Lako Tool

What Lako Tool does

Lako Tool & Manufacturing, Inc., founded in 1976 and headquartered in Perrysburg, Ohio, is an industrial engineering firm specializing in sealing, cutting, and punching components for flexible film packaging machinery used in HFFS (Horizontal Form Fill Seal) and VFFS (Vertical Form Fill Seal) operations. Its core technology platform centers on the patented Modular Sealing Device (MSD), a quick-change seal jaw system enabling four-step jaw-face exchange without disturbing initial machine setup, complemented by the Hot Chamber Punch (HCP) thermal punching system (claimed 4x life vs. mechanical alternatives), Split Crimper technology, the Polymer Sealing Device (PSD), and a Legacy Ultrasonic Sealing retrofit system. The product portfolio extends to knives and anvils, fin wheels, seal drums/rolls, head assemblies, and VFFS carriages, all manufactured at its Ohio facility with proprietary LAKOTE 85 carbide-like wear coating applied to select components. Lako monetizes through direct sales of hardware components, multi-year JIT restocking contracts for OEMs and high-volume customers, and adjacent professional services including seal testing, diagnostics, engineering consulting, modernization retrofits, and HFFS training programs, supported by a Fast-Lane expedited shipping service.

The company sells exclusively through direct regional technical sales engineers covering the US (Northeast, Midwest, Southwest, Southeast), Canada, Mexico, Latin America (Colombia, Argentina, Bolivia/Peru/Ecuador), and Europe (Germany, Italy, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark), with no distributor or reseller intermediaries. Its customer base spans food and confectionery (Hershey, Goetze's Candy, Herr's, Barcelona Nut, Gilster Mary Lee), pet products (Nylabone), and flexible packaging converters (Lyan Packaging), with documented outcomes such as 70% reduction in sealing issues at Barcelona Nut and quantified film-cost savings. Industry association memberships (PMMI, CPA) and technology partnerships (Herrmann Ultrasonics, Dukane, Ropex, Aplix) round out its ecosystem positioning. In March 2026, ProMach acquired Lako, integrating its 59 employees into ProMach's Systems & Process business unit, with CEO John Bialecki transitioning to VP/General Manager; the firm now operates as a subsidiary of the larger packaging-machinery platform.

Name

Lako Tool

Legal name

Lako Tool & Manufacturing, Inc.

Website

https://lakotool.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1976

Operating status

Acquired

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Lako Tool & Manufacturing designs and manufactures patented sealing, cutting, and punching components for HFFS and VFFS flexible film packaging machinery, serving food, confectionery, pet food, personal care, and tobacco CPG brands through direct regional technical sales across the Americas and Europe. Acquired by ProMach in March 2026.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Packaging Machinery Components

NAICS

Packaging Machinery Manufacturing (333993)

SIC

Special Industry Machinery (No Metalworking Machinery) (3550)

akta.pro primary industry

Form-Fill-Seal (VFFS/HFFS) Machines (IMAHAOAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Capping, Sealing & Closing Machines (IMAHAOAG), Bagging, Pouching & Sachet Packaging Machines (IMALAOAJ)

Keywords

• Flexible film packaging
• Heat sealing equipment
• Packaging machinery components
• Form fill seal parts
• Ultrasonic sealing systems

Headquarters

HQ city

Perrysburg

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Sealing Equipment Sales: Sale of sealing jaws, crimpers, knives, anvils, punches, and complete sealing systems for flexible film packaging machinery. Includes standard OEM replacements and custom-designed components.
2. Training Services: Comprehensive training programs for HFFS machines covering setup, installation, and troubleshooting. Includes hands-on instruction with demo modular head assembly and printed training materials.
3. Diagnostic and Engineering Services: Customer diagnostic assistance for production challenges, package performance testing, ROI analysis, and engineering support for custom solutions.
4. Modernization/Retrofit Services: Conversion of existing VFFS machines with ultrasonic sealing technology, including installation and ongoing technical support.
5. LAKOTE 85 Coating: Performance coating application for knives and anvils providing carbide-like edge strength and wear resistance at improved pricing.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Lako Tool & Manufacturing designs, engineers, and manufactures precision sealing, cutting, and punching components for flexible film packaging machinery used in Horizontal Form Fill Seal (HFFS) and Vertical Form Fill Seal (VFFS) operations. Its product portfolio centers on the patented Modular Sealing Device (MSD), Hot Chamber Punch (HCP) systems, knives and anvils, fin wheels, seal drums, carriages, and the Legacy Ultrasonic Sealing System for retrofits. The company complements its hardware with seal testing, diagnostics, engineering, training, fast-lane expedited shipping, and modernization services for OEMs and packaging end users in food, confectionery, pet food, tobacco, and personal care verticals.

Product overview

Lako Tool is a manufacturer of sealing, cutting, and punching components for flexible film packaging machinery. The product portfolio centers on the Modular Sealing Device (MSD) as the core quick-change system, complemented by Hot Chamber Punch products for hole punching, Knives and Anvils for cutting, Fin Wheels for horizontal wrappers, and Head Assemblies for form fill seal machines. The company also offers the Legacy Ultrasonic Sealing System for retrofitting existing equipment. Services include seal testing, diagnostics, engineering, training, Fast-Lane expedited shipping, and a Modernization Program for ultrasonic conversions. Products serve snack, tobacco, personal care, pet food, and other flexible packaging markets.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Modular Sealing Device (MSD) Patented quick-change seal jaw system that enables rapid changeovers and repairs in both hot and cold sealing applications for HFFS and VFFS packaging machinery. Designed for packaging operations and OEMs requiring minimal downtime during product changeovers.
• Hot Chamber Punch (HCP) Thermal hole punching system that burns and cauterizes holes in polypropylene bags, providing increased hanger hole strength and reduced film costs compared to mechanical punches. Used on HFFS and VFFS machines for retail hanging displays.
• Knives and Anvils Cutting components for horizontal and vertical packaging machines, available in zig-zag, diagonal, and fly-through styles with optional LAKOTE 85 performance coating for carbide-like edge strength and wear resistance.
• Fin Wheels Hot or cold sealing wheels for horizontal flow wrappers, available as OEM replacements or customized designs with various serration patterns including vertical, horizontal, cross-hatch, and RV.
• Head Assembly Modular head assembly conversion and restoration services for horizontal wrappers and vertical baggers, enabling fast changeovers and supporting both standard sealing and hole punching operations.

Quantifiable outcome

• Hot Chamber Punch lasts 4x longer than other mechanical punches
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and minor.

• ProMachflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 March 2026ProMach, a worldwide leader in processing and packaging machinery, acquired Lako Tool & Manufacturing in March 2026. Lako's 59 employees joined ProMach's Systems & Process business unit, with Lako CEO John Bialecki becoming Vice President/General Manager. The acquisition expands ProMach's capabilities in the flexible packaging sector.
• Contract Packaging Association (CPA)minorOthersCPA is the national nonprofit trade organization for the Contract Packaging industry, formed in 1992. LAKO maintains membership for industry exposure and networking.
• PMMIminorOthersPMMI is the leading global resource for the packaging and processing supply chain with 800+ member companies. LAKO maintains membership for industry connections and marketplace navigation.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Coesia: Coesia is an Italian-headquartered packaging machinery group whose brands include VFFS/HFFS OEMs comparable to the machines Lako's sealing, cutting, and punching components serve, making it a broader incumbent peer.
• Syntegon: Syntegon (formerly Bosch Packaging Technology) is one of the largest VFFS/HFFS machinery OEMs in the world and is named in Lako's 'machines we work on' compatibility list, making it a direct broader incumbent in the same flexible-packaging equipment space.
• Ishida: Ishida is a Japan-headquartered global manufacturer of weighing and VFFS packaging machinery for food and snack markets, listed in Lako's compatibility list, and is a broader incumbent serving the same CPG verticals.
• ProMach: ProMach is a worldwide leader in processing and packaging machinery and acquired Lako Tool in March 2026 into its Systems & Process business unit; it is comparable as the broader portfolio parent in which Lako's specialist offerings are now integrated.
• TNA Solutions: TNA Solutions is a leading snack-food VFFS and packaging machinery OEM explicitly named in Lako's compatibility list, making it a large incumbent with direct overlap in Lako's primary snack and confectionery vertical.
• Rovema: Rovema is a German VFFS/HFFS packaging machinery OEM named in Lako's compatibility list, providing a European-headquartered broader incumbent against whose machines Lako designs its sealing and punching components.
• GEA Group: GEA Group is a global machinery and processing equipment major with packaging-line offerings overlapping Lako's flexible-packaging end markets; it competes more broadly across the full line, whereas Lako specializes in sealing subsystems.
• Barry-Wehmiller (Hayssen): Barry-Wehmiller owns Hayssen, a heritage VFFS/HFFS packaging machinery OEM listed in Lako's compatibility set, making it a broader incumbent competing for the same flexible-packaging end customers.
• IMA S.p.A. IMA is an Italian packaging machinery group with broad VFFS and form-fill-seal capabilities across food, personal care, and pharma — comparable to Lako as a broader incumbent spanning the equipment categories Lako's components serve.

Direct peers

• Triangle Packaging Machinery: Triangle Packaging Machinery manufactures VFFS machinery named in Lako's compatibility roster; its machine-level focus on bagging and form-fill-seal is the closest machine-level peer to Lako's component-level focus on the same machines.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/LakoTool
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/LakoTool
• Facebookfacebook.com/lakotool
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lako-tool-and-manufacturing-inc-
• Instagraminstagram.com/lakotool

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Lako Tool