Interview: Mustafa Yağmurlu

“Schubert develops and produces highly flexible and very efficient top-loading machines for a wide range of industries, including pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, food as well as pet food and technical articles. The packaging machine manufacturer also offers companies comprehensive consulting, development and other services – from packaging development to digital services.”

Valentin Köhler

Renowned for its leadership in packaging technology, Gerhard Schubert GmbH has been shaping the industry with groundbreaking innovations since 1966. By integrating advanced technologies such as automation, robotics, and artificial intelligence, the company delivers packaging solutions that offer high flexibility and sustainability, combining aesthetics and functionality with a commitment to environmental responsibility.

As one of the key drivers of transformation in the packaging industry, Schubert sets new standards with its high-performance machines and holistic approach to packaging design. In our interview with Valentin Köhler, Head of Packaging Development at Gerhard Schubert GmbH, we gained valuable insights into the company’s approach to technological transformation, its “Mission Blue” sustainability program, modular system design, AI-powered cobot solutions, and long-term goals. Our conversation touched on a wide range of topics including how packaging interacts with consumers and emerging global trends.

Could you please tell us about Schubert’s operations, which now span nearly 60 years? 

Gerhard Schubert GmbH, based and founded in Crailsheim in 1966, has been building packaging machines for nearly 60 years. Together with its German subsidiaries Schubert Packaging Systems, Schubert Additive Solutions, Schubert Fertigungstechnik and Schubert System Elektronik, the medium-sized family business offers a comprehensive portfolio for future-proof packaging solutions. The company attaches particular importance to sustainability, and extensive measures are realised under the umbrella of ‘Mission Blue’. 

Schubert develops and produces highly flexible and very efficient top-loading machines for a wide range of industries, including pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, food as well as pet food and technical articles. The packaging machine manufacturer also offers companies comprehensive consulting, development and other services – from packaging development to digital services.

With its ‘Packaging Competence Center’, Schubert accompanies its customers on the path to more sustainable packaging processes. The Schubert experts provide support in the selection of materials, the design of packaging and in achieving machineability. The PCC is part of the Mission Blue sustainability programme, with which Schubert focuses on its corporate and social responsibilityfor sustainable action.

With a total of 1,700 employees worldwide, the Schubert Group is represented internationally by Schubert North America LLC (USA), Schubert Packaging Automation Inc (Canada) and Schubert UK Ltd (United Kingdom). 

How do you align your long-standing family business culture, dating back to 1966, with your innovation- and quality-oriented vision?

Innovation has shaped the history of Gerhard Schubert GmbH from the very beginning. Founder Gerhard Schubert brought robotics to the packaging industry for the first time, following the example of the automotive industry, and since then has always focused on pioneering technologies.

In the late 1970s, Gerhard Schubert saw a palletizing robot at the US pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson. Inspired, he developed the SNC-R1, or “Roby”, the first robot designed for packing individual chunky products in trays or boxes. Roby had its debut at the Interpack trade show in 1981, playing the game of Mühle (Nine Men’s Morris). 

In 1984, the model automated a chocolate packaging line for the first time and laid the foundation for further developments, one of which set standards in the same year. In 1984, the SNC-F2 marked the beginning of the successful automation journey of a technology that successfully packs products from numerous industries in thousands of installations worldwide. Thanks to this advance, it was possible for the first time to erect, fill and seal cartons with one and the same robot and corresponding tools.

Another milestone in the company’s rich history can be attributed to Gerhard’s son Ralf, who addressed a major production challenge. Partially filled packaging is a consistent disappointment to both manufacturers and consumers. Ralf solved this challenge in 1994 during a vacation. After running simulations, he devised the counterflow principle: products and packaging are fed to the picker line in opposite directions, making sure all packaging formats have the correct number of products inside. Since the patent expired in 2016, every manufacturer of pick-and-place machines has adopted this principle.

10 PER CENT OF TURNOVER TO R&D

The technology leader is also constantly driving innovation in the field of automation. For example, in 2023 Schubert introduced the tog.519 cobot, which automates the infeed to the packaging machine, for instance, or places places primary packaged products into secondary packaging. The tog.519 cobot excels at so-called ‚bin picking‘ at high speeds: The robot can pick unsorted objects and place them into moving trays at up to 90 cycles per minute – faster than any other solution on the market. Thanks to AI-based image recognition, the cobot ‘recognises’ different objects and reliably masters the task of picking unsorted items from a disorganised pile. Even the complex challenge of ‘uprighting’ and depositing empty bottles into pucks is handled by the Crailsheim-based innovation thanks to ingenious vision technology, which Schubert combines with patented five-axis SCARA kinematics.

To maintain this successful course, Schubert invests around ten per cent of its annual revenue into R&D each year, resulting in new packaging solutions consistently. Driven by a pioneering spirit for nearly 60 years, many of the core technologies found in the marketplace today originated in the company.

How are innovations such as automation, artificial intelligence, robotics, and 3D printing transforming packaging production processes?

The innovations from Gerhard Schubert GmbH fundamentally lead to greater efficiency and productivity with fewer rejects, thus enabling fully sustainable processes in line with the company’s own Mission Blue sustainability programme:

AI is a key field of research and development at Schubert: the company operates its own image processing department that tests and continuously refines the use of AI in robots. AI-supported image processing enables robots such as the tog.519, as well as SCARA-type robots such as the F-model, to consistently recognise products and relearn new formats using image material provided in advance. Image processing and efficient robot movements are therefore of great importance in the company and in the manufacturing industry, as this enables higher product quality and simplified machine operation through e.g. faster machine learning and less programming effort by operating personnel.

Robotics, a key pillar of automated packaging lines, enable precise pick & place operations, allowing products such as biscuits and chocolates, as well as filled products in glass jars and bottles, to be placed safely in secondary packaging such as trays or boxes. Gentle handling reduces product loss due to breakage, shocks or improper placement, but also enables the precise loading of new packaging formats, for example with reduced dimensions to minimise packaging material.

3D printing is also relevant in terms of quality, as it enables to design cost-effective and highly customisable gripping and suction tools, e.g. for pick & place robots. The tools allow sensitive products to be gripped or sucked up with precision, resulting in fewer rejects caused by incorrect gripping or damage. 3D printing also brings significantly more flexibility to the packaging industry, as organically shaped parts can be used to enable simpler and more flexible format changes while maintaining consistently high quality and process reliability. Schubert offers a 3D printing service to companies in all core industries. The complete system consists of a digital platform, an in-house developed 3D printer and the appropriate plastic material. This enables customers to print high-quality format sets directly in their production facilities.

How would you define Schubert’s “modular TLM system” approach? In what ways does the flexibility and sustainability of this system create a difference in the packaging industry?

Modularity means having a system of building blocks with different elements that can be used to flexibly expand packaging lines by adding specific components, such as robots, magazines and belts, as required.

Schubert can customise packaging lines to suit existing production and space requirements, taking capacities into account to achieve the desired throughput. All components of the Schubert modular system are designed to be compatible with each other and can be combined repeatedly to create efficient packaging solutions. 

Consequently, Schubert packaging machines have a very high level of availability and are flexible enough to process both conventional and new materials within the same system. 

Your new cobot, tog.519, stands out with its AI-supported vision system and ability to handle up to 90 picks per minute. What are the strategy and goals behind this technological development?

Schubert designed the tog.519 as an automated pick & place support system for handling large quantities of organised or disorganised items. Not only does the tog.519 avoid the need for pre-sorting products and save time, it also takes over an activity that is strenuous for human staff because it is repetitive and energy-intensive. Companies can utilise their operating personnel’s freed-up capacities elsewhere while the tog.519 quickly, safely and efficiently picks products thanks to its advanced image recognition — a decisive advantage for high-quality packaging requirements.

Could you tell us about Schubert-Consulting, your turnkey line solutions? 

Schubert offers a wide range of services built on nearly 60 years of specialised industry expertise, covering a broad spectrum of application scenarios.

Since 2011, Schubert-Consulting has provided consultancy, planning, implementation, and optimisation services for manufacturing, packaging, and intralogistics processes. The portfolio includes, among other things, feasibility studies, line concepts and factory planning – including the necessary project coordination. The success of this comprehensive consulting approach is reflected in numerous accolades, such as Top Consultant (2015, 2018, 2023), Best Consulting 2016 (Wirtschaftswoche), and Service Provider of the Year 2014 (Ministry of Finance and Economic Affairs of Baden-Württemberg).

Schubert Packaging Systems offers the design and implementation of fully automated turnkey packaging lines from a single source. The foundation for each turnkey project is the product itself. Drawing on interdisciplinary thinking and extensive experience with a wide range of technologies across all industries, Schubert develops highly available packaging systems composed of perfectly coordinated individual components.

Packaging is no longer just a means of protection; it is now the first point of contact with the consumer and a vital part of the product experience. How does Schubert interpret this transformation?

Packaging is an essential part of brand communication. It must protect, evoke emotions and be sustainable at the same time. Consumers expect perfectly appealing packaging at the point of sale. At Schubert, we not only build high-quality machines that enable manufacturers to react flexibly to new requirements, but also provide support in the development of packaging that harmonises appearance, function and machinability to optimum effect.

What does the concept of “eye-catching packaging” mean to you? How should design, functionality, and sustainability be balanced?

Eye-catching packaging attracts attention, arouses emotions and wants to be picked up by the prospective buyer. For us, this means: intelligent and appealing design that does not complicate production, materials that enable cycles and processes that conserve resources. And we combine this design with machine technology that is flexible enough to fulfil these requirements.

In recent years, how have consumer preferences evolved? Are visually striking solutions taking the lead, or are eco-friendly and smart packaging alternatives becoming more prominent?

Both play a role. Of course, the packaging must stand out visually in order to appeal to the customer. But consumers also want to know how sustainable a product and its packaging is. They pay attention to materials, origin and recyclability. Smart functions - such as QR codes - are also becoming increasingly important. The trend is clearly moving towards more transparency, added value and a clear conscience. And in addition to all these requirements, price awareness has continued to grow throughout the entire chain.

How do you evaluate the impact of packaging on consumers, particularly in the food and beverage sectors?

Packaging has a strong influence on whether a product is purchased. With food and drinks, it is also about trust: Does the packaging keep the product fresh? Is it hygienic? Does it bring the product home reliably? Is it easy to open? At the latest when the product is used, it becomes clear whether the customer will be delighted or disappointed. That’s why every solution must be well thought out and precisely implemented.

What is your vision for environmentally friendly packaging solutions?

One key aspect is closing material cycles. This will be best achieved with mono-materials, as these are usually easy to recycle. Saving unnecessary space within the packaging will reduce CO2 emissions during transport, and in some cases reusable systems will increasingly be used. Here, too, Schubert is already positioning itself and is launching development partnerships with several loop system providers. 

However, with all these optimisation measures, product protection must always be kept in mind, which has the highest priority. If the product spoils prematurely, it does not help the environment.

How do you assess global trends in the packaging industry? What kinds of demands stand out in markets such as Europe, the Americas, and Asia?

Europe is strongly characterised by regulation and sustainability goals. Circularity is what counts here. In North America, the focus is on efficiency - high performance with high quality. In Asia, high-quality optics, innovation and smart packaging are in demand. However, even outside the EU, there is a noticeable increase not only in awareness but also in legislation for more sustainability and less waste. It will be interesting to see whether Europe can fulfil its pioneering role in terms of sustainability.

Which markets do you foresee focusing more on in the near future as Schubert?

We are strengthening our presence in North America by expanding our sales structure and setting up a site for the final assembly of our machines. 

We are also continuing to expand our activities in Asia. As our main sales market, Europe remains our innovation driver - with pilot projects for technological innovations or for testing sustainable packaging concepts.

What key dynamics do you think will shape the packaging industry over the next 5 to 10 years?

Awareness of environmental influences will increase even more. Efficiency will absolutely take centre stage, as it is not just about saving costs, but also about conserving resources. This goes hand in hand with the topics of regulation, digitalisation and automation. In line with this trend, packaging will become more functional. Easier to process, more intuitive to use, optimised for recycling. Smart functions such as traceability and digital twins will be added to packaging machines.

How is Schubert preparing for this transformation? Do you have any new investments or innovative solutions currently in development?

Yes - we make targeted investments in development, new technologies and sustainable systems. Glue-free and therefore 100% recyclable packaging is made possible by our Dotlock technology. Autonomous systems such as our Cobot tog.519 help to increase efficiency in the packaging process. At the same time, we are digitalising our services with 4YOUconnect and expanding our sites with the latest energy-efficient technologies.