PACK EXPO 2026: What to Know Before You Go (with the Manufacturing Millennial & Meaghan Ziemba)

See more innovation in packaging and processing [music] than anywhere else at Pack Expo International. It's the show that defines where the industry is headed with the solutions that establish where your business can go. Discover state-of-the-art packaging technology, processing equipment, new materials, sustainable solutions, supply chain resources, and much, much more. You'll walk away with innovative [music] solutions to challenges big and small. Register at packexpointernational.com. >> [music] >> You're listening to Unpacked with PMMI where we share the latest packaging [music] and processing industry insights, research, and innovations to help you advance your business. >> Hi and welcome to Unpacked with PMMI. I'm your host, Shawn Riley. In this episode, we welcome influencers, The Manufacturing Millennial, Jake Hall, and the host of the Mavens of Manufacturing, Megan Zimba, to discuss what's new on the show floor this year, including smarter robots, better connected software, and the biggest workforce challenges in manufacturing. They also share helpful tips to get the most from the show and explain why meeting people in person is still so very valuable. Let's have a listen. So, with all the fancy introductions out of the way, welcome to the podcast, Megan. >> Hi. >> And welcome to the podcast, Jake. >> Thank you. Thank you. Great to be back. >> Oh, the pleasure is all ours. You've both been on before, so like you said, it's a pleasure to have you both at the exact same time. So, I guess I'll kick things off with you, Jake. We were talking before we got on the air about how many trade shows and how many events you go to in a year. What automation or robotics trends are you seeing right now that you're expecting to dominate the Pack Expo show floor? >> Yeah, so there's different levels, I would say, right? There there is the the readily available, easy to deploy solutions, right? So, we're going to see a lot of go-to-market palletizing and collaborative robot solutions, right? I think that was the big thing that we saw at previous Pack Expos. That's what I saw earlier this year at Pack Expo East was companies who want to be able to go out and have a pre-designed kitted palletizing robot solution that can be a plugged in and regardless of you're in food and packaging or CPG or electronics, whatever industry you're in, you have a nice palletizing solution. What we're really seeing grow with that is the ease of deployment and the software side. For a long time, robotics, I would say, has been pretty stagnant on the mechanical side for the last three, four, five years, right? The payloads have been reached, the speeds have been reached in a lot of areas. It's okay, how easy is it to be able to do fast product changeover time on a line where if you're going from a SKU to a different SKU, how hard is it for an operator to change that process? And what we're seeing is through software, it's a lot easier to be able to do end-of-line palletizing and material handling. And a lot of that is, I would say, because of AI, right? It's one of those things where instead of going out there and doing discrete programming processes where, okay, I have to build a certain layer and then I'm going to shift it up on the Z axis and then build another layer and then shift it up. There's a lot more smart building behind it, simulation behind it, automated path programming behind it. That's one thing. And then the other thing I think from the robotics side as well is you are going to see a little bit more on the physical AI side of things. And while packaging, I would say, is a pretty known process ahead of time in terms of the the product that you're handling, the material that you're putting in the box, there is going to be more AI in the works of robotics either from a machine vision from a picking perspective, right? You have a lot of raw product coming down a conveyor line. And those have to be singulated, put into a stack, and then put into a display shelf container or a box. AI from a robotics side is making it easier to really push productivity, making those robots that you're putting in line more productive across the board, and at the end of the day more efficient to the customer. >> Interesting. And would you earmark or highlight that that AI element or that element of software as something that you know, for someone who isn't an engineer, is that something kind of the technology shift that's happening right now that they should actually wrap their heads around and sort of start to understand? >> Yeah, a great thing that we're seeing from a software side is two things. One is the risk that's behind a automated system. It doesn't have to be just robots, right? But the the shift behind our automated system is we're reducing risk from the end user because they have to know less, I would say, in terms of being able to successfully deploy a system. The systems are smarter where they're designed to build in flexibility on their own. Time to market, I think is another big thing. When you can go out there and you can deploy a system like an end-of-line palletizing system that before would take three or four weeks, and now you can do it in two or three days, now all of a sudden we're seeing a much better justification when it comes to ROI and deployment from that side. But then as well is I would say accessibility to market. A lot of times you would have the really large CPG companies that can afford hiring a fully custom integration solution to go out and deploy a end-of-line process. Now companies can go out there and not need the full-blown system integration company and be able to go out and say, "Okay, we have a an intern in-house or a kid that just graduated from high school who did First Robotics, and they understand the basic level of programming, and they can champion that project to success without the needed experience that was needed 10 years ago when it came to robotic deployment. >> Interesting. Okay. Speaking of that workforce element, Megan, I want to kind of turn towards you. We hear about it constantly, the workforce issues and the upskilling that's necessary. Is there something you think the industry isn't talking about loudly enough right now or isn't really taking into consideration when they're discussing workforce? >> Yeah, so I agree. I think we spend a lot of time talking about the workforce shortage as though the problem is simply that people just aren't interested in manufacturing and I just don't think that's the case. So, if you take a look at the research that Deloitte and the Manufacturing Institute had done, we have 3.8 million workers by 2033 and as many as 1.9 million jobs might go unfilled. So, I think what we need to dig into is why it's not only that we can't get people in, but also why can't we keep them? Because there are a lot of top executives who have said some of the main reasons for their people leaving is because they're leaving for higher pay opportunities. So, what is it that we're missing when they come into the industry and I think that goes around what type of training are we providing them? How are we connecting them to better opportunities? How are we moving them up the ladder? How are we connecting them to a sense of purpose? What is the culture like? Are you really following the values that you're plastering all over your wall? Are you giving them an opportunity to use their own voice and bring their own ideas to the table? So, I think we need to talk about more what happens after we get someone interested in manufacturing and through the door, what are we doing to actually retain them once they get through the door and start working in your facilities. >> Beautiful. I love that. We do a lot of things at Pack Expo for the generation that's coming in as well as the generation that's that the workforce that's already there. Hopefully trying to do some of the things that you mentioned. So, that's aligning up to what we're talking about there. But I guess to pivot a little bit, you've attended the shows, you've been an attendee of Pack Expo. I guess I'm just curious what you think has changed the most about who it is that's walking the floor at Pack Expo, who the talent is, what levels of experience, the acumen, stuff like that. What have you seen that's different? >> Yeah, so I think it's a much broader audience. So, you're not only getting like the traditional people who are the engineers who work on the equipment or actually designing the equipment, but you're also getting younger professionals who might be interested in what sort of opportunities are available in packaging and procurement. You're getting students walking through the doors, you're getting women, you're getting content creators like myself and Jake. You're also getting people from different parts of the organization. So, it's not just one department over the other. It's basically everyone that's involved in the complete organization. And I think you guys as an association are attracting that as well because you had your young professionals networking reception that I heard was a big hit back at Pack Expo East. And then you also have your emerging leaders network alongside the packaging and processing women's leadership network, which I always get excited about. So, it's not like these are side conversations that you're having. You're actually designing them as part of the show. So, they're not just side conversations like side conferences. You're designing it to be part of the bigger conversation that you want people to start having at the show. And I think that changes from conversations just around the equipment and the processing and the operations. You're also talking about what does this mean for labor, training, data, maintenance, sustainability, cybersecurity, and the people who will actually have to work within your facility handling all those processes and operations. So, I think that diversity of perspective really makes the floor way more interesting and it just makes the conversations all that much more fun. >> Yeah, absolutely. Is that something you think you've seen as well, Jake, where the the floor is more diverse whether it's by age, by demographic? >> Yeah, and as well, I think it's what people are looking at on the floor is for a much broader aspect of the entire packaging and manufacturing process in the industry. As as the the process within packaging has switched not just from the physical process of handling goods, it's also the software side as well. And the one thing I will say going and looking at and going to Pack Expo now, I think for the last 16 years for me, the one one of the things that I see is a big transformation not just from the equipment side but from the software side as well. The manufacturers and companies can date today can no longer ignore the fact of how critical an entire connected operational system is on the floor. From your production to a SCADA, to an MES, to your CMMS, to your software that's running your maintenance side, to the MES that's running your entire production, the ERP. It's all those things where everything is completely connected now. And what we see now walking through Pack Expo is companies are showcasing solutions that are providing everything from the raw good of being processed to its packaging, to its shipping, to its outbound, all the way then from arriving to a customer going into a warehouse or logistics center, to a 3PL that's ending up at the door finally. The entire ecosystem is now no longer separated or isolated where you would have people going to a different trade show to see something from the back end or from the software side, everything is now completely together for from that from the connected workforce to connected equipment and machinery that's giving full visibility of operations. That's all happening at the same place. So for me with the I see what I'm talking to when I'm going out there and I'm talking to people I'm seeing people is you have just as much people handling the IT side and the data side of in the front office of the packaging space as you do in the the floor space from the OT side. And I think that's what's really exciting to see is everything's now very much connected and when people are walking the floor, they want to see that from the areas. It's one of those things that I've noticed a lot when I'm traveling and going to to shows that I'm noticing of okay, there's a lot of there's a lot of um manufacturers who have a barcode on the side of the equipment they're showcasing now and saying, "Hey, this is you're going to scan this barcode and this is a tool that's going to either go to an AI chatbot that we built a model off of that companies can that operators can have a conversation on how to fix a fault to giving maintenance people a a tool to run predictive maintenance on to a better system that's designed around being able to connect to ignition or some sort of SCADA MES platform where when companies deploy this system, it's no longer it's not a a siloed operation from the beginning. It's part of the much larger ecosystem. And so I think what we're seeing from a change in the people walking the floor is going back to it's much broader in terms of the full package and ecosystem that we're seeing in the packaging and manufacturing space. >> What's important to note too is when we initially started having these conversations around artificial intelligence, a lot of it was just reporting. So here's all this data. I think now with all these connections and the data not being on what were they called, data islands or silo islands islands is a few terms that I've heard. They're actually providing people a a place to actually response to those reports. So, it's not just giving information for information's sake. They actually have enough data to do an action based off of what they're seeing on their dashboards. >> From both your standpoints, I'll put this out there for both of you. For that when you're at the show itself, what's a habit you've picked up that makes your time more valuable that you've learned keeps you from being someone that's just showing up and trying to wander and see 2,600 exhibitors. What's a trick of the trade that you've picked up? >> I had to get in the habit of actually doing research on the trends that matter to me. So, I think before you go to any show, you should probably ask yourself what sort of challenges are you facing, what sort of bottlenecks are you facing, and then do your research on what companies could potentially be a solution for the problem that you're having. So, definitely look at the website, do your research, wear comfortable shoes. I'm a big fan of bringing your own bottle of water so that you refill it, keep hydrated. >> Yeah, for me the biggest thing I go right away is looking at the show floor plan on the website, registering and getting connected to that, and then going on and adding to planner all the places I want to go and see. And that goes right to my app, and then on my phone on my app, you can download the the the PAX Expo app, and then when I'm going through, right, we're in Chicago this year, I want to be as efficient as possible going through all those halls. I right I don't want to be going north and then back to south and then back to north and then here for meetings and stuff like that. If I'm going to south, I want to stay in south as long as possible just because it right it is a 10-15 minute walk if you're in the far corner of the south hall and you need to go up to Lakeside or something like that. So, for me getting the app, going out there, finding what companies you want to see, and what solutions you have are a big thing as well. The other big thing that I look at, too is what are my plans after the show. Pack Expo is great because it brings people together to see a lot of stuff. But then the dinners, the conversations that you get to have, the networking that you get to have then throughout the entire week is just as a critical because that's where a lot of business transactions happen. That's where a lot of good conversations happen outside of the booth. So, for me it's okay, what are your plans then? Right, find out where you want to be because once you're there, things happen so fast and so quickly. >> That's a big thing. >> I love that. You guys hit a bunch of things that I can see first-timers mistakes that they would make not having the My Show Planner, not taking advantage of the app which I see people that I have to remind of at the show. Give me a case on why they should be there. Like a reason why they need to be at Pack Expo International. >> As Jake mentioned before, it's in the McCormick Center which is well a million square feet of flooring and then how many professionals do you have? Over 48,000, 25, 2600 exhibitors. That alone should be inspiration up for you to attend because I don't care what people do. You can be one of those YouTube scrollers or do as much research as you want to do and attend all the webinars and look at all the printed PDF content, brochures, and specs and that. It's It does not compare to face-to-face communication and one-on-one conversations and this is all of the people in the same industry in one place at the same time. A question that you might have been harping on for the last 6 months on something that was really hanging your lineup, you can go and have a conversation at one booth and then 50 ft down the aisle have another completely different conversation on something you didn't even think of. So, I think just having that live, real-time, in-person experience is really beneficial to everyone. Even for smaller manufacturers who might not have the budget to invest in some of these technologies or have been hesitant to invest in some of these technologies because they really don't know a lot about it. So, this gives them an opportunity to speak to the expertise, get their questions answered, and then maybe have a better pitch to their CFO or whoever's in charge that's going to approve that major investment for them. >> Yeah, and I I think I always try to harp on because I speak in the first-timers lounge for first-timers before the show is how willing everybody at the show is to talk about the industry. How willing, like you just said, if you're a first-timer or a smaller business, and maybe it isn't the right booth for you, they're probably going to help you or put you in the right direction. It's not a It's a very proud industry that likes to share their knowledge about what's out there, and I think that's something that that we can't harp on enough is something that you experience at Pack Expo. >> Yeah, the first time I went, I was very welcomed into the space, and I was recently at a food manufacturing event. They're like, "Oh, once you're in, you're not out." I'm like, "I'm not even an engineer or manufacturer." It's the same feeling that I have in the packaging space, so it's a lot of fun. >> Glad to hear that. Jake, what's one thing you would hope that people would walk away from this year's show with? What besides closing a deal or something like that? But is it the technology that you talked about? What's one thing that you can think of that that should really stick with them when they leave? >> I I think for me, it's people need to understand how fast the industry moves from a solutions perspective. Okay. And I know we hear AI, it's just a buzzword in a lot of cases, but we are really seeing some incredible leaps forward when it comes to what software and new automation and what AI can provide in terms of productivity on the production floor. If I were to want people to walk away with something, it would be understanding that they can't go to an event and think that nothing's going to change for another 5 years. It is critical with how fast this industry is moving to be asking questions to understand where the constraints and where that I guess you could say where that current wall is at each year in terms of capability and how that wall is getting pushed every year after that. And then I think the big thing as well is meeting new people in the industry. I'm I'm the biggest advocate for having conversations, for networking, for meeting more people and what they're doing this space. And here's the thing, even if you are an introverted person, there's plenty of discussions and panels that I think that you can go and watch. Like Meg, you can go and watch and learn and connect with people and approach them afterwards and then send them that LinkedIn connection request and say, "Hey, I really enjoyed your session. This was really good. Maybe we can connect on the road to go over a few things from that side." My perspective is understand the technology is constantly moving and then continuously need to build your network and meet new people, right? People go to these events, connect with them, have conversations. You never know where that's going to take you down the road. >> Beautiful. Megan, would you agree? What things do you think should be the most important thing that a person would walk away from the show? >> Yeah, so I feel like that food critic from Ratatouille give me some perspective. I really just want people who attend that show to get perspective. What makes >> Okay. >> the most sense for your operation? What sort of conversations should you be having? Who should you be connecting to? Again, these shows are around not just for the selling point of things. They're there to let people learn about what's happening in the industry and to learn where it's going. But I think too with the student stuff that you guys are doing, it's a great opportunity to for students to learn about what's actually available in engineering and manufacturing because when I was in high school and even when I was in college, I didn't know what opportunities were available in packaging. I had no idea it was even a thing. So, I think it's a great opportunity for kids to show up, learn about what opportunities and career pathways are available to them. Hopefully, parents will show up or teachers will show up and teachers can get a better link to the industry so that they can take what they learned back to their schools and link their curriculum to what's actually happening in real time at the industry. And just have fun. Have fun. Enjoy Chicago like Jake said, there's a lot of good food places there. I know he said deep dish pizza, but there is a pizza pot pie place that's by the bean area and they do a pizza pot pie that's really awesome. So. >> [laughter] >> I love that. That's a good tip to leave on. I want to thank you both. I want to thank you Megan. I want to thank you Jake for carving some time out during a busy season to come on here, talk to us about the trade show, talk to us about Pack Expo. >> Thanks for having >> Thanks for having us. >> [music] >> Thanks for listening to this episode of Unpacked with PMMI. If you liked what you heard, be sure to follow or subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen. That way, you won't miss [music] any of the industry insights coming your way. While you're there, we'd really appreciate a rating [music] or review. Want more? Visit pmmi.org/podcasts for all of our past [music] episodes and additional resources. Thanks again for tuning in. I'll see you next time.