The international metal packaging industry has crowned its new champions. On the second day of Metpack 2026, the world’s leading trade fair for the sector, the prestigious METPACK Innovation Awards were presented at the “Talk in a Can” forum in Hall 2.

The 2026 jury awarded the top honours to MW LAK Solutions Srl (Gold), Koenig & Bauer MetalPrint GmbH (Silver), and Sun Chemical Group GmbH (Bronze). These accolades recognise technical breakthroughs that set new benchmarks for efficiency, sustainability, and precision in metal decoration and manufacturing.

A Global Competition of Excellence

The 2026 awards saw a highly competitive field, featuring 26 entries from 22 exhibitors representing 10 nations: China, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

A panel of international experts evaluated each submission based on degree of innovation, sustainability impact, cost reduction, and quality improvement.

“The decision was anything but easy this year,” said Gianluca Ciccolini, Chairman of the Jury. “It was a neck-and-neck race. The winning solutions are outstanding examples of the technical excellence and innovative strength that define our industry today.”

The Winners’ Circle

Gold: MW LAK Solutions Srl

• Innovation: UV-LED External White Basecoat
• The Impact: This system replaces traditional heat-dried coatings with a UV-LED-curable alternative. By utilising a high-solids formula that cures instantly under LED radiation, the technology drastically slashes VOC emissions, energy consumption, and the overall carbon footprint. It further minimizes plant floor space, maintenance requirements, and film weight, offering a leaner, greener coating process.

Silver: Koenig & Bauer MetalPrint GmbH

• Innovation: Closed-Loop Inline Coating Thickness Control
• The Impact: Marking the first fully automatic inline control for metal sheet coating, this system measures layer thickness in real-time. It automatically adjusts the coating gap to correct deviations, maintaining a stable target weight throughout production. The result is a significant reduction in waste and manual intervention, while speeding up make-ready times for both new and existing MetalCoat installations.

Bronze: Sun Chemical Group GmbH

• Innovation: AI-Powered Color Matching & Direct-to-Can Digital Proofing
• The Impact: Developed in partnership with CMA Imaging, this solution uses AI to replace subjective color evaluation with a serialized, objective color target. By creating a shared, measurable reference for brands and suppliers, the “first-time-right” approach eliminates multiple proofing rounds, reduces ink waste, and accelerates the approval process.