UNIPAKHELLAS SA, a member of the INDEVCO Group, completed the acquisition of Greek paper and packaging manufacturer PAKO SA on 5 September 2018. The price was undisclosed, and PAKO will be integrated into INDEVCO Paper Containers.

Cosack Druck und Verpackung in Arnsberg, Germany, commissioned a BOBST Masterfold 75 folding carton gluing machine in December 2017 and a new BOBST VISIONCUT 106 cutting machine in 2018 to raise finishing capacity. The amounts were not disclosed.

Danaflex opened a flexible packaging factory at the Alabuga Special Economic Zone in Tatarstan on 6 September 2018. The total investment is planned at 3 billion roubles, and over 200 people are already employed there.

Graphic Packaging International agreed to acquire substantially all assets of the foodservice business of Letica Corporation, a subsidiary of RPC Group, for $95 million. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter of 2018, subject to regulatory review.

Canadian boxmaker Whitebird will install the EFI Nozomi C18000 single-pass corrugated inkjet press at its Hamilton, Ontario facility, scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2018. It is the first such system installed in Canada.

Fuzhen Group signed an agreement on September 3, 2018 to build a metal packaging and filling plant in Gedian Development Zone, Ezhou, Hubei, China. The project involves an investment of 1 billion yuan and will produce cans, lids, and beverage filling, with an annual capacity of 1.3 billion empty cans.

De Jong Packaging Holding completed its acquisition of Gaster Wellpappe, a German corrugated manufacturer with locations in Heidelberg and Augsburg. The deal extends DJV's production into Germany.

Solidus Solutions has acquired a majority interest in Northern Paper Board, a UK manufacturer of solid board boxes and corrugated octabin solutions for the food processing industry.

Dai Huu Joint Stock Company has commissioned its second packaging plant in the Quat Dong Industrial Cluster in Thuong Tin, Hanoi, with about 30,000 square meters of floor area. Total production capacity across its two factories rises to 145 million bags per year.

Property owner Lund Waterfront Packaging Districts and ÅR Carton agreed to extend the lease keeping ÅR Packaging's Å&R Carton and Flextrus in Källby, Lund, until at least 2027. The companies employ over 400 people there.

Orora Limited has acquired Dallas-based packaging distributor Bronco Packaging Corporation for up to USD 24 million as part of growth in its North American packaging business. Bronco generates over USD 50 million in revenue, mainly serving fresh food manufacturers in Texas.

Huhtamaki plans to expand its plant in Ivanteyevka, Russia, with an investment of RUB 3.2 billion. The expansion includes construction of two production buildings for food and egg packaging and a warehouse complex.

United Caps and Braskem have partnered to supply GREENER bio-sourced plastic caps and closures based on I'm green polyethylene made from sugarcane ethanol. The first two closures target dairy products and still drinks.

Exal, a premium aluminum packaging maker, chose Lighthouse Systems' Shopfloor-Online manufacturing execution system to be developed and implemented at its North American operations in Youngstown, Ohio.

Ecolean, a lightweight liquid food packaging producer, acquired a 30,000 square meter site in Landskrona, Sweden, for a new production facility worth US$29 million (25 million euros), expected to be running in 2020 with about 100 new jobs.

Italy-based Fenco Food Machinery partnered with AlliedFlex Technologies as its exclusive North American sales and marketing partner for flexible pouch packaging systems, including processing and post pasteurization.

Kyoto Seisakusho acquired PMI Cartoning in December 2017, and the two packaging equipment makers began operating as PMI KYOTO Packaging Systems in July 2018.

RPC sold its foodservice business, Letica Corporation, to US-based Graphic Packaging International for $95 million (£74 million).

Toyo Seikan decided to construct a new factory building for manufacturing flexible packaging containers within its Toyohashi Plant in Aichi Prefecture. The project costs 9 billion yen and is scheduled for completion in March 2020.

Kamsky Polymer Materials plans to build a plant in Tobolsk, Russia, to produce FFS film for SIBUR Holding. The investment is 1.1 billion rubles, with an annual capacity of 10,000 tonnes.

US packaging group Sonoco acquired the remaining 70% stake in Conitex from Texpack, giving it 100% of Conitex, the parent of Papertech in Tudela, Spain. The deal is valued at EUR 123 million and was notified to Spain's CNMC on 27 August 2018.

Carmel Frenkel, a subsidiary of Hadera Paper, is installing a complete EFI corrugated production system including a Nozomi C18000 inkjet press, Fiery NZ-1000 digital front end and workflow software. Installation at its Caesarea site is scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2018.

Flexible plastics firm STM Packaging has entered administration following declining business.

Carmel Frenkel, a subsidiary of Hadera Paper, bought an EFI Nozomi C18000 ultra-high-speed inkjet corrugated press and a complete EFI workflow ecosystem from Electronics for Imaging. Installation at its Caesarea site is scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2018.

Key Technology and Heat and Control entered into a strategic partnership to support customers in Australia, New Zealand and India with complementary processing and packaging equipment.

ProMach and its Brenton brand supplied a custom robotic case erecting and end-of-line packaging system for an unnamed major PET and HDPE plastic container manufacturer, which started up quickly after factory testing.

Wisconsin folding carton maker Wausau Container will install a fully automated six-color Koenig & Bauer Rapida 105 PRO sheetfed press this fall, its first from Koenig & Bauer and its first 41-inch sheetfed press.

Lorien Engineering Solutions is working with Britvic to install new state-of-the-art PET bottling production lines at Britvic's Leeds and Rugby manufacturing sites to optimize operational efficiencies and reduce environmental impact.

Grupo Plastilene acquired a VAREX II blown film extrusion machine from Windmöller & Hölscher, installed at its Novalene subsidiary near Bogotá, Colombia. The machine processes nine layers with a width of 2,600 mm for barrier and protective films.

The Packaging Greenhouse has been awarded a contract to supply measuring instruments to BillerudKorsnäs' new cartonboard machine at Gruvön mill in Grums, Sweden. The order will require additional hiring.

Coveris is investing £1 million to increase linerless labels manufacturing capacity at its Spalding, UK facility by over 20%. The project includes new coating systems and machine upgrades, expected to be completed by January 2019.

Schumacher Packaging is converting a former newsprint machine at its Myszków, Poland site into a containerboard mill, bringing start-up forward by 6-12 months, with 300,000 tpy of recycled containerboard capacity planned in two steps.

Ardagh Group opened a new can ends facility in Manaus, Brazil, with capacity to produce 12 million ends per day and more than 80 employees.

Lollicup USA has contracted for a Koenig & Bauer-Flexotecnica EVO XG press for its new 660,000-sq.-ft. production and manufacturing plant in Rockwall, Texas, currently under construction.

Atlas Converting Equipment signed a contract with Fujian Furong Technology Group to supply a 10.4 meter Atlas CW1040 primary slitter rewinder. The contract was announced on August 13, 2018.

CPC Packaging has invested in four top-of-the-range machines from Bobst, including three die-cutters. The order was announced on August 13, 2018.

Progroup AG held the ground-breaking for its third paper factory at Sandersdorf-Brehna near Bitterfeld, Saxony-Anhalt, on August 10, 2018. The EUR 375 million plant with 750,000 tonnes annual capacity will create 140 direct jobs and use a new Voith paper machine.

Oji Holdings will build a corrugated cardboard factory in Bekasi Regency, West Java, through its joint venture PT Oji Sinar Mas Packaging with Purinusa Ekapersada, with a total investment of 40 billion yen and output of 5,000 tons per month, opening January 2020.

Graham Partners has made a strategic investment in Nuconic Packaging, a portfolio company of Carlin Capital Partners. Nuconic is a supplier of rigid PET plastic packaging solutions to food processors, based in Vernon, CA.

Plastic product maker Transcendia has completed its acquisition of Precision Poly, a flexible packaging and blown film bag provider, from Spire Flexpack.

WestRock signed an agreement to acquire German leaflet and booklet supplier Schlüter Print Pharma Packaging, which will join its Multi Packaging Solutions business. The deal expands WestRock's pharma and European footprint.

Cooper Container II and Welch Packaging will invest in expanding their Henderson County operations, adding 100,000 square feet at the Lexington manufacturing facility. The project will create about 39 to 40 jobs over three years, with building completion expected in late 2018.

Arnold Packaging acquired World Class Packaging, a Baltimore packaging solutions provider with more than 200 regional customers, adding six employees. The deal expands its mid-Atlantic market share. It was announced on August 8, 2018.

ONCAP announced it has acquired Precision Global, a Greenville, South Carolina manufacturer of dispensing solutions with 18 facilities. ONCAP IV invested approximately $111 million, terms otherwise undisclosed.

Santo group s.r.o. awarded a contract to Albertina Packaging, spol. s r.o. for two automatic cartoning machines worth EUR 145,020. The award was granted on 2020-11-09.

Midwest Paper Group is investing $30 million and creating up to 321 jobs to restart and convert the former Appleton Coated mill in Combined Locks, Wisconsin, to produce packaging-grade paper.

D&W Fine Pack is investing over $8 million to modernize its straw, cutlery and kitting operations at its 650,000-square-foot plant in Fountain Inn, South Carolina, adding three new injection molding machines and hiring automation engineers.

Berry Global Group acquired Laddawn Inc. in August 2018, adding five manufacturing plants and boosting film sales capabilities.

Australian packaging company Amcor is reportedly in advanced talks to acquire U.S. rival Bemis, which had a market value of about $4.20 billion; a deal could be announced as soon as the following week.

Green Bay Packaging Inc. acquired Grand Traverse Container, Inc., a packaging company based in Traverse City, Michigan, with an operation in Grand Rapids. The acquisition was effective 2018-07-27 and announced on 2018-08-01.