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July 2013
- Polymer price increasesPlastics prices have been slowly trending upwards in USD over the last year. When this is combined with the recent local currency plunge, it has meant that
polymer prices in Australia have surged more than 20% in the last two months alone. Previously, local currency movements coincided with
rising and falling commodity prices - reducing the price impact - but unfortunately this is not the case this time. There seems little
scope for local polymer prices to return to the previous levels without a major reversal in the strength of the Australian dollar and a general
weakening in global plastics prices.
As can be seen, the projection for plastics prices for the remainder of 2013 remains well above $2. We are at the vagaries of the international currency and commodity markets and we will
continue to carefully monitor events.
2012 has been incredibly exciting at Pakaflex. In January 2012 we moved to our new headquarters and main manufacturing facility at 43-45 Progress Street Dandenong - Melbourne's heart of manufacturing. In March, our brand new extruder was installed and commissioned. This machine has been specifically designed to make our innovative new Enduratuff timber wrap. Enduratuff wrap is stronger, protects timber better, and has a marked reducion in moisture under the timber packs. Contact us for more information about this exciting new product. The new facility also has a back-bone and the room to allow us to expand in the future as required. Also in March our small extruder was commissioned, intetended for making post and beam wraps which are between 100 and 300mm tubing. In all this has increased our capacity to over 2500 tonnes per year.
For our safety tape products we installed a brand new, high-productivity, slitting machine in January. As we manufacture the product from beads through to the final product - all on site - we know we have the best quality and cost of manufacture in the market! The move also allows us to cater for our expanding exports and woven wrap printing as well as additional packaging such as strapping and staple caps which require container loading and unloading as well as additional storage room for these products and buffer stocks for our customers.
All of these chages have been a major strategic move by Pakaflex to proactively develop and meet the increasing demands of our customers - while continuing to deliver our promise of affordable quality!
In January 2012 Pakaflex will move to its new headquarters and main manufacturing facility in Progress Street Dandenong—Melbourne’s heart of manufacturing. With the continued growth of the business we have simply outgrown our current Mitcham site. Progress Street will allow us to install a brand new state of the art extruder which has been specifically configured for the Australian and New Zealand market.
The move also allows us to cater for our expanding woven wrap printing and additional packaging such as the strapping and Stinger Caps which requires container loading and unloading as well as additional storage room for these products and buffer stocks for our customers. Production and the administration office will move during the Christmas shut-down between the 22nd of December and when business at 43-45 Progress Street commences on the 10th of January 2012.
Managing Director of Pakaflex, Mr Andrew
Hamer, said today that “This is a watershed moment for us, a long-term plan
that will allow us to expand and develop new and innovative products for our
customers. Work is well underway with the extensive fit-out of the
site in preparation for the move. The Christmas timing is of course
the quietest time of the year and we have gone to considerable lengths to
ensure that there will be minimal impact on our deliveries during the move.
The new site also has much improved security, IT and phone systems, parking
and laboratory facilities aimed at assiting us to further improve our
customer service and support.
Pakaflex Pty Ltd announced today that it has agreed to the purchase of several brand new machines including a new extruder tailored to making superior heavy duty bags and sacks, an additional four-colour printer to add to our existing capability and a broad range of other equipment to increase plant output , efficiency and improve product quality.
Managing Director of Pakaflex, Mr Andrew Hamer said today that “This is part of our continued investment in meeting the demands of our customers. With growth in excess of 30% per year, the new machinery will both improve quality and enable better utilisation of our existing machinery as well meeting these strategic growth aspirations. We aim to be the best supplier of UV stabilised outdoor packaging and specialist industrial and safety products and this investment is proof of our commitment." All equipment is to be installed before Christmas without interruption to normal deliveries.
Pakaflex Pty Ltd announced today that it has agreed to a strategic partnership with Safepak Pty Ltd to continue the manufacture and supply of their printed film products. Safepak has operated some nine extruders, printers and bag-makers from its Dandenong factory for nearly 20 years and has a well established client base of prominent companies. Safepak's Dandenong site will be closed in December and the necessary equipment for production will be moved to Pakaflex’s Mitcham factory as soon as possible. This will complement Pakaflex's new state of the art printers and enable world-class cost and quality of manufacture.
Managing Director of Pakaflex, Mr Andrew Hamer said today that “This is a major strategic move, and allows Pakaflex to dramatically increase capacity and capability to supply customers. We expect to have the transfer and installation of Safepak machinery complete by the end of January. In the meantime we will be working with Safepak to ensure the smooth transfer of customers, equipment and product know-how. We will be contacting customers as soon as possible to discuss their transitional requirements. We look forward to welcoming these new customers and to demonstrate to them our commitment to quality and service.”
Communication with customers and suppliers of Safepak regarding how the changes will affect them will be made over the next few weeks.
Pakaflex commissioned it's new state of the art film unfolder today. The unfolder means that Pakaflex can supply printed film in single sheet form up to 2.6m wide. This ability is particularly important for Pakaflex's many timber wrap customers who are progressively becoming more automated and the process of pulling out the flaps of conventional "U" films can be eliminated. "We are very pleased with the results, the edge guiding system means well presented rolls to our customers. This coupled with our unique Supatuff product means we have the best range of products and supply options for our customers" said Andrew Hamer. "We are ensuring we have the capacity and quality to meet the growing demand for our products, particularly our Supatuff Timber wrap."
Pakaflex completed the installation of it's new state of the art product tracing computer system this month. Specially developed for Pakaflex the system is fully integrated and allows for complete tracking of customer's products from original quotes, through quality control requirements, production recoding and cost recording. "This system ensures we make the product right - first time every time - and also know that we are doing it at the lowest cost possible. We are very excited with the full capability of the system which puts us ahead of anyone else in the industry including the very large multi-nationals" said Andrew Hamer. "We continue to develop our quality and products to deliver the ever growing demands of our customers." All Pakaflex products are individually labelled and uniquely identified by this system.
Pakaflex Pty Ltd has achieved sole supply to the largest single sawmill in Australia. The consistent properties of Supatuff Timberwrap - including it's strength, UV durability and non-fading print means that the timber leaving the mill looks its best wherever it is transported across the country.
Managing Director of Pakaflex, Andrew Hamer, said "This is a milestone in our objective to become the pre-eminent supplier of timber wrap in Australia, and reflects the investment, energy and commitment we have shown in the market. While we have already innovated with the Supatuff product, we have plans and ideas to assist highly automated factories to become more efficient and cost effective. We understand the needs of timber mills, and pride ourselves on delivering top quality products, in full on-time.
Australian company Pakaflex Pty Ltd has revolutionised the protection of timber in transit with its 'Supatuff' timber wrap. Despite being less than half the thickness of previous plastic wrap, "Supatuff" has better resistance to puncturing by splinters, rubbing between pallets in transit and has improved UV resilience utilising the latest UV inhibitors for long-term storage in the yard.
As well as nationally in Australia, 'Supatuff' has been exported to many countries in Asia Pacific with great success and sales have increased 10 fold in the last year. Some of the biggest and most innovative saw millers in Australia have already switched to this exciting innovation. Managing Director of Pakaflex, Andrew Hamer said "Being around half the thickness, 'Supatuff' uses far less 'plastic' than standard wrap and even less again when compared to a woven PP covers. There is less plastic to dispose of on building sites, which is a real environmental positive all round." But the real benefit to saw millers and distributors is the cost of the material. Even though it has superior strength to standard wrap, it is normally considerably cheaper per wrapped pallet of timber. This makes 'Supatuff' a real winner in the timber wrapping market.
It was announced today that Pakaflex Pty Ltd has agreed to the purchase of Acan Plastics on the 30th of September. Managing Director of Pakaflex, Mr. Andrew Hamer said "This is a very exciting opportunity, as there is a clear market opportunity for a smaller, dynamic company to provide service and support to the plastic films industry." Acan plastics has been manufacturing in Melbourne since 1989 and already has a significant presence in the specialty bakery bag and timber wrap markets.
Pakaflex is a new company, wholly Australian owned and operated. In addition to manufacturing, printing and bag-making a range of polyethylene films, Pakaflex will also supply a broader range of film and bag products which are either manufactured or distributed by Pakaflex. "I see Pakaflex gaining a position as a solid supplier for companies not able to meet the order sizes requirements of the big companies." Continued Mr. Hamer. "We aim to be more flexible, more responsive and eventually more innovative than our competitors.
Other useful links:
Platts - Information on commodity prices. Requires registration.
The Australian Institute of Packaging.
Pakaflex Pty Ltd | Copyright 2003-2016 | All Rights Reserved. Updated
4th September 2016
