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Sales of beverage cartons increased world-wide SIG Combibloc: excellent business year 2003 Neuhausen, March 8, 2004: at the end of the business year 2003, SIG Combibloc again reported outstanding results. This is clear from the figures that the group is presenting today. As one of the world’s leading systems manufacturers of aseptic beverage cartons and the matching filling machines, SIG Combibloc achieved net sales last year of 1,058 million Euros. That is 12.7 percent higher than the previous year (939 millions). The number of carton packages sold rose by 13.6 percent from 10,672 millions to 12,122 millions. In terms of EBITA, operating profit grew by 4.5 percent and stood at 139 millions compared to 133 millions in 2002. The number of employees increased from 3,731 to 3,923. In the year under report, world-wide consumption of aseptically packaged liquid food products continued to grow. With a share of 50 percent, the beverage carton maintained its strong position among the available packaging systems. In the sectors of non-carbonated drinks and UHT milk, SIG Combibloc’s market share increased to above 15 percent. Success enables new investments SIG Combibloc Western Europe in particular significantly increased its sales volumes. The “locomotive” for this growth was Germany, the biggest market, where scientists and politicians have classified the beverage carton as ecologically beneficial. As such, this packaging system is exempted from the mandatory deposit. In consequence, a growing number of retailers and beverage fillers made the transition to the beverage carton in 2003. They placed above-average order volumes on SIG Combibloc and, in the main, opted for the high quality combifit package. Thanks to this gratifying development and having received the green light from the SIG Board of Directors, SIG Combibloc is investing in new production units to meet the growing demand. Over the next few years, the company will spend some 100 million Euros to expand production capacities at the German locations Lutherstadt Wittenberg and Linnich; shifts will also be extended. A further production shop is being built at Wittenberg where, from end July 2004, a new finishing line will blank and seal laminated and printed packaging materials. Yet another line will come on stream in the fall of 2005, as will an additional printing machine. Says Rolf-Dieter Rademacher, CEO of the SIG Combibloc group, “This investment will be used to further expand our production plant in Wittenberg as a high-capacity facility for bulk volume packaging in the medium and large formats”. SIG Combibloc is also increasing production capacities with an additional finishing line in Linnich. Work will begin in the summer of this year. In spring already, a new printing machine will be commissioned in Linnich. Over and above this, the SIG Board of Directors has approved investment in a further coating line. This will come on stream early in 2006 and is to be located in a new production shop being built for that purpose. Additional packaging materials plants are currently being set up by SIG Combibloc in Suzhou, in China’s Shanghai region and in Riad, Saudi Arabia. Whereas Suzhou will begin production of aseptic carton packages this year, the Riad plant is expected to come on stream at the beginning of 2005. Differentiation through new shapes: combishape With combishape, SIG Combibloc established in 2003 alongside combibloc a second aseptic packaging system, presented for the first time at the international trade show Anuga FoodTec in Cologne. The combishape concept provides customers with differentiation opportunities by using cartons of widely varying shapes, including oval, curved or even triangular to octagonal geometries. Currently, no less than 42 variants are available. “Through the language of form, combishape highlights product identities”, says Rolf-Dieter Rademacher. The very first producer to launch a milk product in combishape is the dairy group Corporación Alimentaria Peñasanta (CAPSA). For this "double-barrelled” premiere, the leading Spanish milk producer has chosen the oval combishape variant. The new drink is part of a range of milk products which, thanks to a natural ingredient, promote the breakdown of body fat. In the Spanish market, CAPSA is further upgrading this unique product concept with a correspondingly novel package. Prestigious awards The machine concept for combishape was awarded two prizes in 2003. First was the German Packaging Award, when the jury decided, “Its uniform operating concept along the packaging line (filling machine/end of line packaging), the flexible format design and the application of large pouring sections identify the machine concept as an innovative and clearly defined system.” Each year, the award honors exceptional performances and developments that, inside the "packaging jungle” identify exemplary and ground-breaking routes for consumers and the industry alike. With the German Packaging Award, SIG Combibloc qualified for the international packaging competition “WorldStar”, coordinated by the World Packaging Organization, where it also had honors conferred on it. Furthermore, the combishape packaging design received the renowned iF Design Award as well as the “Designpreis der Bundesrepublik Deutschland” (Design Award of Germany). In addition to combishape, two other combibloc products also received prestigious prizes. The American Institute of Packaging Professionals (IoPP) bestowed the AmeriStar Package Award 2003 on combiTwist and combifit in the category “Beverages”. This is regarded as one of the most prestigious packaging awards in North America. Highly promising outlook for 2004 The business year 2004 will be characterized by uninterrupted positive developments in Germany and the growth markets of Eastern Europe and Asia. combishape will open new fields of opportunity, while in China, the new production facility will increase flexibility and shorten delivery times. To quote Rolf-Dieter Rademacher, “Once again, the outlook for the current year is highly promising.” Download Media Release 040308 Your contact: Heike Thevis – Press Officer SIG Combibloc GmbH Rurstrasse 58, D-52441 Linnich, Germany Tel: +49 2462 79 2608 Fax: +49 2462 79 17 2608 E-mail: heike.thevis@sig.biz SIG Combibloc is one of the world's leading systems suppliers of aseptic beverage cartons and filling machines. Employing approx. 3,900 people, the company recorded a turnover of EUR 1.058 million in 2003. SIG Combibloc is a division of SIG Holding AG, Neuhausen am Rheinfall. News overview >> |
