BJ Ball has moved its Victorian operation into a new purpose-built facility in Melbourne and added two new Marquip sheeter converters to drive its packaging expansion.
Marketing and business development manager Tony Bertrand says the new site will be far more efficient than the old Braeside facility BJ Ball inherited from its buyout of CPI in 2011.
The new site is, at 24,000sqm, smaller than the previous 33,000sqm but is streamlined with no wasted space. It is valued at $11m by its construction company Hansen Yuncken.
“The previous site was old, run down, inefficient and not at all set up for the needs of a paper company and not great for distribution,” Bertrand says.
“Our new home is purpose-built for our operations, and designed with the customer in mind to give a better experience, with much faster delivery time.”
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Bertrand says the added converting capability will allow the paper merchant to provide all grades of fibre-based packaging substrates as it ramps up its expansion into that space.
“The old machines weren’t up to scratch for packaging but our new setup will give us a competitive advantage in the market,” he says.
“There is a void in the market with Amcor’s closure of the Petrie mill that we are moving into, so those customers can come to us for those needs.
“The Petrie offering was an unsustainable solution as a pick and pack operation trying to be all things to all people, so customers will get a better experience with BJ Ball.”
Bertrand says sales and market share in Victoria are stable, which he says is a great achievement in a contracting and unpredictable market.
The new Dandenong South site features cross-dock warehousing for operational efficiencies; new narrow aisle racking facilities allowing more efficient storage and improved inventory management; multi-level offices; and boardroom areas.
The Roll Solutions business, formerly known as Boomerang Paper, will also move in, putting all BJ Ball Victorian operations under one roof.
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