DS Smith, a leading global provider of sustainable fibre-based packaging solutions, has invested more than €50 million euros in its packaging facilities in Portugal during the last three years. The commitment underlines the company's strategic priorities around innovation, sustainability, and circularity, with a key focus on optimizing service capabilities for customers in the Iberian region, and on upgrading technology and renewable energy solutions.
The investments in Portugal include the acquisition of two top-of-the-range fluting machines for packaging facilities in Oporto and Leiria, and the company has upgraded a corrugator unit for optimal performance at its packaging facility in Lisbon with the installation of a 2,800mm (approximately 9.19 ft) wide Dry End.
The new machinery will enhance service capabilities and facilitate collaboration in the production of a wide range of sustainable corrugated cardboard solutions with customers. This includes triple corrugated cardboard that is frequently applied as a packaging solution for circumstances where high-end performance is required for the transportation of heavy products.
In addition, DS Smith has invested in a large processing machine that is specifically intended for the heavy-duty marketplace. The new specialized equipment is also for the manufacture of corrugated cardboard solutions that are robust enough to transport heavy, large, or bulky products for sectors like industry and agriculture.
DS Smith customers in the e-commerce sector will benefit from an additional investment in the upgrading of machinery to produce padded paper envelopes. The company’s designers have innovated a sustainable fibre-based alternative solution to plastic-based bubble-wrap and are also reducing the amount of filling used in end products.
DS Smith has been steadily building its assets in the Iberian region in response to a growing demand for sustainable packaging solutions from customers in a range of sectors. In Portugal in 2021, it installed the first digital printer with Single-Pass technology which makes it possible to produce 100% personalized packaging with photographic print quality within shorter delivery times.
Other investments have been made in renewable energy in Iberia and DS Smith commissioned the installation of solar panels at its packaging plants in Esmoriz, Leiria, and Lisbon to produce electricity for its own consumption. The measures are anticipated to reduce CO2 emissions by 34% a year.
Américo Rocha, General Manager, DS Smith Packaging Division, Portugal:
“The company has been investing in its operations globally and our country is no exception. This significant investment in the packaging plants in Portugal reflects our commitment to promoting technological and product innovation locally and to contributing to the evolution of our units. The new resources allow us to increase the diversity of our offer, as well as our differentiation in the marketplace, with sustainable, innovative, and optimized packaging solutions for the entire supply chain. At the same time, our commitment to providing modern and efficient equipment supports our response to our customers’ evolving needs as we work with them to replace plastic and reduce carbon emissions for the Circular Economy. We are focused on making a meaningful contribution to the long-term economic and social development of our local communities.”
The DS Smith Packaging Division in Portugal has six factories that are in Guilhabreu, Esmoriz, Águeda, Carregal do Sal, Leiria, and Lisbon, and a logistics centre in Madeira.
The company has two recycling mills, in Oporto and Figueira da Foz, and a kraft paper mill in Viana do Castelo. In 2023, €145 million euros were invested in Viana do Castelo as a part of a multi-year development programme.
DS Smith is committed to helping its customers move towards a circular economy with key targets outlined in the company’s Now & Next sustainability strategy and company-wide purpose of Redefining Packaging for a Changing World.