Executive Summary
Consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies face a major challenge: acquiring new processing or packaging equipment often involves lead times of 6–12 months. This delay can severely impact their ability to respond to market demands, launch new products, or maintain production schedules. To address this issue, nVenia, a leading manufacturer of secondary and end-of-line packaging solutions, and Frain Industries have partnered to offer an innovative approach that dramatically reduces lead times and increases flexibility.
Industry Challenge
OEM lead times for new equipment can stretch beyond the date the equipment is needed, creating bottlenecks for CPG companies. These delays hinder product launches, seasonal campaigns, and the ability to scale quickly. For example, a snack brand planning a summer launch may find its timeline derailed because equipment delivery takes eight months.
The Partnership Solution
nVenia, owner of the Arpac Brand, manufactures high-performance secondary and end-of-line packaging equipment such as shrink wrappers and palletizers. Their solutions help customers improve efficiency and reduce downtime. Frain Industries complement this by purchasing equipment from OEMs like nVenia and maintaining an extensive inventory of over 9,000 pieces of processing and packaging equipment. This inventory enables Frain to provide equipment to customers within days or weeks, rather than months.
Through this partnership, CPG companies gain access to nVenia’s advanced equipment via Frain’s flexible rental model. This approach supports short-term projects, pilot runs, and emergency replacements without requiring large upfront capital investments.
How It Works
- The CPG company identifies an equipment need, such as a wrapper for a new product line.
- nVenia refers the customer to Frain, which matches the requirement from its inventory.
- Frain configures the equipment for the customer’s project, ensuring it arrives ready for immediate use.
- The customer rents the equipment for the required duration, avoiding long OEM lead times.
- Frain buys a new piece of equipment from the OEM to backfill the equipment rented by the customer or the customer orders the new equipment from the OEM and uses the rented equipment from Frain until it arrives.
Real-World Example
A taco shell manufacturer wanted to test nVenia’s shrink overwrapper but could not commit capital before validating the new product line. nVenia referred the customer to Frain, which provided a short-term rental of the shrink overwrapper from its inventory. Frain customized the setup so the equipment was virtually plug-and-play upon arrival. As a result, the customer began production months earlier than if they had waited for OEM delivery. The successful test led to a purchase of a new nVenia shrink overwrapper for long-term use. “Using Frain’s bridge solutions for nVenia equipment has allowed our customers to test products or continue manufacturing while they wait for their new nVenia equipment. Frain and nVenia keep lines running.”, said Paul Kincaid, Midwest Regional Sales Manager for nVenia.
“Using Frain’s bridge solutions for nVenia equipment has allowed our customers to test products or continue manufacturing while they wait for their new nVenia equipment. Frain and nVenia keep lines running.”
Results and Benefits
- Lead time reduced to as little as 2–3 weeks.
- Increased agility for seasonal campaigns and new product launches.
- Lower upfront costs through rental options.
- Seamless integration and setup support from Frain.
Future Outlook
Frain continues to strengthen its OEM partnerships, including nVenia, to deliver turnkey solutions. To support this model, Frain is launching a new 200,000-square-foot state-of-the-art showroom where OEMs can showcase cutting-edge machinery. This immersive space will highlight plug-and-play packaging and processing solutions, positioning Frain and its partners at the forefront of industry innovation. “Because Frain keeps inventory from top OEMs in stock, we are uniquely positioned to provide new equipment to CPGs that need equipment fast, said Tami Frain, President of Strategic Accounts for Frain Industries.
