Production and
products

Continuous quality improvement along the value chain

Vetropack views quality not merely as a characteristic of its products but endeavours to improve the quality of all processes continuously throughout the value chain and coordinate them in accordance with the “One brand, one quality” motto. Firstly, this is necessary to satisfy customers’ more stringent demands, secondly it will improve efficiency. It will also improve occupational safety and reduce environmental pollution.

The launch to the “Vetropack Production System” (VPPS) project also took centre stage in 2019. Its aim is to reduce wastage of all kinds systematically in the sense of “lean production”. These include overproduction, defects, waiting times, unnecessary movements and transports as well as inefficient processes and inventories, for example. The target is to avoid all activities that do not contribute to customer benefit. This requires existing processes to be questioned constructively and wastage to be identified and reduced in workshops. Having successfully implemented a project in the moulding workshop in the pilot site at Pöchlarn in 2019, Vetropack has also started initial preparations in Kremsmünster and plans to introduce VPPS in all sites gradually over the next few years.

In addition, the major furnace renovation projects in Nemšová (Slovakia) and Gostomel (Ukraine) also achieved comprehensive improvements in the quality of the glass containers produced.

Over the next few years, the “Leadership in quality” and “Group first” initiatives will be developed in addition to implementing the “Vetropack Production Systems”. They will raise awareness of continuous quality improvement even further.

Digitalisation and automation

At Vetropack, digitisation and automation initiatives are key to sustainable business development. The company is using the range of new technologies to develop its processes. In the context of its decision-making processes, Vetropack also benefits from a more accurate database and can improve efficiency through automation solutions.

Group-wide harmonisation and standardisation of operating and production processes make automation possible. Improvements in quality and increases in productivity can be achieved by this means. Digitisation is taking place in all divisions, whether in the simplification of administration processes or in production. Vetropack therefore developed a digitisation roadmap in 2019 in which measures to make the fourth industrial revolution a reality are laid down. Five of the projects on the roadmap were implemented in the year under review. Besides the energy management system and a new SAP solution, which creates the basic requirements for digitisation at Vetropack, the company has also introduced programmes for automated invoicing, document management and for regulating workflows in product development. The production process was also made more stable and reproducible through the use of lubricating robots. Use of mould lubricants was also reduced by around 70%. Use of robots also released employees from onerous routine work and improved occupational safety.

Further automation and digitisation projects planned relate, for example, to switching production planning to the new SAP system, changing the reporting tools both for Group-wide and HR-specific KPIs and the introduction of a supplier invoice management and procurement platform. Further steps are also planned in the production process; the company is also evaluating how it can use Big Data in future.

Innovation through customer-specific products

Vetropack converts ideas into products and, in doing so, guarantees a high standard of service and quality. The Group is therefore well equipped to live up to market demands and be a step ahead of its competitors. A key characteristic of the product development process are short communication channels between the production teams and customers. They allow Vetropack to react to customers’ requirements at any time and develop new products within a short period.

In 2019, Vetropack changed the colour of one of its furnaces in the Nemšová plant to blue to produce a series of blue bottles on behalf of a customer. Other customer-focused product launches included lighter weight beer bottles for an Austrian brewery. The Group also helped customers convert from other packaging materials to glass packaging, which is becoming more relevant in sectors such as the milk industry especially. Vetropack is proud of the fact that it continuously develops innovative products for its customers. However, different price expectations or capacity bottlenecks make successful product innovations more difficult in part. Vetropack therefore invested in the continuous training of its employees and in additional production capacity in the year under review. The company also cut its cost base to improve product access.

The Group continues to concentrate heavily on the development of VIP Glass technology and will use its excellent understanding of local markets to develop a marketing strategy for VIP Glass.