NOVEMBER 2015www.endeavourmagazine.com

INSPIRED BY YOUR SUCCESS

Wang On FibresPackaging Manufacturing

As is the case with many sectors, the South African packaging industry is facing challenges, however, it is still capable of successfully competing in global markets and is encouraging the companies and businesses within it to aim to turn these challenges into opportunities. This is the philosophy behind Wang On Shipping, who specialise in fibre packaging bags for the shipping industry.

WRITTEN BY JACK SLATER

PACKAGING MANUFACTURING

www.littlegatepublishing.com

WANG ON FIBRES0027 11 9081792

Wang On has worked consistently and with great persistence to structure themselves as a reliable and forthright company in an industry sometimes overshadowed by

companies such as Nampak, Uniprint and Mpact. However, they have come to shine in the industry thanks to their level of customer service and personalised approach to business, which is often lost in the bigger companies.

This being said, as a SME, Wang On is facing many challenges. These include the high cost of administered services such as electricity and municipal services, as well as the shortage of skilled labour, a vex that has followed South African businesses for decades. Another challenge is the export market. While foreign companies, which export packaging products to South Africa pay no duties, countries such as Brazil, among others, impose duties on South African packaging exports.

As a united front, the packaging industry is continuously engaging with the Government regarding this, asking not for protection against it but for fair play. Slowly but surely the Government is realising the significance of this challenge and are attempting to make changes, however, it is no secret that in South Africa the actions of the Government do not always benefit those it should.

It is the opinion of many in the industry that the packaging industry should look to skills development as a way to bridge the skills gap. Furthermore, for South Africa to reduce its unemployment rate and create more jobs, it needs to develop its manufacturing sector.

The Gross domestic product (GDP) has, to a large extent, been driven by services in the recent past, rather than by manufacturing. A discussion with Wang On’s director reveals that the total value of South Africa’s packaging industry is around R43-billion, contributing about 1.5% to South Africa’s GDP. Plastic packaging contributes approximately R20-billion a year and paper packaging R12-billion a year, with the balance made up by glass and metal packaging. Not only is the packaging industry a significant employer, it also assists in the beneficiation of the country’s natural resources.

Packaging materials are produced and manufactured locally, from local materials, which is a tremendous benefit to South Africa in terms of economic growth and job creation. Also to consider is that in the absence of adequate packaging, countries will face product waste that negatively impacts on economies.

In developed countries, such as the UK, about 3% of the produce that is grown or produced in the field is lost between the point of production and the point of consumption. This is in comparison with developing countries, where product waste can be as high as 40% as a result of inadequate packaging materials and poor infrastructure.

Indeed, it can be argued that packaging has a critical role to play across the entire value chain and in establishing food security, which is a global issue and one type of packaging cannot be considered as uniformly better than another, as each type has different applications and fills a different need in the market.

There is a constant migration from one type of packaging to another over time, such as from glass to poly-ethylene terephthalate

WANG ON FIBRES

In no way is South Africa to be considered second rate with regard to the design and application of packaging, in fact it is a high demand country for exports and imports of food, produce and manufactured goods and as such, the packaging industry has had to grow and develop to support this.

(PET). This migration is driven by several factors, including cost, the effects that a certain type of packaging has on the environment with regard to its recyclability and its carbon footprint, the application of the packaging material and the safety it offers consumers.

PET packaging has come a long way over the last 20 years, as the technology to mould PET into a suitable packaging form was not available at its conception and as a packaging material, PET has the advantage of being lightweight. For example, a 500 ml glass bottle weighs 400 g, whereas a 500 ml plastic bottle weighs only 40 g.

While Wang On is less involved in the PERT recycling projects, it is more focussed on fibres, as it is still part of the industry that is facing this opportunity to turn challenge to causality. To do this it has to be highly selective of the companies it works with, such as Constantia Press Ink, who have been working with Wang On Fibres for the past five months as a procurement company that secures packaging and other related needs such as needles for Wang On’s bag making machines.

Advanced product technology, R&D facilities and a level of service second to none among ink companies

Colour on demand • Colour blending • Colour matching • Supply chain systems • Troubleshooting

Gate 10, 19 Aitken RoadEdenvale, Gauteng, South Africa

Tel: +27 11 524 0715Fax: +27 11 524 0719

constantia-inks.co.za

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