Renata Smataviciene, EU & US Quality Director at RETAL recently spoke with Packaging Europe about the effects the pandemic is having on her company.
What measures are you taking to ensure you meet the challenges presented by the pandemic?
We will continue with our coronavirus protocol for the foreseeable future to keep protecting our production staff and our business. Many non-production employees that previously worked in our plants have found it very positive and productive working from home, so we will keep discussing how we can harness that once the restrictions are lifted. It is crucial to keep our risk assessment and protocol up to date as the situation changes, for the support of our people and our business. We will also continue to stay in closer contact with our customers, as we've found that staying customer-orientated in response to quickly-changing demands has been really positive.
Read the interview online at Packaging Europe
RETAL is delighted to be able to donate customised film and expertise to the innovative Robotikos Mokykla to help create over 70,000 masks for healthcare professionals on the frontline of the coronavirus.
RETAL Baltic General Manager Vikorija Jureviciute responded to an online shout-out from the non-profit organisation, which provides innovative technical education for children. “I saw an article where Robotikos described their need for films to create PPE masks for people in at-risk jobs during coronavirus in Lithuania. I knew we could help as we are film experts! I contacted them straight away to offer our films and design and production expertise. My team was so motivated to help, it has been a very positive experience.”
Robotikos has coordinated volunteers for cutting the masks with lasers as well as to provide safe collection and delivery to the ambulance workers and medical staff that need them. Viktorija and her team's quick response saw regular production of its PET and rPET films and preforms slightly delayed over one weekend while they tested various options to create the best possible film for the masks.
Viktorija adds, “More people than ever before are needing to use PPE masks; not only those in hospitals but increasingly those in production of essential food and beverages too. RETAL is delighted to be able to offer our skills and resources to this crucial protection of key workers, and I personally am grateful to Robotikos for managing this important project.”
While nobody predicted the global coronavirus pandemic, now it's here we can make sure to learn lessons that support and strengthen our businesses from now on. Part of the 'new normal' will be to ensure that heightened best practice is maintained across manufacturing, helping to protect our people and our profits.
Global plastic packaging solutions provider RETAL has cleverly adapted its cross-factory quality management protocol to allow all its 17 facilities to stay effective and operational throughout the crisis, with no known cases of coronavirus in its over-1500 employees.
Instigated by RETAL's European & US Quality Director Renata Smataviciene, the QM protocol document was already in place for RETAL's largest Lithuanian factory, offering a detailed risk management for the active promotion of a healthy and efficient workplace. Working in cooperation with general managers, Renata quickly adapted this risk management document for each of the RETAL factories, allowing the specific circumstances of the different factories to combine with the Quality Management Best Practice she created.
The protocol includes strict documentation, keeping shifts totally separate, implementation of extra hygiene practices, a dedicated isolation room at each factory, a plan for potential infection of an employee either while at work or at home, and guidance for staying connected to colleagues and the wider company using appropriate technology platforms.
Renata says, “It will be very important to agree on what did and did not work. We will be able to create a detailed document that delivers clear protocol on how we can handle such unusual circumstances so that what we have learned is not wasted. We will also discuss and plan for what happens when everything goes back to normal, which is not as easy as it sounds! By having crisis management protocol in place with each facility documenting their own experiences, we can transpose this to other situations if needed.”
Read the press release on Manufacturing Journal.
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“We’re Mediterranean. I miss being able to be physically close to my team!”
For Ester Maso, general manager of Retal Iberia, a manufacturer of PET preforms and containers, caps and films, social distancing caused by the coronavirus outbreak has lost her that important physical connection with her colleagues.
She is thankful, however, that there is “a big window between the main office and production area, so the team can talk on the phone and wave to each other while they chat”. For businesses like Retal Iberia, which are reliant on in-person water cooler communication and brainstorming, finding new ways of working within or away from the office has been imperative.
“We are all in different circumstances with our families, maybe with young children or older relatives to care for, so we are making sure to stay connected through text messaging with production staff as they do not always have access to email or our intranet,” said Maso. “I’m very proud of how our team has pulled together.”
Plastics packaging manufacturers have gone from being defensive to essential businesses in a matter of weeks, as the food and beverage supply-chain is doing its bit to keep people fed and watered.
When it comes to the production staff, Retal EU & US quality director Renata Smataviciene explained how the company quickly implemented additional best practice protocol across its ten production plants in the region, taking the lead from its Italian plant, which is located just north of Venice.
Smataviciene said: “As a manufacturer of preforms for the food and beverage sectors worldwide, we already worked to strict health and safety standards for food contact, so we have implemented additional rules for disinfection every two hours and between each shift, separating production workers into up to five shift teams in each location with no contact between shifts, and are maintaining separate coffee and canteen areas for each shift. We have also created a strict plan of action for if a production worker gets sick and we’re taking temperatures before every shift.”
It may be a while yet before Maso can regain that physical proximity to her colleagues that she longs for, but companies are finding new and imaginative ways to do business, both internally and externally with clients and suppliers.
Read the article in Plastics in Packaging
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RETAL is delighted to be able to donate customised film and expertise to the innovative Robotikos Mokykla to help create over 70,000 masks for healthcare professionals on the frontline of the coronavirus.
RETAL Baltic General Manager Vikorija Jureviciute responded to an online shout-out from the non-profit organisation, which provides innovative technical education for children. “I saw an article where Robotikos described their need for films to create PPE masks for people in at-risk jobs during coronavirus in Lithuania. I knew we could help as we are film experts! I contacted them straight away to offer our films and design and production expertise. My team was so motivated to help, it has been a very positive experience.”
Robotikos has coordinated volunteers for cutting the masks with lasers as well as to provide safe collection and delivery to the ambulance workers and medical staff that need them. Viktorija and her team's quick response saw regular production of its PET and rPET films and preforms slightly delayed over one weekend while they tested various options to create the best possible film for the masks.
Viktorija adds, “More people than ever before are needing to use PPE masks; not only those in hospitals but increasingly those in production of essential food and beverages too. RETAL is delighted to be able to offer our skills and resources to this crucial protection of key workers, and I personally am grateful to Robotikos for managing this important project.”
RETAL – Donation of customised film for coronavirus masks
Retal donates customised film and expertise to the innovative Robotikos Mokykla to help create over 70,000 masks for healthcare professionals on the frontline of the coronavirus. Retal Baltic General Manager Vikorija Jureviciute responded to an online shout-out from the non-profit organisation, which provides technical education for children. “I saw an article where Robotikos described their need for films to create PPE masks for people in at-risk jobs during coronavirus in Lithuania. I knew we could help as we are film experts! I contacted them straight away to offer our films and design and production expertise. My team was so motivated to help, it has been a very positive experience.” Robotikos has coordinated volunteers for cutting the masks with lasers as well as to provide safe collection and delivery to the ambulance workers and medical staff that need them. Viktorija and her team’s quick response saw regular production of its PET and rPET films and preforms slightly delayed over one weekend while they tested various options to create the best possible film for the masks. Viktorija adds, “More people than ever before are needing to use PPE masks; not only those in hospitals but increasingly those in production of essential food and beverages too. Retal is delighted to be able to offer our skills and resources to this crucial protection of key workers, and I personally am grateful to Robotikos for managing this important project.” (April 15, 2020)
At Retal Baltic in Klaipeda, one of the largest production sites of plastic packaging manufacturer Retal, general manager Viktorija Jureviciute has striven to maintain the production of HDPE closures and rPET films for the food and beverage industry – products considered part of the essential industrial supply chain.
Then, an online shout-out from Robotikos Mokykla, or Robotics School, a non-profit organisation that provides innovative technical education for children, who was looking for potential local partners caught Jureviciute’s eye.
“With a few production changes, we could offer exactly what the front-line workers needed. Even though this pandemic has been an incredibly busy and challenging time for everyone, our team really pulled together to produce the film required – everyone was really motivated to help.”
The Retal Baltic production team first assessed its current film production to see how it could be adjusted to meet the performance for the masks. A few trials were carried out to decide which thickness would be suitable, with a one-layer film with anti-block additives chosen as it offers the clearest view. “We tested our GPET film too, but APET was already good enough and allowed for a peel-off cover if needed,” said Viktorija.
With the wholehearted support of the production teams and by slightly adapting its normal production over the weekend, Retal swung into action.
“We've been able to produce enough of the right film for 70,000 masks, which we've happily donated to Robotics School,” said Jureviciute.
The Robotics School team is coordinating volunteers for cutting the masks with lasers as well as their collection and delivery; libraries are 3D-printing the frames used with the Retal film masks for medical workers.
The film PPE masks are being distributed to ambulance workers, medical services staff and hospitals, as well as increasingly to production staff in industrial companies. With more people than ever before needing to use reliable PPE masks in order to continue to perform their work safely, Retal is delighted to be able to offer the necessary skills and resources, said Jureviciute.
Read the article on Sustainable Plastics
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Trusted partners enable development over and above what individual companies can do alone. With the right support, service and communication, partners across the supply chain are hugely valued and much appreciated.
For global packaging producer RETAL, finding and maintaining trusted partners is crucial to its ongoing success, with its network of suppliers able to work together with its account managers to deliver exactly what customers need, when they need it.
A recent investment in new production lines from SACMI at RETAL Baltic and a sister company is the latest development in an evolving, long-standing relationship between RETAL and the respected machinery supplier.
SACMI is an international leader in industrial plant engineering, offering a varied portfolio of machines and complete plants for industries including packaging. Headquartered in Imola, Italy, and with over 4500 employees at 80 sites worldwide, SACMI prides itself on ‘putting customer satisfaction first’.
That promise is evident in the cooperation between RETAL and SACMI. As a supplier of machines for the manufacture of plastic closures, SACMI was aware of RETAL’s positive reputation and portfolio of preforms, closures and films, initially supplying the company with two lines in 1999.
SACMI key account manager Riccardo Rubini explains, “At that time, RETAL was only using injection technology and SACMI installed only compression technology. There were a number of challenges in terms of performance and maintenance of lines, so it’s fair to say that RETAL was not properly advised; it was a 50/50 issue. Although I wasn’t part of the SACMI team that worked with RETAL then, I’ve been determined to rectify the issue and show how our production lines can reliably deliver exactly what the company needs in terms of closures.”
Read the full version in Business Focus
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Effective internal communications for a global company brings many advantages but can be hard to implement and maintain. With various stakeholders and their differing needs, creating an engaging communications strategy is an opportunity for commercial and organisational goals to be met. Global plastic packaging manufacturer RETAL shares how developing its intranet has been both more difficult and more rewarding than it expected.
For traditional manufacturing companies, the understanding of what effective communications are and why they’re necessary can be the first hurdle in developing a communications strategy. Different stakeholders can see the value of communications in opposite terms, with the ROI hard to quantify, especially in the short term. Yet the cost of poor internal communications may only be seen when it’s too late, so proposing, agreeing to, and, crucially, getting the budget for, a corporate intranet is the first hurdle.
Plastic packaging has a sustainable future. Delivering effective, circular packaging solutions that are both convenient for consumers and don’t negatively impact the planet is a challenge packaging manufacturers and global food and beverage brands are stepping up to.