HB RTS announces the acquisition of CC European Retail

News in Brief

HB RTS announces the acquisition of CC European Retail

May 12, 2022 – HB RTS (HB) has announced that it has completed the acquisition of 100% of CC European Retail (CCER), a rental and pooling provider of returnable transport items (“RTIs”) in the European food supply chain, from the Danish private equity fund Erhvervsinvest (“Erhvervsinvest”).

The acquisition increases HB’s available fleet of assets to 9 million RTIs and significantly expands the scope of the HB footprint and solutions for its client base. The combined business now has pan-European operations and offers a wide range of RTI rental, washing, and logistics solutions, with core segments being reusable crates, pallets, and rolling RTIs. Through this strategic step, HB will continue to find more efficient and cost-effective RTI solutions for its diverse customer base.

Commenting on the acquisition, Léon Rust, CEO of HB said: “We are very excited about this transaction. CCER is a market leader in providing reusable crates and rolling RTIs in the food and beverage supply chain. The companies both have their own strengths and are highly complementary. Read more.

Palletcentrale Group takes over Pallethandel De Weel

Moerdijk, 9 May 2022 – The Palletcentrale Groep has acquired Pallethandel de Weel from Waarland. Pallethandel de Weel has been independently buying and selling used pallets for many years. The Palletcentrale Groep states that it is the market leader in purchasing and selling used pallets. It will house the activities of Pallethandel de Weel at the Palletcentrale Noord Holland branch, which is located along the A7 at the Agriport business park in Middenmeer.

With this acquisition, the Palletcentrale Groep further expands its leading market position in the North Holland region. “The takeover strengthens the purchasing and sales network of the Palletcentrale Group,” said Frank Bennemeer, commercial director of the Palletcentrale Group. “This allows us to guarantee even more customers their pallet supply. Existing customers of de Weel can benefit from the service and quality of the Palletcentrale. A win-win situation.”

The Palletcentrale Groep is headquartered in Moerdijk. The company also has branches in Hardinxveld-Giessendam, Helmond, Middenmeer, Sas van Gent and Rotterdam. The Palletcentrale Groep annually sells more than 6 million used and new pallets in the Benelux.

Avery Dennison to invest over €60 million in capacity expansion and manufacturing efficiency in Europe

May 3, 2022

OEGSTGEEST, Netherlands  — Avery Dennison Corporation has shared details of two major investments aimed at expanding its manufacturing capacity and improving factory efficiency in Europe to meet growing demand for its label and packaging materials.

The company said it is one year into a three-year, €45 million expansion of its facilities at Champ-sur-Drac, France. Enhancements include five new logistical buildings covering more than 8,700 square meters, a new automated warehouse, and an additional high-speed, state-of-the-art hotmelt adhesive coater, scheduled to come online in 2024.

At its Luxembourg facility specializing in labels made with acrylic emulsion adhesives, the company has undertaken a €15 million project to redesign operational flow and add a new emulsion specialty coater. The coater is expected to come online during the first quarter of 2023.

“Our investments at Champs-sur-Drac and Luxembourg will allow us to meet customer demand now and into the future by freeing capacity throughout our European manufacturing network”, said Tim Presto, Vice President of Supply Chain & Operations, EMENA.

The expansions at both Luxembourg and Champs-sur-Drac will enhance the reliability of service for customers by strengthening the company’s already robust network of manufacturing plants and distribution centers across Europe. Finally, these expansions will take us a step closer to fully embracing Industry 4.0 practices that increase efficiency, reduce operating costs, and free our employees to perform safer, higher-value tasks.

Sustainability Webinar: How to make data-driven impact?

Thursday April 21, 2022  15:00 – 16:00 (CEST)

Although almost every executive thinks sustainability is important, only 60% of the companies currently have a sustainability strategy. In order to track (and improve) your environmental impact, data collecting and monitoring is key.

Nowadays sustainability needs to be more than a label on your website, it needs to be integrated in your organization and decision-making process. Implementing and monitoring a sustainability strategy becomes easier when you know what to monitor and aim for.

In this webinar we will discuss what regulators and organizations expect from the new sustainability developments. What could (or should) be your main aim with your sustainability strategy? And how to monitor and manage your sustainability impact with data!

Meet the featured speakers at our Sustainability Webinar

Learn and get inspired by these industry experts:

Jesse Sels, President EMEA at Tosca;
Eleonoor Hintzen, Senior Sustainability Strategy and Integrated Reporting Specialist at Rebel;

Wouter de Waart, Modeler of Environmental Impact at Rebel;

Kevin Miedema, Technical Director at Bexter.

What to expect

• Jesse Sels has taken on the role of EMEA President at Tosca Europe since September 2020. His success as co-founder of Contraload, is now leveraged at Tosca Europe in the development of reusable load carrier solutions for in the supply chain in Europe and the rest of the world. Using real-life examples, he will discuss trends, his experience as a global leader in reusable packaging solutions and which load carrier is more sustainable: a wooden pallet or a plastic pallet?
• Eleonoor Hintzen and Wouter de Waart, share their experience in the fast-changing world of sustainability. In a presentation full real-life examples, they discuss what trends and regulations are coming up and how organizations can use data to measure, monitor and improve their environmental footprint.
• In his role as Technical Director at Bexter, Kevin Miedema is responsible for innovating a software platform for reusable load carriers. Sustainability is high on the agenda and one of the main goals is to provide software that enables the transition to a circular economy and a sustainable supply chain. During his presentation Kevin will elaborate how Bexter and partner Cohelion are developing new solutions to measure and monitor sustainability KPI’s.

Be there and register now for free, click here.

NWPCA ANNOUNCES BOARD OF DIRECTORS LEADERSHIP AND ELECTION RESULTS FOR 2022-2023

April 5, 2022– Last month, the National Wooden Pallet & Container Association announced its Board of Directors leadership, and the addition of new and re-elected Board members.

The following individuals were confirmed as NWPCA’s Board of Directors leadership for the 2022-2023 term:

• Carolyn Beach, Westside Pallet – Chair
• Nick Wenner, Pallet Service Corp. – Chairman-Elect
• Mike Hachtman, 48forty Solutions – Past Chair
• Jeff Lewis, Atlanta Pallets – Treasurer
• Hinton Howell, Cottondale Wood Products– Director at Large

The following individuals were elected and re-elected to the Board of Directors:

Newly elected:

• Kate Matz, Allegheny Recycled Products
• Alex Jimenez, Jimenez Pallets
• Justin Hegsted, Challenger Pallet & Supply
• Jeff Lewis, Atlanta Pallet & Services
• Lindsey Shean-Snowden, Pallet Logistics of America
• Bruce Kennedy, Mid-Continent Steel and Wire

Re-elected:

• Dominick Davi, Greenway Products & Services
• Bryan Kesting, Madison County Wood Products

“I am honored to serve as the NWPCA’s incoming Chair, and I look forward to working with everyone on the board in the continued success of the NWPCA,” shared Carolyn Beach, Vice President, Westside Pallet. “This past year was a challenging one that proved the essential nature of our industry and showed the extreme effort of the 173,000 people who worked overtime to meet our customers demands. Moving forward, we are excited to meet pallet user needs for sourcing environmentally responsible materials, and will spotlight how our third-party certified environmental product declaration for wooden pallets advances supply chain sustainability goals. Wood pallets are positioned with their 95% recycle rate, and potential carbon positive impact.”

“Our industry greatly respects Carolyn’s leadership and strong focus on sustainability and supply chain solutions,” said Brent McClendon, president/CEO of the National Wooden Pallet & Container Association. “Her ability to build partnerships and her focus on advancing the board’s strategic priorities will move this industry forward.”

“We are also deeply indebted to Mike Hachtman of 48fortySolutions, who assumes the role as past-chair. He led the association and the industry forward during the covid crisis and greatly expanded our advocacy initiatives.”

DW Reusables acquires Stražaplastika

DW Reusables, a global leader in injection moulding reusable packaging products such as beverage crates and pallets, announced that it has successfully completed the acquisition of Stražaplastika, a Croatian based Injection Moulding and Extrusion company.

Stražaplastika will further expand DW Reusables’ portfolio of reusable crates, pallets, and containers for the beverage industry, with an extended range of trays, totes and carriers for the food, agriculture, construction, and automotive market among others.

With 227 employees in Hum na Sutli and two other facilities located in Probištip Macedonia and Subotica, Serbia, this acquisition will strengthen the company to further develop the tremendous potential of reusable packaging for customers in Europe, Africa, Asia and North & South America.

DW Reusables Chief Executive Paul Baeyens said: ‘We see this as a great opportunity for the further development and expansion of our product portfolio. With the growing demand for reusable packaging, the extra capacity comes at the right moment, and will help us meet our customers’ demand all over the world.’

Looking to the future the company is well-positioned to capitalise on growing environmental concerns and interest in sustainability with their ‘Loop Ready Packaging’, ideal for closed-loop systems.

ABOUT DW REUSABLES

DW Reusables is a leading provider of injection moulded returnable packaging. With its headquarters in Bilzen, Belgium, and four manufacturing sites strategically located in Europe, they are a worldwide leader in the field of returnable packaging systems such as beverage crates, pallets, trays and totes.

They offer a wide variety of standard products for the beverage industry and are specialised in bespoke solutions that require the development of a mould. DW Reusables NV is property of Olympus Partners a private equity firm headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, USA, through their portfolio company Liquibox Corp.

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