A Crumlin-based packaging factory has created 30 new jobs after a £4.7 million investment by its owners.
German company Klöckner Pentaplast increased capacity and introduced new green technology at its plant on the Pen-y-Fan Industrial Estate. The investment, backed by a Welsh Government grant of £400,000 has created 30 new jobs in the past 12 months.
The expansion project has now been completed marking 15 years of continuous growth of the company supported by the Welsh Government.
The Klöckner Pentaplast Group is a global leader in providing packaging and printing to a variety of sectors including, pharmaceutical, medical device, food, drink, and credit card firms.
The investment has seen a new extrusion line installed for the production of polyester films, primarily used in food and consumer packaging applications. The new line is now in full production and will increase capacity by 8,000 metric tonnes a year to meet the growing demands from markets in the UK and Ireland.
Economy Minister Edwina Hart said: “This is an important investment by Klöckner Pentaplast and will ensure it remains competitive and can meet the increased demand from customers. There was competition from within the group for this investment and I am delighted that the support of the Welsh Government helped secured this project for Wales.
“KP which works in one of our key sectors has continued to invest and expand in Crumlin and this is the latest in a number of important projects supported by the Welsh Government.”
The new state-of-the-art extrusion line introduces new clean, greener technology with lower energy consumption and is capable of using a higher quantity of recycled materials to meet growing demand from customers.
The company which employs 121 at its UK manufacturing site in Crumlin has four PVC extrusion lines producing around 19,000 tonnes and two APET lines producing 16k tonnes per year, using virgin, industrial waste and recycled raw materials.
The business in Crumlin was founded in December 1998 by Giles Peacock and Graham Johnson before its acquisition by Klöckner Pentaplast in 2003.
Giles Peacock, Group Senior Vice President for Klöckner Pentaplast Group said: “This expansion secured our position in the UK food packaging market and enables us to work closely with our customers to develop the next generation of food packaging materials.”