With a ground-breaking ceremony on 25 July 2018, MAIER Packaging GmbH laid the cornerstone for future success in the Optima Packaging Group. With the 3,000 sqm new construction, the company creates more space for further development and a modern work environment for the employees in the Bergen Community (Traunstein County). The building will be move-in ready in March 2019. On 1 June 2018, Maier became a 100% subsidiary of the Optima Group of Companies headquartered in Schwaebisch Hall.
The ground-breaking ceremony was attended by Joachim Dittrich (Chairman, OPTIMA consumer GmbH), Matthias Dietz (Facility Management, OPTIMA packaging group GmbH) as representative of the building owner, OPTIMA packaging group GmbH, Alban Hutter (Managing Director, MAIER Packaging GmbH) as well as Rolf Blank (Architect, Blank Ingenieurbüro), Siegfried Walch (District Administrator, Traunstein County), Stefan Schneider (Mayor of the community of Bergen), Michael Hinterlang (Managing Director, Hinterlang + Burk GmbH & Co. KG, Property developer), and Heinz Kecht (Managing Director, Heinz Kecht GmbH, Earthworks).
A modern building with areas for assembly, tool and die making, testing and a warehouse will be constructed at the Bergen site. A two-story office building will follow to accommodate the Administration and Design, Purchasing and Sales Departments are housed along with the cafeteria. “During the planning process, we paid special attention to the wellbeing of the staff”, says Architect Rolf Blank from the Blank engineering company. The building is heated and cooled with geothermal energy. Approximately 50 holes were drilled with a depth of up to 90 meters. This is said to maintain a comfortable climate year around not only in the office building but also in the main building. The ceilings in the office tract serve to heat and cool the spaces. In the assembly building, so-called concrete core cooling (CCC) provides comfortable work conditions, similar to floor heating. In addition, it is said to be an especially sustainable, cost-effective and self-sufficient method of energy supply.
On 1 June 2018, MAIER Packaging GmbH, as a 100% subsidiary, became part of the OPTIMA packaging group GmbH from Schwaebisch Hall. The two companies share a bond from many years of cooperation that is now intensified even deeper. “The new construction is an important investment in the future of Maier Packaging”, explains Alban Hutter, Managing Director with respect to the importance of the new construction for the company. The current site in Grassau, located only a few kilometers away from Bergen, is no longer representative and no longer meets the requirements of a modern industrial company.
“We have the ability to grow at the new site”, says Hutter. At this site, the company can purchase additional space as needed. In addition to modern work conditions, Hutter promises additional benefits from the new construction. Maier Packaging profits from the location directly at Freeway A8 between Munich and Salzburg. In addition to the logistics, this also improves the attractiveness of the employer. This because Maier can now expand its staff as well: With the new construction, we will be able to double our current staff of 44 employees, says Alban Hutter. “And these employees will now be met by ideal conditions for the future”, says the Managing Director.
Maier Packaging was founded by Stefan Maier in 1985 and is today's leader in the segment of special solutions for production and packaging systems in the dairy industry. Alban Hutter has been managing the company since October 2017. The focus of Maier Packaging is directed toward converting and optimizing of existing deep drawing and filling machines, the construction of individual modules for form fill seal machines (professionally referred to as FFV), the manufacture of banderoling machines and labeling systems and also punch and mold construction. The customers are coming primarily from the dairy and food industry.
