The new equipment consists of a Bobst Mastercut 2.1 die-cut machine, and a 2,500m² workshop that includes a cardboard pallet production line to produce Kaypal cardboard pallets
DS Smith invests in its La Chevrolière facility. (Credit: DS Smith)
Packaging solutions provider DS Smith has invested €6m in new production machinery at its La Chevrolière packaging site in France.
The new equipment consists of a Bobst Mastercut 2.1 die-cut machine and a 2,500m² workshop with a cardboard pallet production line.
The new workshop is dedicated to producing Kaypal cardboard pallets.
It has a capacity of 250,000 units and can manufacture around 1.5 million pallets annually.
The Kaypal pallet will support DS Smith’s customers as it is fully recyclable. It weighs 3.5kg and has compact and ultra-lightweight components.
Additionally, it is cost-effective, reusable, and has ergonomic design and hygienic properties. The British packaging solutions provider said that the pallet can cut carbon emissions during transportation.
The sustainable offering is designed for air transport of goods, flooring, point-of-sale displays, bulk pallet boxes, or interlayer pallets in retail logistics centres.
The investment is intended to address the increasing demand for corrugated cardboard among DS Smith’s clientele in the area.
Located near Nantes in Western France, the La Chevroliere facility will now have an additional area of 4,000m2 for its production due to the expansion.
DS Smith France regional managing director Thibault Laumonier said: “The opening of our new Kaypal cardboard pallet production workshop in La Chevrolière will help our regional customers to move towards a circular economy, and with sustainable packaging options that impact positively on the reduction of CO2 throughout the entire supply chain.
“We are setting new industry standards in sustainable packaging and building a future that is more respectful of the environment that we live in.”
Last month, the British firm partnered with Bioenzymatic Fuel Cells (BeFC) to develop smart packaging solutions.
France-based BeFC focuses on the development of fully recyclable smart tags. The company was established in 2020 and raised €16m in a Series A round in June last year.