Pretium Packaging invests $2 million in PET blow molding equipment for Alabama plant

Plastic container and closure maker Pretium Packaging has made a US$2 million-dollar investment in new reheat stretch PET blow molding equipment and infrastructure for its manufacturing plant in Troy, Alabama.

The equipment can produce both cold- and hot-fill PET containers to support the growing demand from the condiment, sauce and dressing market, as well as increased supply requirements from the beverage category, including ready-to-drink teas, energy drinks, coffee and more. The new equipment has the capability of producing containers ranging from 6oz to 2L and finishes from 24 to 45 mm.

“Pretium has made this investment to expand our reheat stretch blow molding production footprint,” said Randy Neibarger, director of operations. “Demand from small- to medium-sized companies for condiment containers, as well as hot-fill bottles continues to increase. However, many suppliers are not willing to provide smaller stock quantities that many of these processors/bottlers require. Our objective is to serve that niche. We also have the capability of producing stock containers for brand owners that prefer to go that route.”

This latest investment supports Pretium’s strategic plan to be positioned geographically close to its customers. The goal is to offer flexible solutions that support demand fluctuations and meet speed-to-market needs. The new installation brings Pretium’s reheat stretch blow molding bottle manufacturing to the Southeastern part of the U.S. The company already has similar lines in four other regions of the country. The new line is in addition to 10 extruded blow molding units already in place at the Troy facility.

Headquartered in Chesterfield, Missouri, Pretium makes plastic containers and closures for the food, specialty beverage, household and industrial cleaner, sports nutrition and health, and beauty product industries. The company manafactures approximately two billion PET and HDPE containers annually from its 17 locations across the U.S. and Canada for more than 700 customers.