Boxes&Labels invests heavily in machinery and buildings

Two years ago, a ‘new’ company, Boxes&Labels, was launched, a merger of the label producer Boxon Production and the sheet manufacturer Specialwell. In connection with this, Packnews interviewed Dennis and Kalle, who were both optimistic about the merger and the future. Upon visiting the company, we can only conclude that they were right in their view of the development.

Text and photo: Bo Wallteg

– They were pretty broad brushstrokes back then. We painted a picture of what we wanted to happen in terms of investment, growth rates, acquisitions and new areas to enter. We had a concept that we believed in, with the synergies between us and Boxon Group,  says Dennis Artursson with a light laugh.

Specialwell, as it was then known, was founded in 1999 as a sheet manufacturer, i.e. a company producing corrugated board packaging. Boxon Group had been a major customer and partner over the years.

Boxon Group already had the label manufacturer Boxon Production, previously called Beab in Viared, outside Borås, a few miles from Specialwell in Olsfors. Today, Boxon Group is not a partner in Boxes&Labels; instead, the holding company Alpy AB is owned by the Yllfors family.

– When we started working on the development of the company, the name Boxes&Labels came about quite naturally, but really as a working name, which then became the name of both companies here in Borås, it encompasses what we are about very well.

The labelling and sheet operations are still two separate companies, but they will be merged this year, which should be completed by the end of next year. A completely new organisation with a joint portfolio has been created over the past few years, and, although it was not originally intended to be integrated to such a degree, it soon became clear that this was the best way forward.

– We have now built a new sales organisation through several new appointments, to be much more proactive on the market. “Both the labelling business and the sheet manufacturing business have great potential to be much more active on the market,” says Dennis Artursson.

Major changes

The past few years have meant a major change for both Dennis and Kalle. In the past, Kalle handled most of the production and Dennis everything else. Things are different now, with a new organisation and management team and therefore many more people to share the work.

– “It is great that we no longer have to do everything ourselves. Today, we are an organisation filled with passionate people. Until this year, we have been working on getting everything in place, now it is ‘time to get on with it’.

– It has been interesting for both Kalle’s and my development. 90 percent of what I used to do, I no longer do. Neither Kalle nor I are administrators, we want to see development and with Boxon in the background we have more muscle.”

– “We are still heavily integrated with Boxon, it is a great advantage to have them as a reseller for us and they have a sales organisation that covers the entire Nordic region. We also have more retailers to cover the market in a way that we want.”

Intensive work

During Packnews’ visit to Boxes&Labels, intensive extension work is underway at the premises. Since its inception 25 years ago, the space has grown from 1500 to 13,000 square metres.

The expansion has taken place in several stages, and currently 3000 square metres (included in the previous figure) are being added to provide more office and storage space.

Investment in the buildings is around SEK 40 million. The space is now being created to move label production from Viared to Olsfors, a move that is expected to take place on 1 November.

The sheet manufacturing factory finds its customers in industry. A special niche is the Swedish furniture industry, especially the smaller and medium-sized companies that receive customised solutions.

– “There are a lot of customers who supply premium furniture and furniture for public environments, among whom we are well known. It is not about huge volumes, but that is not what we are aiming for either.

There are six boxmakers in the production halls. Among all past and present investments, an inline machine brings us closer to becoming a corrugator factory, which was not in the plan, but we felt that there was a need to be able to be involved in slightly larger series production, where manual labour is too costly. Including all the ancillary equipment, this represents an investment of SEK 12 million.”

Kongsberg is coming

“Another major investment is a Kongsberg Ultimate, a large cutting table with infeed and outfeed. It should be in place a few weeks after the holidays.
– We have a cutting table, but we can almost only use it for samples and small orders. The new investment is equivalent to a fully automated production table.

The development of production cutting tables is interesting; previously we were talking about speeds of perhaps 50 metres, now it’s around 180 metres per minute,” says Kalle Järnfors.

– It is a big step and it has even got to the point where our boxmakers, who we consider to be efficient, are starting to struggle to keep up. It is also possible to run very large punched solutions, up to 2.20 x 3.20 metres, which is impossible with our current machinery.

– This is ideal for quickly running small batches without having to change dies and make adjustments. We can streamline our operations with this table and run a seamless production. In addition, we can create the insides in thicker materials, which is new for us.

– In fact, we already have a large order from a customer that will be run on the cutting table. This is an order we cannot fulfil at present because it involves triple corrugations with a thickness of 15 millimetres. Which the punches cannot do.”

Labels for new areas

“Label production is focussed on industry and not so much on the typical label buyer in the food industry. But that may change in the future.
– We are also investing heavily in labelling,” says Dennis Artursson.

“We have had a few customers on the beverage side, such as microbreweries, but we see great potential for expansion into this area.

– “It is not that we see ourselves ‘fighting’ the big giants with huge orders in the labelling business, but we think there is a market for us among the smaller customers who will appreciate our support, our proximity and our simplicity.

– We have invested a couple of million SEK in expanding our digital system for label orders, which was previously called Baghera and is now called Tracy. The IT technology is ageing and it was a necessity.”

New press

“Now, of course, that investment is not enough. To further streamline production, we have invested in a new ten-colour flexo press, a Bobst M5, an investment of over SEK 10 million, and a press that puts it on a par with the big boys.

– We have also hired two salespeople in labelling, so I expect interesting developments here too. Overall, we have a very forward-looking organisation with 65 employees and many projects and deals in the pipeline.

– We are not a billion-dollar company, but we have a turnover of almost SEK 250 million, which gives us strength and the opportunity to be up there.”

According to Dennis Artursson and Kalle Järnfors, Boxes&Labels is the leading sheet manufacturing factory in Sweden, perhaps even in the Nordic region.

“This is a young company that is investing, so far over SEK 100 million in two years, and consists of two merged companies that were doing well from the off. Nothing has to be built from scratch, so to speak.

– We are on the right track”, they conclude.

Boxes&Labels  are exhibiting at Scanpack. Buy your ticket »