PETpla.net Insider 10 / 2020

BOTTLE MAKING 29 PETplanet Insider Vol. 21 No. 10/20 www.petpla.net BOTTLE MAKING 29 bottles less attractive”, says Mr Clark in justification of this step. “In terms of caps, our disc caps for personal care products take first place.” Sustainability and environmental awareness play a central role in all our actions, explains John Clark. With this in mind, customers are also specifi- cally sought that best suit Ant Packaging’s company philosophy. “Alternative culture is almost ubiquitous at our site. Simply because of this, it is immensely important for us that we fit in with that as a plastics processor. Production is therefore not only CO 2 -neu- tral but bottles are manufactured from 100% recycled material, both PET and HDPE. Here, we are basically seeing a clear increase in the trend for using recycled plastics, mainly for products in areas with less sensi- tive pricing.” rPET is obtained from the local and Thai markets. Ant Packaging’s turnover is almost €3.5 million. Concentration is on the local market. Only 6% of annual turn-over is intended for export, primarily to New Zealand, but other overseas regions have been included in the past. Mr Clark describes his recipe for success as follows: “It’s possible that our 20/20 rule is responsible for this and we follow it consist- ently. Twenty main customers, who each make up more than 1% of our business, but no one customer is greater than 20% of our total turnover. It’s not about growth but about strategic partnerships with those who share our philosophy.” In contrast to other converters, the company is now facing particular challenges during the corona- virus crisis: sufficient production capacity. “We can hardly keep up with the high demand for hand sani- tiser in Australia, like everywhere, so currently, we can only process orders from existing customers. Also, the administrative staff are mostly working from home throughout the crisis. Those who must go into work, like production employees, have their temperature taken when they arrive and undergo higher disinfec- tion procedures in the production hall. These meas- ures have been accepted well by our people,” says Mr Clark. “After the corona crisis, we want to invest in another single-stage PET system for bottles and an injection moulding system for caps. Furthermore, we are also planning to offer more products made from ocean plastic and are excited about the opportunities for chemical recycling.” www.antpackaging.com.au John Clark in his workshop