Plastic bottle and packaging manufacturer Alpla (Hard / Austria; www.alpla.com) is investing USD 6.9m to expand warehouse space at its manufacturing facility in Bowling Green, Kentucky / USA. When complete in 2019, the nearly 9,300 m² expansion will help Alpla more quickly and efficiently meet customer demand for the blow-moulded plastic bottles and hollow plastic parts produced at the site. Some 24 permanent jobs will be created. The company said the additional storage capacity was needed after increasing demand required converting some warehousing space to manufacturing at the facility, which opened in 2013 – see Plasteurope.com of 10.12.2013.

Worldwide, Alpla employs more than 19,300 people across its operations in 45 countries. Altogether, the Austrian group is active at 15 locations in North America. Along with water and drinks bottles, the portfolio encompasses preform sports bottles, hinged lids, measuring caps, child safety caps and sports caps, as well as custom designs produced from LDPE, HDPE, PET and other plastics. In Kentucky, the company employs 83 people at Bowling Green and 58 at a manufacturing facility in Florence.