| Fabri-Kal Announces Plans To Open New Manufacturing Facility |
|
KALAMAZOO, Mich., Feb. 19, 2008 – Fabri-Kal Corporation today announced plans to open a new state-of-the-art design and manufacturing facility in Kalamazoo, Mich. The facility will house Fabri-Kal’s Technical Center, Innovation Center, XP Division, a large-scale plastic packaging manufacturing operation and warehouse space. Fabri-Kal is purchasing and renovating a 400,000-sq.ft. vacant plant located at 4141 Manchester Rd., a former brownfield site, for this initiative. The $41 million dollar project to establish and upgrade the facility will take place over five years and is scheduled to open early in the third quarter of 2008. “Fabri-Kal’s commitment to new technology and development and unparalleled customer focus is evidenced by the establishment of this new facility. The Innovation Center and manufacturing space will allow Fabri-Kal to capitalize on the growth we’ve experienced over the past several years. Increasing the company’s design and manufacturing capabilities will contribute to our leading position in the foodservice and consumer packaged goods markets,” said Mike Roeder, president, Fabri-Kal Corporation. “The facility’s location in Kalamazoo gives Fabri-Kal a Midwest manufacturing presence and enables us to take advantage of the manufacturing and tooling expertise that exists in the state. In addition, it affords the opportunity to strategically align our operations near our current customers,” he added. Fabri-Kal will move its Technical Center, XP Division and warehouse space, currently located at 3303 East Cork St., Kalamazoo, to the new facility. The facility will initially employ more than 50 people, with plans to add an additional 160 over the next five to eight years. All staff at the existing Cork Street location will be relocated to the new facility as well as certain development personnel from Fabri-Kal’s headquarters office, also located in Kalamazoo. Fabri-Kal has agreed to sell the Cork Street facility to a developer. This facility will feature Fabri-Kal’s new Innovation Center, providing an immersive development experience for customers prior to the manufacturing of their product. The location of the Innovation Center in this facility will integrate Fabri-Kal's design, engineering and manufacturing resources all under one roof, creating a collaborative environment that will lead to accelerated speed-to-market and advanced new product innovations. “Fabri-Kal is proud to revitalize this brownfield site in Kalamazoo, while adding to the employment base of the community in which we were founded,” said Gary Galia, executive vice president of finance, Fabri-Kal Corporation. “We would also like to thank the State of Michigan, the City of Kalamazoo, Southwest Michigan First, and the JP Morgan Chase and National City banks for their support in planning and executing this initiative.” The new building will maintain Fabri-Kal’s high quality and manufacturing standards with plans to be ISO (International Organization for Standardization), AIB (American Institute of Baking), and HACCP (Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points) certified within one year. In accordance with Fabri-Kal’s mission to be a leading provider of sustainable packaging solutions, the new facility will be LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified once fully renovated. Fabri-Kal is a leading provider of plastic foodservice and custom thermoformed packaging solutions. One of the largest thermoformers in North America, Fabri-Kal’s customer base includes thousands of foodservice operators and dozens of consumer product manufacturers. Headquartered in Kalamazoo, Mich., and in continuous operation since 1950, Fabri-Kal employs more than 800 people in five manufacturing, printing and warehousing facilities throughout the United States. More information about Fabri-Kal may be found at the company’s website, www.f-k.com  Download Press Release (22 kb)  Fabri-Kal Kalamazoo Facility Image (633 kb)
|
