UK packaging manufacturer celebrates birthday with £1.1m spend

Polythene manufacturer and packaging supplier, Duo UK, has marked its 25th year in business with a 12 month investment spree which has seen £1.1m ploughed into new machinery and software in a move which the company says positions it for new markets and reinforces its presence in its existing specialisms. 

Duo UK, which is based in Manchester, manufactures bespoke polythene packaging for the retail, e-tail and industrial markets. The bulk of Duo’s investment has been made in a £750,000 Italian-made co-extrusion (co-ex) machine customised to its requirements. Duo says the move increases the its film manufacturing capacity by 40 percent.

“Co-extrusion has better efficiency and a higher output than our current machinery, thereby allowing us to produce film more quickly, while the resulting polythene is stronger, has better opacity and greater visual appeal - all things that clients look for, commented Duo’s Managing Director, David Brimelow.

“Production costs and the environmental impact are also cut thanks to a substantial reduction in energy consumption, increased amounts of recycled content and lower levels of raw materials and waste.

These technical advantages open the door to new markets including the courier sector, while the co-ex technology also allows us to produce blends for specialist applications, such as film which can withstand high levels of heat.”

Finance for the deal was raised via the Italian markets which offered surprisingly competitive terms as part of the Italian Government’s support of their own manufacturing sector, as Duo UK’s finance director, Paul Teasdale, commented: “Investing in the co-ex machine was essential for the next stage of Duo’s growth so being able to access foreign capital markets at competitive rates helped speed up the investment process compared to UK alternatives.”

In addition to the co-extruder, Duo has invested £225,000 in a six-colour flexographic printing press and Manufacturing Production Scheduling (MRP) and Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software.

“This trio of strategic investments gives us a great platform to build on our first quarter of a century in business - they open the door to new markets, allows us to offer new or better products to existing customers and enables us to better integrate our main Manchester operations with our second manufacturing site in Nottingham,” Brimelow said.