Consultants Forum Advertise
Subscribe
Close

  • Free for qualified executives and consultants to industry

  • Receive quarterly issues of Area Development Magazine and special market report and directory issues

Subscribe Now
Renew

Area Development - Site Selection, Facility Planning and Workforce Development

Germany-based Klöckner Pentaplast Group Expands Facilities in Virginia

11/18/2020
Germany-based Klöckner Pentaplast Group, a global leader in recycled content products and high-barrier protective packaging, will invest a total of $68 million to expand its facilities in Louisa County and Wythe County, Virginia. The projects are expected to create 54 jobs.

The company will expand capacity at its operation in Gordonsville, creating 28 new jobs. The Louisa County facility manufactures pharmaceutical and medical device packaging films. Klöckner Pentaplast will also create 26 jobs at its Wythe County facility, which produces packaging films for the food and beverage industry. Virginia successfully competed with West Virginia for the expansions.

“For kp, the investment strengthens our local footprint in Virginia, which has served as the company’s proud home and a mainstay in the community for several decades,” said Tracey Peacock, kp’s President of the Pharma, Health and Specialties Division. “Virginia is the ideal location to expand our facilities due to its proximity to customers, allowing us to conveniently serve them and to position the Gordonsville and Rural Retreat sites as Centers of Excellence for the company. This expansion will provide new capacity for both heat shrink sleeve films and our post-consumer recycled PET line, which we previously announced to serve our sustainable consumer and food packaging customer base. The new PET heat shrink sleeve film production line is expected to be fully operational in the third quarter of 2022.”

“We are proud Klöckner Pentaplast will expand operations in Louisa County and Wythe County, growing its corporate footprint in the Commonwealth and creating more than 50 high-quality jobs,” said Secretary of Commerce and Trade Brian Ball. “This company is at the forefront of the packaging industry, and a manufacturer of kp’s caliber will continue to bolster this thriving sector in Virginia.”

The Virginia Economic Development Partnership worked with Louisa County, Wythe County, the Joint Industrial Development Authority of Wythe County, the Town of Rural Retreat, and Virginia’s Industrial Advancement Alliance to secure the project for Virginia. Governor Northam approved a performance-based grant of $800,000 from the Virginia Investment Performance program, an incentive that encourages capital investment by existing Virginia companies. The Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission approved $263,500 from the Tobacco Region Opportunity Fund for the Wythe County expansion. Funding and services to support Klöckner Pentaplast employee training activities will be provided through the Virginia Jobs Investment Program.

“Klöckner Pentaplast’s decision to deepen its roots in the Commonwealth underscores the importance of having strong infrastructure and a ready workforce to support the advanced manufacturing industry,” said Governor Ralph Northam. “We are proud to continue a decades-long partnership with an innovative global manufacturer like kp, and we thank the company for its major investment, which will have a positive impact in Louisa and Wythe Counties and bolster Virginia’s ongoing recovery efforts.”

Klöckner Pentaplast Group is a global leader in rigid and flexible packaging and specialty film solutions, serving the pharmaceutical, medical device, food, beverage, and card markets, among others. Founded in 1965, the company has operations in 18 countries and employs over 5,900 people worldwide in over 60 locations, including 32 production sites. The company established its first North American production facility in 1979 in Gordonsville, Virginia.

“The Joint Industrial Development Authority of Wythe County is pleased to have supported this substantial project for the people of Wythe County,” said David A. Kause, Chairman of the Joint Industrial Development Authority of Wythe County, Wytheville, and Rural Retreat. “Klöckner Pentaplast’s growth and investment in Rural Retreat is a vote of confidence in our community and the strong workforce we offer.”

Exclusive Research