Tube maker Impact International has commemorated its 60th anniversary in business, which the company attributes to its flexibility and customer service.
Held at Fairfield RSL, the celebration raised a company record of $1,370 for the Exodus Foundation Christmas appeal, says Aleks Lajovic, managing director. “We had about 130 guests in attendance, made up of staff, their partners and our state MP, Hugh McDermott. It was great to celebrate surviving 60 years of manufacturing in Australia,” he said.
Founded in 1958 by a Slovenian refugee to manufacture tubes for Colgate, Impact has occupied the same Smithfield site for the company’s entire history. “Today, we employ about 95 people in Australia and manufacture tubes for some of Australia’s and New Zealand’s leading brands. Our production site operates 24 hours a day, 5 days a week,” said Lajovic.
According to Lajovic, adaptability has been a key factor in Impact’s longevity. “Over the years, we have changed our product offering to suit the needs of our customers. We’ve invested in new equipment and been quite innovative in how our tubes are manufactured – not just in terms of quality and appearance, but the environment.
“We’ve tried very hard to make our customers lives simpler and focused on not giving them a reason to look to an alternative supplier. We have tried to add value to our customers’ stories,” he said.
Lajovic hails Impact’s Project Craig tube as a highlight of 2018 for the company. “It contains plastic derived from sugarcane, a renewable resource; it uses energy from our own solar farm; it’s protected by our internationally registered anti-counterfeit measures; and consumers can return it to us once they’re done with it for recycling.
“We’re the first tube manufacturer in the world to combine these four factors into one product, a fitting milestone to mark our 60th year of Australian made,” he said.
In February, Impact will add a six-colour Montoli offset press to its operations, to boost its capacity. “We’re also working on releasing a new product next year to comply with the tough goals set by the government for what they’d like to see in packaging in 2025,” said Lajovic.
