The investment is expected to improve Smurfit Kappa's position in Slovakia and the Czech Republic and allow the company to target more niche markets, including the FMCG and electro-technical sectors
Smurfit Kappa invests €20m to boost production in Central and Eastern Europe. (Credit: Smurfit Kappa)
Paper and packaging firm Smurfit Kappa has completed the €20m investment in manufacturing plants in Olomouc in the Czech Republic and Obaly Štúrovo in Slovakia, respectively.
As part of the investment, advanced machinery was installed at the two sites, increasing the production capacity to address the surge in customer demand for paper-based packaging solutions.
The firm also installed new converting equipment to increase the annual capacity by more than 100 million normal and offset printed boxes.
Smurfit Central & South-East Europe CEO Zdenek Suchitra said: “I am delighted to announce that both of our investments at the Olomouc (Czech Republic) and Obaly Štúrovo (Slovakia) plants have finished on time and within our original budget in a time when there is a scarcity of all kinds of materials.
“These investments, along with the investments we made in two additional sites in the Czech Republic, demonstrate our commitment to our customers and operations in Central and Eastern Europe.
“Through these investments, which have created state-of-the-art facilities for our plants, we are excellently positioned to satisfy our well-established customer base, whilst also venturing into the FMCG, eCommerce and electro-technical sectors.
“We are in a strong position to continue to deliver our high-quality sustainable solutions, as well as a best-in-class efficiency to the market and to be a better place to work for our people.”
The investment is expected to improve Smurfit Kappa’s position in Slovakia and the Czech Republic and allow the company to target more niche markets, including the FMCG and electro-technical sectors.
Announced last year, the upgrades show the packaging firm’s expansion and investment commitment in Central and Eastern European operations.
Recently, the product packaging company completed the acquisition of the Onda, Spain-based Pusa Pack bag-in-box packaging plant.
Pusa Pack produces large-capacity flexible bags with capacities ranging from 200 to 1,500 litres for use in the transportation and storage of liquid and semi-liquid products.