Polytype SA

Polytype SA is a Swiss industrial company based in Fribourg that designs and manufactures machines for the direct decoration of packaging. Founded in 1962 as an indirect offshoot of WIFAG, a Bern-based newspaper printing machine specialist, Polytype has spent more than six decades developing printing and finishing technologies for cylindrical and conical containers. Its equipment decorates plastic tubes, cups, jars, lids, bottles, beverage cans, closures and other packaging formats, serving the cosmetics and personal care, food and beverage, pharmaceutical, household and industrial markets. The company's portfolio spans conventional processes such as dry offset, dry and prime offset, flexography, screen printing, varnishing and hot stamping, as well as industrial digital inkjet printing. Polytype also builds tube making and finishing systems, including shoulderless finishing and transfer solutions, and supplies automation and industrial software that support its machines. Its service organization covers training, preventive maintenance, live online troubleshooting, spare parts and upgrades, with the stated aim of keeping customer machinery running with minimum downtime. Polytype is part of WIFAG-Polytype Holding AG and markets its equipment internationally. It maintains commercial and support operations in Switzerland, the United States and Thailand, and its American entity, Polytype America Corp, extends the group's reach into the Americas. The company is a member of Swissmem, the Swiss association of the mechanical and electrical engineering industries, and collaborates with universities and industrial partners on research and development in printing, automation and manufacturing technologies. In 2024, Julien Bianchi was appointed chief executive officer. Polytype positions itself as a Swiss expert in packaging decoration, combining long-standing precision-engineering expertise with newer digital printing capabilities. Its machines are sold worldwide, and the company exhibits at international trade fairs such as Plastimagen, IPI and IPF, as well as hosting regional open-house events.

Polytype's history mirrors the development of the Swiss precision industry. It emerged as an indirect offshoot of WIFAG, a Bern-based company specializing in newspaper printing machines, and was shaped by the political, economic and social changes that brought a new industrial workforce to Fribourg in the 1950s and 1960s. The company was officially founded in 1962, the same year it marketed its first tube printing machine using its historic dry offset printing technology. The following year, Polytype strengthened its industrial position with the launch of an innovative cup printing machine. Over the following decades, Polytype broadened its technological portfolio and developed equipment for decorating different types of plastic and metal containers. In 1990, it made a decisive move into the Americas by acquiring American Production Machinery, establishing a foothold in the United States and opening the door to Latin America. That entity, now known as Polytype America Corp, continues to reinforce the group's controlled international reach. In 1995, Polytype acquired the German company Mall + Herlan, adding know-how in metal packaging and creating new synergies with its historic Fribourg site, which supplies its German partner with certain components. From the 2010s onward, Polytype invested in industrial digital printing technologies to complement its conventional solutions. It also pursued the development of automation systems and software for industrial production. In 2024, Julien Bianchi was appointed chief executive officer. Today Polytype designs and manufactures equipment for the direct decoration of packaging, with a portfolio that includes dry offset, prime offset, digital printing, flexography, screen printing, varnishing and hot stamping. It also develops manufacturing and finishing solutions for plastic tubes, as well as automation systems and industrial software associated with its machines. The company exports its equipment to many countries and maintains commercial and support structures in Switzerland, the United States and Thailand. It collaborates with universities and industrial partners on research and development projects related to printing, automation and manufacturing technologies, and is a member of Swissmem. The Polytype group also has real estate activities through a company specialized in the management and operation of certain real estate assets linked to its industrial activities.

• 2024

  Julien Bianchi appointed chief executive officer.

• 1995

  Acquires German company Mall + Herlan, adding know-how in metal packaging.

• 1990

  Acquires American Production Machinery, establishing a foothold in the American market and opening the door to Latin America.

• 1963

  Launches an innovative cup printing machine, strengthening its industrial position.

• 1962

  Polytype officially founded in Fribourg; markets its first tube printing machine with historic dry offset printing technology.

Swiss expert in conventional and digital packaging decoration, providing advanced printing and manufacturing solutions for cosmetic tubes, jars, cups, lids, bottles, beverage cans, closures and other packaging formats.

• Plastic Cup Decoration

  Digital inkjet, dry offset (round), dry offset (polygonal), dry offset (lids) and multi-decoration systems for plastic cups.

• Plastic Tube Decoration

  Digital inkjet, dry & prime offset, dry offset (capping) and multi-decoration systems for plastic tubes.

• Plastic Bottle Decoration

  Digital inkjet decoration systems for plastic bottles.

• Metal Container Decoration

  Digital inkjet and dry & prime offset decoration systems for metal containers.

• Tube Making & Finishing

  Shoulderless finishing and transfer solutions for tube manufacturing.

1. 1Polytype SA - Polytypepolytype.com
2. 2History - Polytypepolytype.com
3. 3Services - Polytypepolytype.com
4. 4About Polytype - Polytypepolytype.com
5. 5Polytype (entreprise) - Wikipédiafr.wikipedia.org
6. 6wikidatawikidata.org