The 48th FCBM conference was hosted by RCBMA on 20–22 December 2019, at Fairmont Hotel in Jaipur. The event was attended by 1261 attendees from across the country, including corrugated machinery suppliers, consumable suppliers, ERP systems providers, converters and members of the Rajasthan Cooruagted Box Manufacturers’ Association.
FCBM is an annual event that brings stalwarts from the corrugation industry under one platform.
The chief guest of the event, Subodh Agarwal, additional chief secretary, Industries, MSME & State Enterprises, praised the conference and also spoke about the importance of corrugated as a secondary form of packaging in the Indian economy. “Frankly, I did not expect such a huge gathering. I was simply told that it is a national conference. I’m an IIT Delhi passout and I’ve heard about corrugated boxes. I never really thought about it but I actually am a very prominent user of corrugated boxes in my everyday life,” he said.
Earlier, the Chief Miniter of Rajasthan, Ashok Gehlot, had announced various schemes to promote industrial development, investment, solar energy, wind energy and small scale industries in the state. Some of the schemes included the Rajasthan Investment Promotion Scheme 2019, Chief Minister’s Small Scale Industries Promotion Scheme 2019, Solar
Energy Policy 2019, and Wind and Hybrid Energy Policy 2019. Agarwal invited companies to invest in Rajasthan and stressed on the advantages that the Rajasthan Government offers for new companies to establish factories in the state.
“We visited every possible state in the country and tried to understand the dynamics. After careful evaluation, we decided to offer 100% subsidy on electricity duty and on other fronts. We will also offer reimbursements on various other fronts. With the least knowledge
that I have of corrugated boxes, I can say that you cause the least amount of pollution. In Rajasthan, we have our strengths and weaknesses, we have our water problem; it’s a huge state, so moving around takes a lot of time. However, we are the first ones to notify an ordinance according to which a Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) entreprenuer in the state can start their project without any approvals or clearances for three years,” he
says.
NC Saha of the Indian Institute of Packaging spoke on the growth of usage in corrugated boxes with respect to the growth in flexible packaging industry. The corrugated fiber board box is widely accpeted as a transport material. It is the most widely used secondary form of packaging. According to Smithers Pira, corrugated packaging industry is growing around 3.7% annually to reach US$ 300 billion globally. He added that flexible packaging is also witnessing tremedous growth as a primary packaging aternative. With its properties of extended shelf life, flexible packaging is gaining popularity in the packaging market. Extending shelf life has several benefits from making the product to increasing efficiencies
on the supplier side. In addition, longer shelf life helps waste reduction and sustainability efforts.
