Moulded Fibre Products - Packaging Europe

Moulded Fibre
Products: Breaking
New Ground
England’s first manufacturer of industrial pulp packaging appeared in 2012. James Gallacher, managing director of
Moulded Fibre Products Ltd, explains to Tim Sykes that his company is not just a new arrival in the UK but ushering
in new standards of quality and service from an international perspective.
Moulded Fibre Products (MFP) is a new addition to the Anglo-Irish Leisuregrow
Group of companies. One of its sister companies within the group,
Erin Horticulture Ltd, based in Ireland, had been involved in moulded pulp
production since 1980 (producing large high density pulp mouldings, primarily for the
horticultural industry). Erin had been receiving many enquiries for thin-walled
moulded pulp products, from egg boxes to electronics packaging, but was unable to
respond to this demand because it didn’t possess the necessary machinery.
“This prompted Richard Grimmer, a director of Erin Horticulture as well as Group
chairman, to propose creating a new company in the UK to develop and manufacture thin
walled products,” says Mr Gallacher. “Richard had known me for a long time and knew
about my experience of the European market place. I had been in the moulded pulp industry
for over 20 years and was a board member of the IMFA (International Moulded Fibre
Association). So he asked whether I’d be interested in starting up this company with him.”
Both men recognised the potential for growth in this sector beyond the immediate gap
in supply and they sat down to plan the best moulded fibre packaging manufacturer on
the market.
Perfectly placed
Operational since April 2012, MFP has turned those blueprints into reality. The company
occupies a 60,000 sq ft (5600 m2) manufacturing facilitiy in Flixborough, North Lincolnshire,
where it has invested £5 million on refurbishment and installation of gas lines,
electricity panels, and machinery.
The facility is also strategically positioned. “We have arrived as the only industrial pulp
packaging manufacturer in England,” Mr Gallacher reveals. “Moreover, our factory is
located near major motorway networks which put us within reach of all the major urban
areas of the UK. We are also close to the sea ports of Hull and Grimsby, which means we
are on the doorstep of economically attractive shipping routes connecting us to northern
and eastern Europe.”
MPF also benefits from synergies with the rest of the Leisuregrow Group, including
150,000 sq ft (14,000 m2) warehousing facilities in South Lincolnshire, a 423 acre site in
Birr, Ireland, with peat harvesting & moulded pulp production and sales and marketing
staff at Group headquarters in Hinxworth, Hertfordshire.
State of the art machinery
The foundation of MFP’s business strategy was to enter the market with the very best
machinery available.
“We have installed the first of three lines equipped with the latest Southern Pulp Machinery
models, which are described as the ‘Rolls Royce’ of the moulded pulp industry,”
Mr Gallacher reveals. “These servo driven, wet pressing machines consume much less
Packaging Europe Europe | 109 | 109 | |

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Wharf Road Ealand, Scunthorpe, South Humberside DN17 4JW
Tel: +44 (0)1724 712306 - Fax: +44 (0)1724 711858
Preferred supplier of Recovered Fibre to MFP Ltd.
West Riding Paper Services - South Barn, Brecks Farm, Selby Road, Monk Fryston, LS25 5EL - Phone: +44 (0)1977 689 046
Contact: Clive Hoyland - E-mail: clive.hoyland@westridingpaperservices.co.uk / clive.hoyland@btconnect.com
HPA was established in 1985 by Arthur Parkinson, a professional manager
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Many standards - one approach
The success of this approach has enabled us to expand the range
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Marking and a diverse range of industry specifi c standards. Utilising
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- build on what you’ve got’ we have helped over 4000 companies in a
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HEAD OFFICE: Cheshire House, Goostrey, Crewe, CW4 8JP
Tel: +44 (0)1477 549 116 - Fax: +44 (0)1477 537170 - E-mail: enquiries@hpa.co.uk
| 110 | Packaging Europe

www.toolingartwork.com
Tooling Artwork in Hong Kong, China is the fastest growing supplier of products and services
to the moulded pulp industry. We are proud of our ability to supply quality products to our
clients, offering a one-stop service from conception to mass production. We also provide
fast lead times.
We supply the following services:
• Pulp Solution Development
• Thermoforming Pulp Machinery
• Prototype Tooling and samples
• Production Tooling
• Mass production of “hot pressed” pulp
• Mass production of conventional style pulp
• Mass production of perfect quality Thermoforming Pulp. (packaging and food grade solutions)
Contact:
CEO Mr Chris YS Lo
E-mail:
chris@toolingartwork.com
China Head Offi ce: Rm 1008, 10/F, China South City Global Logistic Service Center, Pinghi Town, Longgang District, Shenzhen, PRC. Zip Code: 518111
Phone: +86 150 1289 8904
Hong Kong Offi ce: Unit C7, 2/F, Block C, Hong Kong Industrial Center, 489-491 Castle Peak Road, Kowloon, HK
Phone: +852 9655 5338
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energy than traditional technologies. We also have a Merrill Airdyne drier, which is
the most energy efficient drying system in the world, recycling super-heated steam.”
In addition, MFP has developed, together with a Chinese partner, a ground-breaking
fully automated press technology, which will be installed and operational by February
2013. “This will give us unrivalled product quality,” says Mr Gallacher. “The fully
automatic capability gives us a great advantage over the rest of the market, which is still
universally using semi-automatic machinery.” Although MFP will always be first and
foremost a product manufacturer, the company is licensed to supply this technology to
third parties in Europe and the Middle East, and great interest is anticipated.
Furthermore, MFP possesses an in-house design team and tooling facility, meaning it
can produce designs within 24 hours and turn around samples within three days.
Thus equipped with the most advanced machinery available for the moulded
fibre market, MFP can offer prospective customers higher quality and speed than
any competitors.
“The second of my two decades in the moulded fibre industry have been largely in
commercial roles, and this experience has taught me not to promise things you can’t
deliver,” remarks Mr Gallacher. “Thankfully, when customers come to our plant I don’t
have to say much, since the capabilities of our machines do the talking. We have the best
machines in the world. No one else in Europe can match their quality. Essentially, this
means we can supply a higher quality product – at a price which is barely any higher (if at
all) than existing suppliers.”
Receptive markets
The range of potential applications for moulded fibre is very broad. MFP’s mission
statement is to ‘profitably manufacture products which exceed customer expectations
for quality, value and service’ and the company is ready to take on any project if the cost
analysis indicates it can make the product profitably.
Despite being just a few months old, MFP has already generated a wide product
portfolio, with contracts in place servicing the food and beverage industries. These will be
key markets, so it wears its recent award of BRC certification ‘high hygiene risk grade A’
with pride.
However, Mr Gallacher sees a great deal of potential within the market beyond egg
boxes and drinks / produce trays. “The electronics packaging market has massive growth
potential for us, from smartphones to white goods,” he states. “Industrial packaging products
such as endcaps are an area of interest. We are also developing high quality mouldings
for the fine chemical industry and we see huge export potential for that market. We
also have the flexibility to cater for small requirements as well as multi container drop
customers, so we can handle orders ranging from 10,000 to 100 million units.”
Vision for growth
MFP’s strategy is to concentrate on building UK turnover before looking at manufacturing
in other countries. “Initially, the domestic market will be our main focus and that will
be customer driven but we expect to export to a number of European countries as we
develop our range of products,” explains Mr Gallacher.
In addition, the company has developed strong strategic supply partnerships with a
Chinese machinery and product manufacturer, as well as South Africa’s largest egg packaging
manufacturer. Supply agreements with these partners are in place, enabling MFP to
respond to demand in those regions.
With phase one of three complete, the company has one production line in operation
– and a plan in place to add a further two lines at the Flixborough plant. Work on the
second line commences in the summer of 2013 and the third phase will take place when
the company is satisfied that the second phase is satisfactorily finished.
“Beyond this, there is scope to further expand the Lincolnshire site or to open
another production facility elsewhere,” says Mr Gallacher. “With the Leisuregrow Group
behind us, we know the backing is there to invest if the markets dictate that another
factory is required.”
He concludes: “The Group chairman and I put a great deal of thought into this project.
As a result of this we have the right team in place (for instance, we recruited in my view
the best moulded pulp designer in the world, who is now my technical director), the right
machinery, the ideal location and the right strategy.”
Visit: www.mouldedfibreproducts.com
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