www.elau.com send email to [email protected] or call 847 490 4270.

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