In a landmark move for continental manufacturing, Automate UK has officially joined forces with five leading European trade bodies to establish EUROPAMA (the Processing & Packaging EU Federation).

Unveiled at the Interpack 2026 exhibition in Düsseldorf, this new cross-border alliance forms a European umbrella organisation dedicated to unified policy advocacy, technological collaboration, and joint market strategy.

Automate UK stands as a founding member alongside heavy hitters VDMA (Germany), UCIMA (Italy), Evolis (France), AMEC (Spain), and Swissmem (Switzerland). The significance of this coalition cannot be understated: Europe currently accounts for two-thirds of all processing and packaging machinery manufactured globally. By establishing a centralised lobbying and operational architecture, the bloc aims to secure its dominance amid hyper-competitive pressures from Asian and North American markets.

Legislative impact: confronting PPWR and the AI era

The formation of EUROPAMA arrives at an incredibly volatile regulatory juncture. The processing and packaging machinery sector is facing sweeping, mandatory updates to the EU’s Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR), alongside a flurry of brand-new artificial intelligence and automation safety protocols.

Rather than allowing individual trade bodies to interpret these compliance waves in isolation, EUROPAMA is designed to act as a primary regulatory filter. The federation will translate incoming environmental and technical mandates into actionable frameworks, ensuring that members can rapidly upgrade line efficiencies and transition to sustainable materials without suffering major drops in productivity.

Protecting British export channels post-Brexit

For British engineering firms, the alliance provides a crucial geopolitical lifeline. Despite the UK’s formal exit from the European Union, domestic automation and packaging manufacturers remain heavily integrated into European supply chains and export channels.

Dan Thombs, chief executive officer at Automate UK, highlighted the strategic necessity of the new body: “The creation of EUROPAMA marks a significant milestone in strengthening ties between British and European manufacturing innovation communities… Post-Brexit, it is vital that UK automation and packaging machinery businesses retain influence over regulations that affect European supply chains and exports, and it is our intention that in collaborating with our partners within Europama, our members will have a place in the discussions despite the UK no longer being an EU member.”

Scott McKenna, chief operating officer at Automate UK, reinforced this evolution, noting that the association is successfully cementing its position as a “policy and productivity body” capable of offering members unparalleled insight, regulatory guidance, and global market access.

A blueprint for borderless industrial policy

From an industry pulse perspective, EUROPAMA is a masterclass in pragmatic, borderless industrial strategy. Technical integration and supply chain interdependencies do not stop for political boundaries.

By anchoring itself to Europe’s core manufacturing network, Automate UK ensures that British engineering firms won’t just be passive rule-takers downstream. Instead, they retain an active hand in designing the high-tech, highly automated future of global manufacturing.

Find out more at https://europama.eu/en/home/