Array Technologies has unveiled RealSync™, an integrated smart packaging production platform, at PACK EXPO International 2026. The platform is designed to simplify how manufacturers and packaging producers manage, print, verify and deliver unique package-level data directly within the production workflow. By enabling variable information to be printed directly onto packaging during production, RealSync offers an alternative to preprinted labels, allowing manufacturers to reduce label and packaging inventories, minimize waste and more easily manage changing SKUs and product information.
The announcement comes as demand grows for greater product identification, traceability and packaging intelligence. Manufacturers are facing increasingly complex data requirements, driven by regulatory changes and consumer expectations. RealSync addresses these challenges by bringing data management, industrial mono- or color-inkjet printing, machine vision verification and smart packaging technologies together within one scalable production platform. The system manages variable data, prints unique information at production speed, verifies that the correct information is associated with each package and delivers package-level data for reporting, traceability and downstream use. It can operate with an on-premises server, giving manufacturers local control of production data without requiring cloud connectivity.
“RealSync is about making smart packaging practical on the production floor,” said David Pirie, President of Array Technologies. “Rather than treating printing, data encoding, verification and connected packaging as separate processes, we've brought them together into one workflow that can be configured around the manufacturer's application.”
The platform supports a wide range of variable and connected packaging technologies, including barcodes, QR codes, SKUs, GTINs, lot numbers, production dates, RFID, Bluetooth Low Energy tag cloud-based asset tracking via Wiliot, Amazon Transparency codes, GS1 Digital Link and other unique identifiers. Machine vision and RFID verification help confirm that the correct data are associated with each package and create production records for downstream reporting and traceability.
RealSync can be configured for an individual production machine or scaled across larger operations, allowing manufacturers to start with current requirements and expand as needs evolve. The platform is suited for applications across packaging, food and beverage, pharmaceutical and other manufacturing environments where accurate product data and package-level traceability are increasingly required. It can help manufacturers prepare for evolving identification and data-sharing requirements, including GS1 Sunrise 2027 and the FDA Food Traceability Rule, while supporting workflows that use GS1 standards.
By connecting production data with the information printed, encoded and verified on each package, RealSync provides a bridge between production-floor operations and broader product-data and traceability systems. Package-level data can be delivered to local, cloud or enterprise systems for downstream use. At PACK EXPO International, Array Technologies will demonstrate the RealSync workflow and its ability to integrate data, printing and verification in a production environment. Manufacturers can submit their own production data before the show, and Array will prepare a demonstration using their application. Attendees can visit Array Technologies at Booth W-39050. Free PACK EXPO registration is available using code 77F80.
