The premises more than double the company’s warehouse and production space with over 50 injection machines and 40 lining/assembly machines.
Electrical hydraulic injection machines
Raf Van Grieken, product marketing manager, Procap told FoodProductionDaily.com the factory represents a significant investment for the firm and the entire production facility has been upgraded with more modern machinery including replacing hydraulic injection machines with electrical ones that use less energy.
“Hoboken is one of seven production and warehouse facilities owned and operated by the company. We had an open day for customers and the public last weekend (October 10-12),” he said.
“We currently employ 75 people at the factory and plan to hire 10 more staff over the next three years. The target is to start production in early 2015.
“We predict a €3m growth in relation to food, beverages, dairy products, edible oils and continuous improvement within the non food industry such as agro chemicals and automotive.”
Construction on the plant began two years ago and it was carried out in three phases on Procap’s former Hoboken facility and on neighbouring land bought by the company as part of the expansion.
Biggest turnover
It includes dressing rooms, a cafeteria and terrace, and Van Grieken said automated palletising will be introduced at the end of the year, to replace manual stacking. The facility is BRC (British Retail Consortium) certified.
“Chemical and agro chemical closure products currently represent the biggest part of turnover at the Hoboken site. With the BRC certification, we are now fully prepared to serve all other industries,” he added.
“The Hoboken facility is more aesthetically pleasing than the former building and will offer greater employment opportunities. The warehouse space has significantly more production room.”
Carbon impact study
Talking about its machinery upgrade, Van Grieken said Procap’s latest carbon impact study (2012) shows it achieved a 15% reduction in carbon equivalent from the transformation of resin into products since 2008.
However, this has not been mirrored by an increase in CO² emissions. Between 2008 and 2012, the firm increased sales from 4.8 to 6.4bn caps. Despite this rise in production, its CO² footprint remained stable.
“To ensure all sites were ISO 14001 certified, Procap first evaluated its environmental impact as a group in 2008. Three main areas were identified where savings could be made: energy consumption, final waste and plastic scraps,” he said.