Antalis opens smart packaging centre in Leicestershire to drive collaboration

UNITED KINGDOM – Antalis Packaging has opened a smart packaging centre at its head office in Leicestershire, combining packaging sourcing, design, testing and prototyping to drive customer collaboration.

The centre was formally opened by Nicholas Thompson, managing director of Antalis UK and Ireland, along with Chris Liddell, packaging business director, and John Garner, packaging category director. 

The facility provides space for customers to bring products, current packaging or specific packaging issues for review with the Antalis team. 

According to Antalis, this enables the company to solve specific packaging challenges while meeting commercial, operational and sustainability targets.

VR, 3D Printing and Testing Suite Anchor Capabilities

The smart packaging centre includes virtual reality equipment, 3D printing and scanning capabilities, a testing suite, meeting rooms, idea generation areas and a machinery showroom. 

The site aims to support the development of offerings that use less material, improve packing-line efficiency and limit product damage. 

These capabilities address a recurring challenge for manufacturers and retailers, where packaging redesigns must be validated against real distribution conditions before committing to production tooling and material specifications.

Collaboration Model Supports Full Development Cycle

Chris Liddell, packaging business director at Antalis, said the new facility represented an important investment in the company’s packaging capabilities and, most importantly, in how it worked with customers. 

He added that the space allowed joint exploration of ideas and development of practical solutions to real-world packaging challenges. 

He noted that bringing expertise together meant the company could work collaboratively throughout the development process, from initial idea through to a solution that could be tested and evaluated.

Sector Reach Spans Automotive, Aerospace and E-Commerce

Antalis Packaging works with businesses in automotive, aerospace, e-commerce, logistics and retail, as well as other manufacturing sectors. 

Last month, the company extended its foothold in Europe with the purchase of Speidel Verpackungen, a German manufacturer of custom-made packaging solutions. 

The Leicestershire investment reflects growing demand for packaging partners capable of supporting rapid design iteration, material optimisation and compliance with tightening regulatory requirements across European markets, where extended producer responsibility and recyclability rules increasingly shape packaging specifications from the earliest development stages.

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