According to a report this week by Packaging Europe (Norwich, U.K.), corrugated packaging specialist Diamondpak (U.K.) has announced plans to invest £300,000 in new machinery at its South Wales factory. The company said the investment in a new automatic die-cutter will double its production capacity.
This is the second investment in plant machinery in just a few months for Diamondpak, which also plans to recruit more staff as part of its growth strategy. Managing Director Russell Davies said that the company was on track to achieve "double-digit" growth figures in 2016.
"There is a growing demand for our products such as internet postal packaging, and protective transit packaging, many of which require intricate die cut designs... This latest investment means that we can handle larger-scale die cutting than ever before and effectively double our capacity due to improved running speeds, faster set ups improved machine availability," Davies explained.
He added that since 2012, the company has achieved 15%-20% growth each year and expects to continue that growth this year.
Set up in 2008, Diamondpak quickly carved a niche as a pioneer of the "peel and seal" book wraps, which have become the mainstay of online retailers, making it one of the U.K.’s fastest growing corrugated packaging manufacturers. As well as having one of the widest ranges of postal and internet packaging in the U.K., it produces bespoke corrugated packaging from lightweight air freight containers to photo quality promotional and point of sale items.
Increasing demand for its products has meant that during the past three years, Diamondpak has doubled its workforce to 65. The company has also put in place an extensive training program for staff, which has led to the company being shortlisted for a Welsh Business Award for "commitment to skills and people development."The die-cutter is the latest in a number of investments for Diamondpak, which acquired a large format TCY casemaker for large, box work, and pallet boxes at the end of 2015, and bought Cardiff-based competitor Atlantic Box the same year.
According to an additional report this week by Lesprom (Russia), there will be plans to recruit around 20 new staff across Diamondpak's two sites in Pontypool and Bristol. The company will be recruiting apprentices, factory, and office workers.
"During the past few months, we have been investing in new machinery to make our plant more efficient, which in turn has given us greater capacity and opportunities," Davies said in the Lesprom report.
"While demand for "peal and seal" book wraps is increasing, we are also securing more orders for point of sale products, through our Bristol plant PH Laminators, and large ‘pallet’ boxes."
TAPPI
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