Highlander Partners Expands Akomex’s Facility to Double Its Packaging Business
Warsaw, Poland, April 27, 2016 – The Akomex Group, one of the largest Polish manufacturers of cardboard packaging for the pharma and food industries in Europe, has launched an innovative and highly efficient production line at its newly expanded plant in Starogard Gdański, Northern Poland. Thanks to the investment made by Highlander Partners, its majority owner, the Starogard facility has gained the potential to double its current production next year.
Akomex has equipped the facility with innovative machinery, including an eco-friendly and energy-efficient printing machine with an inline protection technology for the production of packaging for the pharma industry. The newly installed production line increases the Company’s capability to produce highly refined packaging in the premium segment. In addition to new technologies, an extensive storage space has been created and the logistics further improved. Akomex also plans to put another production line in the expanded facility by the end of this year.
“The investment has been made as part of our expansion plan for the Akomex Group, which is one of the Polish market leaders in the packaging business,” said Dawid Walendowski, Managing Partner of Highlander Partners.
The development of the Akomex facility and the implementation of new technologies in the production process represents part of the expansion plan anticipated by the Akomex Group in 2016. Currently, the attention of the Group’s management is focused on the completion of the integration process of the two companies that form the Group, namely Akomex and DrukPak, and on securing all the necessary conditions and resources to double the production of the Starogard facility in 2017.
“As soon as we achieved our goal of an increase in the production potential and a significant expansion of our technological competence, we will focus on the effective implementation of GMP standards in the facility. The immediate challenge for the company is the implementation of ISO 15378, which is to confirm that we are fully prepared to launch the production of packaging for the pharma industry in the Starogard plant. Moreover, by operating two advanced facilities, the Group fully meets the requirement of business continuity, which is an important attribute,” said Pawel Kalbarczyk, CEO of Akomex.
The facility expansion has been carried out on the basis of an authorization to operate in the Pomeranian Special Economic Zone. The expanded plant will employ more than 50 specialists, who have been trained in terms of know-how and manufacturing best practices developed and implemented in DrukPak.
About Akomex Group
The Akomex Group is one of the largest producers of cardboard packaging for the consumer industry in Poland, and successfully competes on European markets. Among its customers are large global pharmaceutical and food companies. The Group consists of DrukPak, specializing in the production of high-quality packaging for the pharmaceutical industry, with a factory in Aleksandrów Kujawski, and Akomex, producing packaging for the food industry in its newly extended facility in Starogard Gdański.
Highlander Partners, Akomex’s financial investor for more than 5 years, has initiated the merger of these two companies by acquiring shares of DrukPak 2 years ago, as an industry investor for the company. Thanks to the alliance, Akomex and DrukPak have perfectly complemented their skills and enriched their offer. Both companies retain their commercial brands and an individualized philosophy of customer service, which is very well received by the market. The Group is rapidly expanding. The consolidated revenue amounted to PLN 155 million (approximately $40 million) last year and is dynamically growing.
About Highlander Partners
Highlander Partners, with offices in Dallas, USA and Warsaw, Poland, is a private equity firm specializing in long-term direct investments in midsize private businesses from the manufacturing and service sectors. The company currently manages assets of more than $1 billion, allocated in North America and Central Europe.
Highlander Partners is the majority owner of Akomex Group, and in two other Polish companies – QFG (food processing industry) and ProService (financial industry). Two other investments in Poland, including MEDI-system (medical industry) and ZREW Transformatory (electro-energy sector) were successfully exited within the last few months.
Additional information
Dawid Walendowski, managing partner, Highlander Partners, phone +48 22 521 04 20
Paweł Kalbarczyk, CEO, Akomex Group, phone +48 54 282 82 50