New production facility

The canal paves the way to the future: the Naviglio Grande is a canal that flows into the river Ticino, which in turn forms the border between Lombardy and Piedmont. Starting in the 13th century, the canal was used to transport goods to and from the burgeoning industrial region around Milan – and it continued to perform this function well into the 20th century. The groundbreaking ceremony for the Vetropack Group's new plant took place on 25 October 2021. With nine glassworks and around 4,000 employees, Vetropack supplies high-quality glass packaging to markets in central, eastern and southern Europe. The Group's main focus is on the food and beverage industry, with packaging for products ranging from olive oil and preserves to nut nougat spreads and juices, soft drinks and spirits of all kinds. Wine and prosecco play a key part in the Italian market.

Vetropack Italia S.r.l. became a subsidiary of the Group in 2015, but the history of glass production at the Trezzano sul Naviglio site dates back to 1960. Johann Reiter, Vetropack's CEO, explains: “It already became clear at a very early stage that the old site in Trezzano sul Naviglio was not adequate to meet our company's objectives in the longer term. The important Italian market, with its rich culinary tradition and many world-famous brands, plays a key part in our strategy.” Then there are the ambitious goals for quality and sustainability that the company aims to achieve by 2030: on the one hand, production is to become more flexible and individual while on the other, resources should be used as efficiently as possible.

Far more than a factory – a living piece of the future

Planning began well in advance for the new production facility, which entails investments in excess of CHF 400 million. All stakeholders – including the Italian authorities, landscape designers, architects, employees in Trezzano sul Naviglio and experts from the Vetropack Group – were brought on board at an early stage to develop an exceptionally future-proof and sustainable concept. Built on the site of the former Reno De Medici paper mill in compliance with all environmental requirements, the future manufacturing facility will occupy an area of 347,000 m² including about 170,000 m² for the production plant as such.

A historically important building is being restored and reopened to the public as an information centre. The SP225 trunk road is to be adapted as the building work proceeds; construction of parking areas for passenger cars and trucks will also relieve pressure on this route. Another feature of the site is a park extending over 31,000 m²: a public green space that provides an attractive contrast to the modern industrial landscape. All trees felled in the course of the construction work will be replanted elsewhere. The glass façades blend into the landscape harmoniously – thanks not least to the understated earth tones chosen for the colour scheme. The roof of the facility has been designed so that photovoltaic systems can be used on its entire area: some of them will even start operating on day one.

All these features show that sustainability has high priority at Boffalora – not only in terms of urban development and landscaping, but also as regards technology and social aspects: all 301 employees at the old Trezzano sul Naviglio location have been offered transfers to the new site at Boffalora, about 25 kilometres away. Although the volume produced per employee will be substantially higher, there will also be a slight increase in the size of the workforce thanks to the increased capacity – so training on the new production plants for both new and existing employees has already been in progress since 2020.

More with less – Industry 4.0

How will glass be produced in the new plant? Vetropack is leveraging the benefits of a smart factory while retaining the essential factors of human know-how and creativity: all the glass production processes are based on the Vetropack Group's expertise, with cutting-edge technology incorporated throughout. Vetropack's “safety first” philosophy has been implemented consistently, and workplace design incorporates the latest findings from ergonomic research. Both white and cuvée shades will be produced on site, and productivity per tonne of glass will increase substantially thanks to state-of-the-art manufacturing equipment. As in the old glassworks, two furnaces will be commissioned and operated at Boffalora in the initial phase. However, the entire infrastructure is already designed for an expansion of production capacity, given that the market is expected to develop positively both in Italy and beyond its borders. Even with two furnaces, production capacity will already be increased by about 70 percent.

“This will also make Boffalora one of the largest facilities within the Vetropack Group,” according to Christoph Burgermeister, Project Manager at Vetropack. “With modern plant and processes, we'll be able to produce more flexibly in the new glassworks. That will put us in a better position to meet rising demand for high-calibre packaging – including orders for smaller quantities or semi-specialities, as we call them.” One outstanding feature is the fully automated warehouse: autonomous vehicles transport finished bottles and glass containers safely from the production line into the warehouse, and then onto the loading ramp – with no human intervention!

Vetropack is a sustainability pioneer

As a top priority, Vetropack has also invested massively to ensure that the new plant will be environment-friendly and resource-efficient. Glass is one of the most sustainable of all packaging materials because it is 100% recyclable – and it can be recycled an infinite number of times. As one of the pioneers of recycling, Vetropack began collecting used glass in Switzerland back in 1970. Nowadays, the proportion of reused glass in the Vetropack Group is about 55%, and the aim is to surpass 70% by 2030.