With almost 40 years in the packaging industry, GMV consolidates its success through a consistent strategy and long-term partnerships

Starting as supplier of high-value flexible packaging for a leading candy brand, Dulces de la Rosa, GMV had to work with the best equipment and have the best technical support. They started back then with a 5-color Pulsar gravure machine from Schiavi, an Italian manufacturer of printing equipment that was later acquired by BOBST, which today supplies world-class equipment to the global flexible packaging industry. Shortly after that, another 2 BOBST machines were added, this time 7-color gravure equipment. After that, 2 additional BOBST gravure presses with in-line lamination were installed to ensure the highest quality packaging for the snacks industry. 

GMV currently has a world-class presence, with several different BOBST teams, which puts them in a differentiated position against the competition, as leaders in technology, quality, and services. It allows them to serve the main food brands in the region, exporting almost 30% of their production to the United States. The choice of BOBST equipment has been there since GMV started operating and remains intact as the challenges of consumer markets change. These equipment allow them to continuously improve the manufacturing process and increase productivity, as well as high flexibility and versatility to navigate between different customer priorities, order size, protection needs, etc. "With high technology content, BOBST equipment has allowed us to serve these markets and create bold strategies over the years,” says Jesús Michel, Director of GMV. 

The main challenge faced by GMV today is balancing incoming orders that have increased lately, with the raw material constraints created by the Covid-19 pandemic around the world. Not only a certain level of scarcity, but also the price increase has affected the main packaging players around the world, and the scenario is no different in Latin America. This has created additional challenges to ensure the best quality and short lead times that their customers have always experienced. "We were forced to adapt to a new reality, but I remain very optimistic. The food and health industries have experienced a boom during this period, driven by online shopping, and this level of demand is here to stay," continues Jesús Michel. "And we have to be prepared to meet this increased demand in a competitive way."  

This brings the need to increase manufacturing capacity. While analyzing the investment in new equipment, it is imperative to react quickly to get more out of the existing operation. And that's where BOBST Services & Performance team works at its best. To support the new scenario GMV describes, BOBST team is continuously working on process optimization activities, training the GMV operations team and has made several updates to their machines to ensure the best performance and increased productivity. More recently, GMV has incorporated a new Registron® S 6100, an online registration control system. With this investment, GMV witnessed a significant increase in machine availability, as it measures variations in roll elongation and tension before any incorrect registration occurs, and makes preventative corrections, even though the current error is zero. With this device, the occurrence of defects is virtually zero! In addition to that, it is extremely easy to use, with an simple and visual interface for the operator, optimizing the mechanical, electrical, and electronic processes in the machine, all at once.  

These investments have enabled GMV to be more efficient and cope with increasingly complex materials. Brand owners today require lower thickness, greater protection, and shorter runs of a larger variety of jobs, to make the most of their own investments in high-speed filling systems. Sustainability is also a hot topic, and GMV is aware that BOBST equipment brings many benefits in this area, such as less waste generation, a reduction in energy consumption, among others. "Saving the planet is everyone's responsibility. There are 5 strong cornerstones to make sustainability a true story. Raw material producers, packaging converters, brand owners, governments, and consumers. One of these alone cannot achieve it. We need to work together along the chain. We now notice an increased awareness of brand owners, but it is growing significantly within the packaging chain and the society. In the end, we are not saving the planet, we are saving ourselves," he realizes. 

There are challenges to face in the future, to realign with the new consumers, not only in terms of sustainability, but the new consumption habits created by the pandemic, and the entire supply chain has to adapt. "With the right partners, there's no doubt we can do it. BOBST has been supporting our growth in the market through the most reliable equipment and a range of services provided over the years," concludes Jesus. 
 

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