VAN WERT, OH (WLIO) - Big business news in Van Wert County as a leading maker of egg cartons is growing even more thanks to a multi-million dollar project. Our Madison Kenjura has the story.
TekniPlex consumer products provide advanced materials science solutions for food & beverage and consumer packaged companies. They are the top producer of egg cartons in Mexico and the United States. With the current shift from foam to fiber cartons in the retail market, TekniPlex, Inc. has started building a fiber solutions development and production facility at 910 Vision Drive in Van Wert.
"We chose Van Wert because we looked at a lot of different sites in and around our Decatur, Indiana plant, and Ohio came through with a lot of incentives. We wanted to be close to our plant in Decatur for support from a start-up standpoint. The overall incentives, economics, and the jobs available here in Van Wert drove the decision," stated Jay Arnold, senior vice president/GM Fiber Business.
The company spent just over a year finalizing the design plans for its new facility. The facility will cover an area of over 200,000 square feet and include multiple production lines equipped with advanced technologies. Among these technologies is TekniPlex's proprietary technology, which the company constantly strives to enhance.
"We'll be producing fiber-based cartons that are compostable, biodegradable, and sustainable using recycled raw materials pumped into a wet end for a pulping machine and, throughout the process, highly automated," explained Lance Novotny, vice president of manufacturing.
Now that the project is in construction, TekniPlex expects it to be completed by early spring next year. The aim is to begin operations in quarter 4 of the 2023 fiscal year, with the anticipated outcome of generating $40 million in capital investments for the new facility.
"It's a huge impact because, first of all, it's a brand new facility. So we got the import of people who are building it here, and then a year from now, hopefully when they're operational, 100 new jobs. Which for a community our size is a home run," said Thad Lichtensteiger, Van Wert County Commissioner.
TekniPlex, Inc. was granted a seven-year, 1.311% tax credit by the Ohio Tax Credit Authority on May 9. The company aims to contribute $4.8 million annually to the local economy through increased payroll.
