Pune-based Boix Machinery India showcased its Q-1530 corrugated box-forming machine at the IndiaCorr Expo, held in Greater Noida in September. According to company brochures handed out at the exhibition, the machine is designed to produce 400 to 1,800 boxes per hour.
The Spain-headquartered Boix is a leading manufacturer of tray-forming machines for both corrugated and solid cardboard packaging. Founded in 1973 by José Boix, it has seven subsidiaries all over the world, with a manufacturing unit and headquarters at San Isidro in Spain. These include facilities in the Netherlands, Germany, the United States, Mexico, Chile, China, and India.
While Boix Machinery India has been operating since 2013, Boix Asia has had a presence in China for the last 14 years. Jesus Diaz, managing director Asia at Boix, told Packaging South Asia that its agricultural segment, which includes fruit and vegetable packaging, contributes to 75% of its turnover in India. Boix has sold more than 100 machines in the Indian market in the last 12 years.
“From India, we market for the Indian market and the SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) countries,” Diaz said, adding the technical teams in India and China service all Asian territories.
On selecting India as a strategic location for Boix’ South Asian operations, Diaz said, “We found talented people in India at the beginning of our commercial activities. In Sandip Mahajan, Boix’ India country manager, we found very good commercial and technical support and a person with good market experience and knowledge.”
Diaz said India is promising and strong in the fruits and vegetables segment, which is its key experience market. “The Covid-19 pandemic slowed us down a little bit. We think we are going to invest in India in more talent and commercial activities,” he added.
Boix India works with both corrugators and end users. Diaz said Boix has maintained a good relationship with major corrugation box players worldwide. “In India, specifically, we work with a panel of more than 12 corrugators from different parts of the country, including Gujarat-based Astron Packaging, Mumbai-based Khetan Wellpack, and Telangana-based Prompt Packaging.”
According to Diaz, Boix has a good market share in the Indian grapes industry in areas such as Nashik and Sangli. The company helps produce corrugated boxes for apples, kiwis, and mangoes. It produces boxes for packaging vegetables, especially tomatoes, for several Indian exporters. It has a good penetration in some other areas in the fruit and vegetable industry near Pune.
“Corrugators are a critical part of our business model. We support them in engineering and design. We provide them with machinery to form, close. and glue the boxes that they provide to the end users,” he said.
While the machines are produced and engineered in Spain, Boix markets models of corrugated box forming machines in the Indian market, Diaz said. The box-forming machines not only depend on the box design and the format, but also on applications and the speed of production.
“All machines we have for the global market are available for Indian corrugators. It depends on the specific needs and requirements of our end users, collaborators, and customers. We have models that have been with us for the last 10 years with normal updates, such as the bestselling Q-1530. Machines such as the MCT are focused on forming punnets, which is a global trend for packaging small, soft fruits and vegetables such as berries, grapes, cherries, cherry tomatoes, and mushrooms,” Diaz said.
