In June 2018, Robert Bosch announced that it was looking for a buyer for its Packaging Machinery Division. This came as a major surprise as this division has been assiduously
built up and expanded over the last 50 plus years by systematic acquisitions and commissioning of new production sites all over the world, particularly in emerging markets into what is now a huge US$ 1.5 billion annual business.
It was in the early 1960’s that Robert Bosch, already a titan in German industry, decided to enter the packaging machinery business. Later on down the line came a decision to add processing technologies in the pharmaceutical and food industries.
It started in 1964 with the acquisition of Holler and, over the years, many new acquisitions were made featuring wellknown names like Hamac-Hansella, Hesser, Hofliger + Karg, H. Strunck, TL Systems, Togum/Comeck, Valicare, Tevopharm, Makat Candy, Moeller and
Devicon, Pharmatech, M-Tec, Kimaco , Paal, Ampack, Eisai, Tecsor, Osgood, SIG and, as recently as 2015, KliklokWoodman. In parallel, new production sites were implemented in countries like India, China, Japan and Thailand. (In India, initially in Bengaluru and then in Goa on a rented site, that was replaced by a purpose built plant of its own.)
This consolidation helped Bosch Packaging establish itself in a wide variety of packaging segments ranging from primary and secondary (transport) packaging and automation of products ranging from dry to liquid to gums to aseptics to niche hygienic products primarily in the food and pharmaceutical industries. In the process, the company also acquired a
name for quality albeit expensive machines.
It now appears that the new board at Bosch does not consider packaging as a core business any more and wishes to concentrate resources on other business opportunities. While it is true that the packaging machinery business has not been performing as well as their other divisions in the last 2 years due to competition from other cheaper manufacturers, till recently it has been insisting it wants to expand to service the requirements of emerging markets.
After scrutiny of their priorities, Bosch issued a press release in June 2018 stating the following: Bosch plans to sell its packaging business; New owner sought for further growth.
