Klöckner Pentaplast Pharmaceutical Films Division introduces kp i.center

Gordonsville, Virginia - March 31, 2015 - The senior management team of Klöckner Pentaplast Group (kp) introduced the company’s new state-of-the art facility, kp i.center, today at a preview opening at the new site in Charlottesville, Va. Home to kp Pharmaceutical Film Division’s newly expanded BlisterPro® XCEL suite of consulting, design, stability and prototyping services, the kp i.center provides a collaborative space created to help global pharmaceutical customers bring products to market more quickly and economically. The center is located in the University of Virginia Research Park Emerging Technology Center at 1670 Discovery Drive.

The kp i.center offers a welcoming environment for packaging professionals to immerse themselves in idea sharing with kp’s expert packaging design engineers, leading to the discovery of innovative packages and prototypes optimized for customer’s products. Working together with the kp team, customers will be able to use the blistering center to test and assess designs in real-time. The cooperative approach will greatly reduce the time it takes to design and choose packaging, thereby shortening product-to-market release.

“We wanted a destination for clients to ‘take residency’ and work side-by-side with us on their specific packaging needs,” says Daniel Stagnaro, Director, Global Market Development. “The new kp i.center facilitates rapid packaging design, and gives customers a truly personalized experience.”

The center was conceived to meet the needs of global pharmaceutical packaging professionals, including those in operations, marketing, and procurement, for both branded and generic products. Visitors will include project managers, business unit managers and engineers. The kp i.center hosts collaboration rooms, customer offices, on-site tooling and blistering and, through kp’s knowledgeable team, onsite expertise. It is a cross-functional space housing sales, marketing, market development, and technology and innovation personnel.

In conjunction with the opening of the kp i.center, the company announced the expansion and rebranding of kp’s BlisterPro® services, now BlisterPro® XCEL services. With the extended services, kp is positioned as the only global film supplier to provide accelerated pharmaceutical product stability profiling through FreeThink Technology’s ASAPprime® shelf life modeling software and ASAP laboratory studies. This affords customers a unique combination of product and packaging optimization benefits.

“We see our customers’ competitive landscape changing. Speed-to-market, product safety, and cost control are essential factors in them growing profitably around the globe,” says Marc Setzen, Chief Technology Officer. “BlisterPro® XCEL and the kp i.center change kp’s positioning from traditional material supplier to value-added solutions provider. We can now truly make a difference in our customers’ total cost position and help them bring better products to market faster.”

About the Klöckner Pentaplast Group
The Klöckner Pentaplast Group is a global leader in providing packaging, printing, and specialty solutions serving the pharmaceutical, medical device, food, beverage, and card markets among others. With a broad portfolio of rigid plastic films and services powered by innovation, kp plays an integral role in the customer value chain by marketing and protecting product integrity, safety, consumer health, and, ultimately, brand reputation.
Founded in 1965, Klöckner Pentaplast has grown from its initial facility in Montabaur, Germany, to current operations in 12 countries with 18 production sites. The company has sales of over €1,194 million and employs more than 3,200 people committed to serving customers worldwide. The Klöckner Pentaplast Group is wholly owned by an investor group led by SVP Global.

About the UVA Research Park
The University of Virginia Foundation develops research parks as part of its mission to support the University of Virginia. The UVA Research Park provides state-of-the-art facilities that serve as a catalyst for the creation and enhancement of research and business collaboration between the University of Virginia and the public and private sectors, for the economic and societal benefit of the Commonwealth of Virginia, the Central Virginia region and the nation. For more information on the UVA Research Park, visit UVAResearchPark.com.

The market for packaging manufacturers is always in motion - the dynamics are greater than ever before. In conjunction, the need for speed-to-market is greater.

Ideas need to come to fruition at a much more rapid pace than in the past. Customers can rely on Klöckner Pentaplast to help get their fresh concepts from idea to innovation in a timely, cost-effective manner. To speed up the process from idea to implementation, Klöckner Pentaplast introduced kpGO. Whether it is a new product feature, optimization of the manufacturing process or a new business model, working collaboratively with Klöckner Pentaplast, you can evaluate the prospects of success and the profitability of your idea.

See how Klöckner Pentaplast evaluates, plans and implements ideas.

Learn more about "From Idea to Implementation"