US medical and pharmaceutical packaging manufacturer Nelipak (Cranston, Rhode Island; www.nelipak.com) has announced that it will expanding production in its home country.

In Winston-Salem, North Carolina, the company plans to build its first US plant for flexible packaging for the healthcare sector. Until now, says CEO Pat Chambliss, Nelipak has been supplying customers from its three European production sites. He did not provide details of the planned capacity expansion but put the amount of the investment at USD 20 mn (EUR 18.8 mn). A regional economic development agency is to cover part of the costs.

In the field of flexible packaging for the healthcare sector, Nelipak produces roll stock, die-cut lids and films, pouches, and bags. The products consist of various substrates (such as films, papers, film laminates) and proprietary heat-seal coatings. Clean-room production is planned for the new 110,000 m² plant. The facility, which is scheduled to open in late 2023, is expected to create 80 new jobs over the next five years.

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Nelipak currently employs over 1,400 at 10 production sites: three in the US (Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Arizona), one each in Puerto Rico and Costa Rica, and five in Europe, with one in the Netherlands (Venray), and two each in Ireland and the UK. Since 2019, the packaging manufacturer has been owned by private equity firm Kohlberg & Company (Mount Kisco, New York; www.kohlberg.com – see Plasteurope.com of 08.07.2019).