Tetra Pak inaugurates its state-of-the-art packaging material factory in Lahore, Pakistan.

Tetra Pak recently inaugurated today its state-of-the-art packaging material factory in Lahore, Pakistan. The factory is set to meet the growing demand of Pakistan's juice and dairy industries for aseptic packaging. Demand for dairy beverages, juices, nectars and still drinks (JNSD) has been increasing steadily over the past six years, with a 15% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for dairy drinks and 16% CAGR for JNSD. With an initial investment of €92 million, the new factory in Lahore is Tetra Pak's largest facility in the Middle East and reflects the company's continued commitment to customers and consumers in the region.

"More urban and young consumers as well as an emerging middle class are transforming the food and beverage industry in Pakistan, demanding new, safer and more convenient products. We are committed to helping our customers meet these expectations, with best-in-class packaging and processing solutions," said Azhar Ali Syed, managing director Tetra Pak Pakistan. "The factory will enable us to provide customers in Pakistan with faster delivery, better quality and more product options."

Spread over 150,000 square metres, the new factory will have an initial annual production capacity of eight billion packages, manufacturing popular beverage cartons such as Tetra Brik® Aseptic, Tetra Fino® Aseptic and Tetra Classic® Aseptic. The facility also has the capability of producing many new products, with the potential of doubling production to 16 billion packages. Whilst its main role will be to supply customers in Pakistan, the factory has already started exporting to other countries in the region.

"The new factory is World Class Manufacturing (WCM)-certified, a point of pride for the facility as it signifies a high level of manufacturing excellence," said Tahir Hafeez, Tetra Pak's Lahore factory project director. WCM is a set of concepts, principles, policies and techniques for managing and operating a manufacturing facility. It primarily focuses on continual improvement in quality, cost, lead time, flexibility and customer service. "Being WCM certified means that our factory can produce superior products at lower costs, with minimal waste and great efficiency, all without compromising the high quality for which our products are known," said Hafeez.

The new factory is outfitted with the latest technology, with many machines being introduced in Pakistan for the very first time. For example, the factory is equipped with two VT Flex 175 ES printing presses; capable of operating at 600 metres per minute, and with sophisticated in-line detection systems to ensure that only packaging of the finest quality is produced. Three IMS T2 Slitter machines have the capacity of operating at 1,000 metres per minute, providing an efficient use of manpower and high quality output with minimum turnaround.

The facility also complies with stringent environment, safety and health standards, including ISO 14001 certification for its environmental management system and ISO 9001 certification, the internationally recognised quality management standard. Complying with these standards has paved the way for implementation of Integrated Management Systems (IMS), which further ensures the quality of Tetra Pak products and services.