Bringing experienced flexibility to an established market

Since opening in #Donora, PA in 2016, RETAL has gone from strength to strength in the US, expanding its team, adding capacity to its production site, and investing heavily in new technology. Together, this brings its annual preform production capabilities to 2.5b, with a total of 11 lines, and more than 50% of its output already produced from up to 100% rPET.  

Regional Director for RETAL in the EU & US Olexiy Shapovalov says, “The US is a huge global market for PET and is very well established, with high volumes and strong partnerships. But as the market is so established, there’s the possibility that designs and equipment haven’t needed to progress, with concentration on volumes meaning that products are duplicated. This can be great for standardization, but not so great for flexibility, sustainability, or differing consumer demands. Our approach is to capture our proven skills from our European activities – design, technologically-advanced production, customization – and to combine it with the quality and service focus of our US plant, and the team we have in Donora. It’s a powerful combination!” 

At a time of rapid new development of technology and capability, the companies that invest in new equipment and have the right people to utilize that investment have the competitive advantage. The most recent addition of intrinsic viscosity measurement capabilities and state of the art gas chromatography instrumentation highlights how RETAL PA is keen to show that standing on the shoulders of its European experience is adding value to its US achievements. 

Shapovalov continues, “There’s no one size fits all. We’re not trying to make one preform and sell it all over the world. We use our #R&D and technology skills to create responsible packaging solutions and then we produce them across our 13 sites, so they can be tailored to their local market needs. This gives all the advantages of standardization – the cost benefits, the supply chain benefits, the brand recognition – and combines them with the premium quality and service of an established European solutions provider, then produces and delivers them with the speed of a local partner.” 

Utilizing European experience in the US 

There are opportunities for the US market to take advantage of European experience in the evolution of dairy industry packaging, for example, with milk in the US usually packaged in big volumes in HDPE. Also, aseptic filling technology for juices is already popular in Europe, which could prove interesting as a solution in the US for ice teas and smoothies. 

#sustainability topics such as increased volumes of rPET and the potential legislation for tethered closures will also benefit, with RETAL able to call on its network of R&D and quality experts across different markets to customize solutions for US customers., as well as using 100% renewable energy at its Donora plant.  

Shapovalov concludes by saying that the exciting opportunities for progressive packaging in the US are a welcome chance to bring sustainability-forward packaging solutions to an open-minded market. “We have decades of experience in working with different markets and cultures, bringing values together. We’re always trying to see the future of packaging, to lean into how we can combine our advantages.”