Liz Gyekye / PackagingNews

Sealed Air announces expansion plans

Sealed Air has announced plans to expand its manufacturing facility in Nijmegen, Holland, as it sees increased demand for its NewAir I.B. Express products.

According to the protective packaging firm, the inflatable cushioning system, launched in May 2010, has consistently recorded strong sales across Europe.

Sealed Air has made a multi-million Euro investment in a new NewAir I.B. Express production line at its Nijmegen facility to increase capacity and meet demand from key markets including Germany, France, Spain, UK, Italy and Scandinavia.

The firm said that the expansion will create new jobs and lead to double digit rise in annual production of the compact packaging system in Nijmegen.


‘New line’

The new line follows the recent introduction of four new Barrier Bubble films, which the NewAir I.B.Express can produce at up to 20 metres per minute, according to Sealed Air.

Sealed Air European supply chain director Alejandro Moralejo said: “Rising operational costs are causing companies across Europe to search out cost savings and added value throughout the whole supply chain.  Companies are reviewing their on-site packaging processes to identify how they can maximise efficiencies. 

“The NewAir I.B.Express allows operators to quickly create inflatable Barrier Bubble at workstations, online or for batching.  This delivers significant financial savings for operators as they no longer need to store large amounts of bulky packaging materials on-site.  These benefits have been key to the continued sales success of the system.

“Expansion of the Nijmegen facility will be completed in the first quarter of 2012.  This will enable us to continually meet the packaging needs of customers across Europe through increased production capacity, which also promotes ongoing product innovation.”