Packing up, shipping out

Royal Containers is moving their London facility and its 120 jobs to St. Thomas

IN A BIG get for the town and of economy of St. Thomas, corrugated cardboard manufacturer Royal Containers announced this week their plans to move to town and set up a bigger manufacturing plant that will eventually house their existing London operation.

Royal Containers was beginning to outgrow its London plant, located at 1001 Green Valley Road, and the new facility is intended to “address growth and to increase the capacity of their present location,” according to the company.

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The facility they’ll be moving into was until recently occupied by Sle-Co Plastics, which went bankrupt last January, wiping out 175 jobs in the process. Keeping the approximate 120 London jobs in the region was heralded as a win by Sean Dyke, chief executive of the St. Thomas Economic Development office, who told the London Free Press, “to land an industry that has been in the area for a while is a real positive.”

“City council and the Economic Development Corporation have worked hard to ensure that the Railway City is an attractive place to grow a business,” adds St. Thomas mayor, Joe Preston, in a release. “I personally could not be more pleased to see Royal Containers choosing to bring their history of success and innovation to a community that I know will support that passion for growth now and into the future.”

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Founded in 1980 by Ross Nelson, Royal Containers has had what they call a “history of strong acquisitions,” including buying Morphy Containers (the original occupant of their existing London facility) in 2009. Between their two plants (their head office , they employ over 275 people, and produce around 50 million square feet of corrugated boxes every month.

According to Royal Containers president, Kim Nelson, the move to St. Thomas will be accompanied by an additional 15 to 20 jobs at the facility. Kieran Delamont