Lightweight Containers heeft in Joliet, Illinois (VS) een productielijn opgestart voor de complete productie van KeyKeg® Slimlines en UniKegs®. Het gaat om een straat die volledig geautomatiseerd is en flexibel kan reageren op de actuele vraag naar de twee productlijnen. Het Amerikaanse Logoplaste beheert en ondersteunt het productieproces. In de december-uitgave van Link Magazine van vorig jaar (pag 50) meer over de Amerikaanse activiteiten van Lightweight Containers.
With the new line, Lightweight Containers is preparing for the rapid growth it anticipates in the United States. Anita Veenendaal, CCO of Lightweight Containers, says, ‘In the last six years, our worldwide sales have grown by more than 40% a year. A production line in the US will enable us to respond to the growing demand more quickly and flexibly. We also know that there’s broad support from the American society for setting up a factory there, since we’re contributing to the US economy.’
Concentration on R&D, sales, and marketing
The new plant was designed in close collaboration with the manufacturing specialist Logoplaste. Logoplaste takes care of organizing the line’s daily production. Jan Veenendaal CEO of Lightweight Containers has this to say about this partnership: “Working with Logoplaste is enabling us to grow faster in the US, as well as to concentrate more on R&D, sales, and marketing. Logoplaste is a highly professional production partner who completely shares our views on quality and continuity. The new production line is a logical consequence of our strategy of producing as closely as possible to our customers.”
The same language
David Batey, Regional Commercial Director for Logoplaste NCEE: ‘Logoplaste and Lightweight Containers are both ambitious, successful family firms and we speak the same language. Besides that Lightweight Containers knows the ins and outs of both the production line and the manufacturing process through and through. Because of this we were able to round off the preparations quickly, professionally and successfully. The start of the fully automated production line went well and we’re now producing at full capacity.’
KeyKegs® are now produced at three locations: Schwerin (Germany), Den Helder (the Netherlands) and Joliet (USA). A fourth production line in Germany will be opened in mid-2016. UniKegs® will be produced in Joliet (USA).
