A Half-Century Legacy of Packaging Machinery Built on Relentless R&D

Established in 1967... Self-developed 'Rotary Automatic Packaging Machine'
Overseas Market Expansion Since the 1990s... Achieved $20 Million Export Last Year
Top Priority in Development is 'Durability'

Assembly site of Rifac's automatic packaging machine

Refac, an automatic packaging machine company located on Gajaeul-ro in Seo-gu, Incheon, is bustling with about 80 workers assembling various types of automatic packaging machines at its production site, which houses both a factory and a research center. The automatic packaging machines made here are responsible for the final step in many food manufacturing processes commonly encountered in supermarkets. It is possible that the dumplings in your home freezer were packaged using Refac’s machines before reaching the market. Refac has dedicated over half a century to developing this packaging technology, which is closely intertwined with our daily lives. We visited Refac, a company that embodies the history of packaging equipment technology in Korea.

On the 27th, CEO Sang-geon Lee of Refac said, "The core reason Refac has maintained competitiveness for over 50 years in the packaging machine industry, which has relatively low entry barriers, is that we develop new technologies every year to improve products and increase efficiency." He explained that the continuous and relentless R&D efforts over a long period have been the driving force behind Refac’s position as a leading company in the packaging solutions field today.

◆ 50 Years of Packaging Equipment R&D = Refac was founded in 1967 by CEO Lee’s grandfather under the name ‘Korea Electronics Industry.’ Since then, the company has focused solely on R&D related to packaging equipment. Starting from vinyl sealing machines, they progressed to vacuum packaging machines and powder fillers, eventually developing their current main product, the ‘rotary automatic packaging machine,’ in-house.

The rotary automatic packaging machine rotates while automatically placing products into pouches. It is mainly used in food factories producing items like kimchi and dumplings. While there is a base model, about 20-30% of the machine is customized according to customer requirements. CEO Lee stated, "We produce 300 rotary automatic packaging machines annually," and added, "When it comes to rotary automatic packaging machines, we rank among the top three in the world."

Refac’s ability to compete on the global stage stems from its efforts to explore overseas markets since the 1990s. Last year, the company achieved $20 million in exports. When CEO Lee joined in 2009, annual sales were around 15 billion KRW, and now they have grown to about 50 billion KRW, with exports playing a significant role. Domestic and export sales each account for about half of total revenue. CEO Lee said, "We have been supplying the U.S. market for over 25 years, and currently, 20% of our sales come from the U.S. We also export to Europe, Taiwan, India, and Thailand."

Representative Lee Sang-geon of Repack

◆ New Technology Challenges Amid Trial and Error = Refac is not satisfied with this and continues to invest heavily in R&D. Currently, about 30 people work in the research center developing new packaging machine technologies. Recently, with support from the Korea Industrial Complex Corporation, they collaborated on developing automation technology. CEO Lee explained, "One part of the automatic packaging machine that still requires human hands is loading empty pouches. We worked together on a project to load more pouches and create error-free equipment." He added, "The technology development is complete, and we are testing its application on existing products." Since this technology is directly linked to efficient production, once products with this technology go into mass production, demand is expected to be high across various industries producing pouch finished products.

The 50 years of R&D were not without challenges. The company faced numerous trials and errors. Efficiently handling soft pouches has always been a challenge. Differences in workplace temperature caused difficulties during test runs. CEO Lee said, "Food products are not made with the same recipe every time, and the market itself changes rapidly. Sometimes, newly launched products faced unexpected issues on-site."

Despite difficulties, Refac’s development goal has remained clear: durability. CEO Lee stated, "We aim to make machines durable enough not to break down within 10 years." He added that some machines delivered 30 years ago are still operating in food factories.

The goal for next year is also focused on ‘development.’ The development of a spout pouch packaging machine, which can attach caps to pouches, has been completed, and the company plans to enter new markets. CEO Lee emphasized, "There are limits to growth with rotary packaging machines alone, so we are expanding our product range."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.