Coca-Cola European Partners has announced it will be investing £2.3m in its Scottish operations this year as the business welcomed Linda Fabiani MSP and Dr Lisa Cameron MP to its manufacturing site in East Kilbride.
The £2.3m injection at the East Kilbride site has funded the development of a new water treatment plant, and brings the total amount invested by Coca-Cola European Partners (CCEP) to £18.
With the factory celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2014, the amount represents a significant investment in the modernisation of the factory’s wider infrastructure. The plant replaces an older instalment, and has been in operation since the beginning of the month.
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The new plant will allow a more efficient water recovery system from the site’s four manufacturing lines, saving an estimated nine million litres of water a year.
During their visit, on which they were accompanied by several other local and regional MPs and MSPs, Linda Fabiani MSP and Dr Lisa Cameron MP were shown the plant in action and were given the opportunity to speak with several members of local staff.
The investment forms part of CCEP’s ongoing commitment towards sustainable manufacturing in Scotland and a wider £56m investment across its six manufacturing sites in Great Britain this year alone.
East Kilbride employs more than 150 people from the region, producing over 16 million cases of product a year. It was the first of CCEP’s factories to install an automated storage and retrieval System (ASRS) warehouse and is its only site to produce the popular Appletiser brand.
Director of supply chain operations at CCEP East Kilbride, John McCafferty explained: “With a long standing legacy of over 50 years in the region, we pride ourselves on being a truly local business here in East Kilbride and in Scotland as a whole.
“This latest investment demonstrates our continued commitment to the future of manufacturing in Scotland as well as local employment and skills development through our growing apprentice programme here on site.”
Linda Fabiani, MSP for East Kilbride, commented: “I was delighted to welcome Parliamentary colleagues to the factory, and have them hear about the strength of this long-established East Kilbride company and the environmental successes that they have achieved.
“No matter how many times I visit Coca-Cola I am impressed anew by the enthusiasm and teamwork shown by all the staff, from apprentices to management”.
