Packaging MEA editor Ben Daniel interviews ENPI CEO Tilman Ehret as the company marks 25 years of growth, innovation and world-class packaging print and conversion service to brand owners
Dubai-based ENPI Group (Emirates National Factory for Plastic Industries) was launched in 1995 and is today seen as a regional leader boasting world-class standards. With nine factories across the UAE and Saudi Arabia employing more than 1,200 people and attracting some 2,400+ customers, it is rightly considered an important part of the MEA food supply chain and one of the largest and most diversified regional packaging printer-converters.
Packaging MEA Chief Editor Ben Daniel caught up with ENPI CEO Tilman Ehret to find out more.
Ben (B): Tell us about yourself and your role as CEO.
Tilman (T): An industrial engineer by education, I started my career with Evonik, a multinational chemicals and polymers producer. I was with them for nearly 20 years in a number of different management positions, including the last seven years in the Middle East as their regional president for MEA. Before taking up the CEO position at ENPI, I was the CEO of Astra Polymers, a leading masterbatch supplier in the Middle East, India and Turkey. With ENPI, we are continuing the success story to be a preferred regional partner for all brand owners by offering world-class products and services.
B: In the recent past and particularly since you have taken over as CEO, there have been some key changes to ENPI’s management, operations and business strategy as well as investments into machinery and infrastructure. Could you give us the highlights?
T: To simplify our structure and create cross-unit synergies, we integrated our legal entities and different sites into five strategic business units: Flexible Packaging and Labels; Preforms and Closures; Films and Bags; Cups, Containers and Cling film; and Food Packaging and Hygiene Solutions. We have been able to attract a team of competent, diverse and experienced managers. They hit the ground running and integrated formidably with the long-term management team members. Having qualified employees is what makes the company successful. We had an excellent performance in 2019 and, against the market trend, we were able to increase salaries for most employees, which helped make them even more motivated and prouder to work for ENPI. The renewal process is supported by additional machinery and infrastructure we acquired over the past year. We acquired state of the art machines from two renowned manufacturers dedicated to our flexible packaging and label plant in Jeddah.
CEO
ENPI Group
An Omet printing line for adhesive labels that has already been installed. Also, a brand new Miraflex from Windmöller & Hölscher has just arrived at one of our KSA units. This will improve our flexo printing capabilities. We also have installed two silos for storage of PET resin in our preforming facility in Riyadh. This eliminates warehouse storage requirements and also facilitate continuous feeding of machines. In Sharjah, we are installing a thermoforming machine from WM in Switzerland as we speak. This enhances existing capacity of cup lids and also allows us to introduce a new meal tray product, enabling us to locally manufacture products that are currently mostly sourced from China.
B: Tell us a little about ENPI and its history.
T: Twenty five years ago, the starting point of the company was a daring investment into what was then a little-developed plastic converting industry. It all started with the plastic film business in Sharjah. Demand for additional products enabled the product range to grow step by step into the wide present portfolio, such as preforms, paper cups and flexible packaging. This expansion did not go unnoticed by regional investors and led to a takeover of the ENPI Group by SPPC, a highly regarded regional printing business listed on the Saudi Arabia stock exchange. Having such a strong partner enabled additional investments, including acquisition of other packaging businesses in KSA. The growth of ENPI and a different shareholder structure then triggered needs for structural changes to take us to the next level.
B: ENPI supplies a wide range of packaging products to brand owners and buyers. What is your management strategy?
T: The diversification in our portfolio is unique in the region, and when a customer has experienced great support from one of our units, he can be sure to enjoy the same level from any other unit of our group. The customer can trust us for every packaging requirement.
B: How will the packaging industry evolve in Q3 and Q4 of 2020?
T: After excellent growth in 2019, and a very good start to 2020, we saw some uncertainty due to Covid-19. However, with markets opening up again, we can see consumer confidence is steadily growing and we expect it to operate at pre-Covid levels by late Q3. Orders are steadily growing especially from Saudi and UAE, our two biggest markets in the region.
B: What do you see as the greatest opportunities in packaging?
T: There are many, but mainly I see three: Environmentally friendly solutions will make up the largest part of future growth; smart or intelligent packaging; and a growing trend of customers decreasing order sizes as they optimise their processes to make design changes more frequently. This will be a great opportunity for companies that can handle this need for flexibility. ENPI already does this.
B: Is “localisation” of the packaging industry possible in a globalised, interconnected world?
T: We definitely have seen a growing interest in sourcing locally. People always think localisation would be connected to higher costs. This is not the case. Apart from some low-volume high specialised additives, we can produce anything needed for the region from the region. There is no better way to generate regional growth.
B: With food safety taking prominence during this pandemic, plastics is back to the forefront of demand keeping sustainability on the back foot. Will this trend continue?
T: We should not misuse this crisis to brush sustainability aside. Yes, it is essential to deliver food and goods to consumers in a safe way, and to extend shelf life to avoid wastage of precious food resources. But this still has to be done in a sustainable way.
B: With flexibles and labels as your core business, what are your thoughts on this growing sector?
T: We absolutely believe in the growth potential of this business as new products and applications are developed constantly. We support this assumption with our mentioned investments into new capacities.
B: According to you, why should global, regional and local brand owners choose ENPI as their preferred packaging supplier?
T: ENPI fits perfectly into the gap between large multinational packaging companies, that sometime lose sight of local requirements, and the smaller players that cannot guarantee quality. We assure our customers they are getting the best quality and service over a wide range of applications. We therefore serve as a local, high quality, one-stop shop – and all this for competitive prices.
B: What steps is ENPI taking towards sustainability?
T: Sustainability is a major aspect of our mission statement. We have a variety of approaches:
Process efficiency – We buy equipment from world-class machine suppliers that offer the most efficient technologies in the field.
Reducing our carbon footprint – We constantly check for, and implement, energy-saving measures
Reduction of waste – We have been very successful in minimising waste from our production processes, and what little waste we have is 100% recycled.
Recycled raw materials – We can offer brand owners the use of any required portion of rPET material along with prime resin
Technology partnerships – We supported one of the largest local drinking water companies with their “Green Packaging” initiative and produced the first plant-based transparent bottles using PLA resin for them in the Middle East.
B: Is it important to diversify the workforce?
T: Of course we believe in gender equality, and we practice what we believe. Diversity is at the core of creativity and in a fast-moving and ever-changing industrial environment, intelligent, clever and creative solutions are crucial for any company’s growth and survival. We have a philosophy of hiring based on ability, professional experience and potential. Nothing else.