Pro Mach Acquires Packaging Firm Zarpac

Pro Mach Inc., an integrated packaging solutions company, has acquired Ontario-based Zarpac Inc., a provider of packaging line engineering, integration, and productivity services and solutions.

With the addition of Zarpac, Pro Mach advances its goal to be the global leader in integrated packaging solutions and a single-source provider of high-performance packaging lines.

Zarpac’s products and services include packaging line system design and build, performance diagnostics software, robotics testing and integration, mechanical and electrical engineering, project management, technical training, productivity support, and material handling solutions. Managing projects around the globe, Zarpac serves customers in North America, Europe, Latin America, and Asia Pacific from offices in Canada, United States, and China.

“We’re pleased to welcome the outstanding Zarpac team to Pro Mach,” said Mark Anderson, Pro Mach president and CEO. “We share common values and commitment to being the best in our field. With this move, we’re able to offer a unique advantage to our customers as a global single-source provider of complete packaging solutions and integration services. The addition of Zarpac’s facility in China helps us better serve our customers across Asia with integration services and support, and continues to extend Pro Mach’s global support infrastructure with our recent facility additions in Mexico and Dubai.”

In addition to traditional equipment and controls engineering and integration, Zarpac is a leading innovator in line performance improvement, modeling, and testing. Zarpac’s proprietary manufacturing connectivity and diagnostics software has more than 10,000 installations across the globe and allows packaging and processing companies to automatically collect and analyze comprehensive performance data across all their facilities—locally or worldwide—to improve Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) and Total Cost of Ownership (TCO). Zarpac’s robotics services include sophisticated pretesting and modeling to ensure optimum cell design and performance before line build out and equipment investment.

Current Zarpac CEO Frank Roberts will join Pro Mach as senior vice president of the newly formed Pro Mach Integrated Solutions Group. Pro Mach will continue to invest in Zarpac’s team, products, services, and facilities to further advance its position as a leading engineering and integration services provider.

“Pro Mach and Zarpac have a strong history of partnership and working together to serve mutual customers,” said Roberts. “We bring together a great deal of experience and success in different aspects of packaging line creation, integration, and performance. Pro Mach’s leadership in customer service and manufacturing high-quality equipment solutions provides a great platform for continued innovation and growth of our engineering services. That said, we will continue to focus on bringing the best equipment together, regardless of OEM, to deliver the best value for our customers for both turnkey and engineered systems.”

Zarpac’s products and services include packaging line system design and build, performance diagnostics software, robotics testing and integration, mechanical and electrical engineering, project management, technical training, productivity support, and material handling solutions.

Pro Mach has grown rapidly into an integrated solutions leader by manufacturing complementary packaging and processing machinery and related solutions across the packaging line. It provides stand-alone machines and integrated systems for many of the world’s most recognized brands. Since 2010, Pro Mach’s installed base of machinery solutions has more than doubled and sales outside the United States have more than tripled. Total revenues this year are projected to exceed $600 million. Pro Mach expects the addition of professional engineering services to fuel further growth both in North America and abroad, particularly with companies looking for consistent packaging performance as they expand into new markets.

“Many of our customers are looking for a full service partner that will help them simplify line development, achieve optimum performance, reduce risks, simplify line control, and better manage costs throughout the design, build, and production lifecycle,” said Barry Heiser, Pro Mach president, global filler and integrated solutions. “We’ve taken a significant step in making that a reality for our customers, regardless of their size, location, or machine needs and investment.”

“Consumer packaged goods and pharmaceutical companies large and small are looking for competitive advantages that help them produce and package their products more efficiently with higher quality, less waste, increased profit, and better resolution of issues that impact performance,” added Heiser. “Whether a customer’s best solution is equipment-based, service-based or a combination of the two—regardless of machine needs and investment—we want Pro Mach to be their best option as a high-performance problem solver.”