Schütz Australia is expanding its industrial packaging collection and reconditioning capabilities in Victoria through the acquisition of ContainerSave and DrumSavers, strengthening its national circular packaging offering.
The move adds dedicated washing and reconditioning capacity on Australia’s east coast to complement Schütz’s existing operations in the west, enabling a more comprehensive, coast-to-coast service for customers seeking reuse and recycling solutions for industrial packaging.
Alan Barham, managing director of Schütz Australia, said the acquisition represents a major step forward in the company’s sustainability strategy.
“The acquisition strengthens our sustainability expertise significantly and expands our range of circular packaging solutions,” Barham said. “With our own washing and reconditioning capacities now on both the east and west coast of Australia, we are in a position to offer our customers an even more comprehensive service. We would like to thank the Hodgson family for their long-standing partnership and look forward to shaping the next growth phase together.”
ContainerSave and DrumSavers specialise in the cleaning and reconditioning of intermediate bulk containers (IBCs), plastic drums and jerrycans. The businesses have been operated by the Hodgson family for more than a decade and have maintained a close working relationship with Schütz Australia throughout that period.
Doug Hodgson, who has led ContainerSave and DrumSavers for more than 10 years, reflected on the transition as the businesses move into their next phase of growth.
“It’s been a fantastic journey over the last 13 years in what we have achieved as a family-owned business,” Hodgson said. “We have worked with some of the most knowledgeable and passionate people, navigating the changing sustainability, regrind and recycling landscape. Now it’s time for Schütz, another outstanding family business, to take ContainerSave to a larger world scale.”
Schütz Australia manufactures 1000-litre IBCs and polyethylene drums and operates production sites in Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth. Under the acquisition, ContainerSave and DrumSavers will continue to operate as independent brands, while leveraging synergies with Schütz to provide increased support for customers implementing reduce, reuse and recycle strategies across industrial packaging supply chains.
