AMG Packaging & Paper Company is advancing the next phase of its manufacturing overhaul, bringing in an international corrugator specialist to assess and upgrade its core production equipment, while preparing to install a semi-automated gluer by early 2026.

The company, which produces corrugated boxes for a wide range of sectors, including food and beverage, agriculture, and industrial packaging, says the latest investments are aimed squarely at boosting efficiency and maintaining product quality as it navigates a changing market.

General Manager Michael Chin said the corrugator specialist, expected to arrive in the fourth quarter, will evaluate AMG’s existing equipment and recommend upgrades focused on “efficiencies and quality”. The engagement is not expected to lead to a replacement of the machine, but rather to targeted repairs and performance enhancements.

“The specialist will be brought in to recommend any upgrades to the corrugator that will help mainly in efficiencies and quality,” Chin told the Jamaica Observer. “The new gluer will increase turnaround time on customers’ orders.”

Meanwhile the semi-automated gluer, set to replace a manual system, will be commissioned in the first quarter of 2026. Employees will be retrained to operate the new system as part of the company’s transition to more modern operations.

These changes come at a time when AMG is experiencing mixed financial performance. For the three months ending May 31, 2025, revenue rose by 8.5 per cent to $262.91 million, up from $242.43 million a year earlier, driven by increased customer demand during the quarter. However, net profit declined to $38 million, from $44.5 million for the corresponding period in 2024, as the company faced higher raw material and labour costs pressure margins.

Over the nine-month period to May, revenue dipped slightly — down 0.14 per cent to $763.87 million while manufacturing costs climbed nearly 7 per cent to $501.83 million.

Gross profit declined by 11.35 per cent over the nine-month period to $262.04 million, and by 1.9 per cent for the quarter to $96.27 million. Expenses also trended upward, with total costs rising 6.75 per cent year-to-date to $158.77 million and by 5.5 per cent in the third quarter to $49.38 million. The company attributed the increases to the devaluation of the Jamaican dollar and higher labour costs.

In response, AMG is accelerating its push toward operational efficiency — an effort that goes beyond the current quarter. Over the past three years, the company has acquired land, expanded warehousing capacity, upgraded its ERP system, and engaged advisory services to guide capital investments. Chairman Metry Seaga has said the company is targeting a tenfold increase in output as part of a long-term strategy to centralise operations in a single, purpose-built facility.

No additional equipment purchases are currently planned, but Chin said the company continues to evaluate technologies that would allow it to remain competitive. “We are always researching equipment that will help AMG to stay on the forefront of manufacturing,” he said.