Theegarten-Pactec to showcase high-speed packaging at ProSweets Cologne

At the ProSweets trade fair in Cologne in 2025, Theegarten-Pactec will be showcasing its packaging solutions for the confectionery and snack industry. At a joint stand with its partners MAKREV and Sweet Connect, the company from Dresden will be presenting its high-speed CHS machine as a highlight. At the trade fair, it will be wrapping an impressive 1,600 products per minute in envelope fold and demonstrating how its modular design opens up exceptionally flexible application options.

ProSweets, a key trade fair for international suppliers and decision-makers in the confectionery and snack industry, will once again be taking place in Cologne in 2025. From 2 to 5 February, the industry will come together at this leading event. The focus will be on innovative confectionery and snack packaging, the latest packaging technologies, as well as essential raw materials and process technologies for production. As a leading manufacturer of packaging machines for small-piece confectionery, Theegarten-Pactec will of course be there to present its innovative, customised solutions for the industry. The company will be sharing a stand with its partners MAKREV and Sweet Connect where it will be showcasing the CHS high-speed machine as a trade fair highlight.

CHS – for maximum flexibility and speed

The CHS from Theegarten-Pactec was first presented to the public at the interpack 2023 show and has since become the company’s flagship. The machine, developed for the gentle packaging of chocolate products, also stands out with its outstanding flexibility. On the one hand, it enables quick changeovers between different folding types. And on the other, it simplifies quick changes between different product formats. This enables greater flexibility when dealing with frequently changing, seasonal products, such as the production of Christmas or Easter items. Long and costly changeover times are now a thing of the past.

Thanks to the option of retrofitting different packaging types on the CHS with ease and flexibility, customers also benefit from greater investment security. Instead of having to invest in new machines when the sales of a product are declining, the CHS can be easily adapted to another product with new formats or a different folding method.

The machine is also extremely versatile in another important respect: The CHS supports a range of different product feed options. Users can select between single- or dual-lane belt feed or robot-assisted chain feed. The dual-lane feed in particular enables an extremely high packaging speed, for example, when processing envelope-folded products at up to 1,600 products per minute. The two-lane feeder halves the feed speed and enables exceptionally gentle processing of delicate products such as chocolates or jelly. The downstream product delivery can also be selected for sorted single- or dual-lane delivery.

1,600 chocolate products per minute – packaged sustainably

At the upcoming trade fair, the highly effective packaging process of the high-performance CHS machine on display will be demonstrated using small chocolate products (Neapolitans) being wrapped in envelope fold and a two-lane feed – showcasing the impressive speed of 1,600 products per minute. Furthermore, Theegarten-Pactec will demonstrate how an effective connection to a secondary packaging machine can be achieved with a two-lane discharge of 800 pieces each. This allows customers to use existing secondary packaging lines in their machine fleet – eliminating the need to make a new investment.

As an innovation driver, Theegarten-Pactec never loses sight of megatrends such as sustainable packaging, which is designed to either reduce the use of plastic or to be fully recyclable. The company’s high-speed machines are also being further developed with a view to using environmentally friendly materials without compromising on efficiency. At ProSweets, Theegarten-Pactec will be demonstrating the packaging process on the CHS using metallised paper as packaging material for the Neapolitans, which can be recycled in the paper waste stream. This clearly shows how easily the machine can be adapted to more sustainable packaging materials.

Outlook: Even more versatile in 2025 thanks to new types of folds

Since its introduction at interpack 18 months ago, Theegarten-Pactec has undertaken numerous optimisations to the CHS. The result is expected to enter the market sometime in 2025. Among other things, the German innovation drivers have invested in expanding the types of possible folds, thereby making the CHS even more versatile. The new development should enable top twist, side twist, Vienna-Fruit-Fold, as well as the foiling of products such as chocolate eggs or balls, and the so-called fancy fold for products with a flat bottom. Demand for the CHS is already high, with 14 machines now successfully in use in the market.

Combined partner power at ProSweets

Even customers who do not require a high-performance machine due to lower production volumes will find the right solution for them at the Theegarten-Pactec stand. For example, the consultants from partner MAKREV will be on hand to assist in the search for highly flexible packaging machines for chocolate, hard candy and jelly products in the medium output range: The MAKREV intermittent motion machines can handle many different packaging types, enable quick format changes as well as changes in packaging type, which reduces set-up times and effectively saves costs. In September 2022, Theegarten-Pactec acquired shares in the Turkish company, ideally complementing its product portfolio.

As at last year’s event, visitors to the exhibition stand can also find out more about the Sweet Connect digitalisation platform. Consultants will be on site at the stand to provide information about this platform, which was specially developed for the confectionery industry. It combines the many resources of the partners and offers customers the opportunity to map their entire production digitally. Theegarten-Pactec founded Sweet Connect together with its partners Sollich, Chocotech and Winkler + Dünnebier. Since 29 October, another company has come on board as well – the renowned Danish confectionery machine manufacturer Aasted.

Further information on products from partner MAKREV and the Sweet Connect network can be found at www.makrev.com and www.sweetconnect.io or, of course, directly at the ProSweets trade fair stand (Hall 10.1 | Stand F011).