On the road to the new millennium - ALPLA 1992-2004
Part five of the 70 Years of ALPLA series: ALPLA's development accelerates noticeably in the 1990s: expansion in Mexico picks up speed, Europe grows closer together and space at the headquarters becomes scarce. At the same time, the next generation of the owner family takes on increasing responsibility - a decisive step in a time of great change.
With the new plant in Fußach, ALPLA expands its capacity at its headquarters in 2002.
Breaking into new markets
At the beginning of the 1990s, there was a spirit of optimism at ALPLA. In 1994, the Mexican beverage industry switched from glass to plastic and ALPLA entered into a challenging in-house inline project with Coca-Cola FEMSA. The close cooperation on site lays the foundation for a strong, long-term partnership. At the same time, ALPLA continues to grow in Europe and Latin America, fuelled by a positive economic environment and increasing demand for plastic packaging. Another milestone was the certification of the ALPLA plant in Hard in 1996 in accordance with the EN ISO 9001 standard, which was preceded by a two-year development of the quality management system. This showed customers and partners that the slogan "quality packaging" was not just an advertising promise, but was and still is lived practice at ALPLA.
There was great joy after the successful ISO certification in 1996.
Professionalisation and new management
The middle of the decade then brings an organisational realignment. In 1997, the legal form is changed to a GmbH & Co KG - a step that structurally secures the company's international growth. There is also a generational change in the owner family: Günther Lehner gradually takes over the management together with Helmut Scheffknecht and Georg Früh, while Alwin Lehner withdraws and retires in 1997 after 40 years. In 2000, when Heinz Lehner retired, the last active member of the founding generation also ended his operational activities.
New top management with Günther Lehner, Helmut Scheffknecht and Georg Früh (from left).
Capacity bottlenecks and the move to Fußach
In the late 1990s, ALPLA made targeted investments in the further development of its headquarters: 18 million Swiss francs were invested in a new hall for the inspection and special machine construction department, which was opened in 1997 and made larger projects significantly more efficient. But soon the capacities are once again insufficient. The solution was found in neighbouring Fußach, where a modern production hall for injection moulded parts and PET blanks was built in 2000, significantly increasing capacity in Vorarlberg. This was followed by an expansion in 2003.
A number of changes also took place in Europe: the introduction of the euro in 2002 facilitated international business processes and the takeover of several Tetra Pak® preform plants in Spain, Italy and Belgium further strengthened ALPLA's position in Europe.
ALPLA moves to the USA and Asia
In 2003, ALPLA opens the first regional technical centre outside of Hard in Toluca - a decisive step towards faster product development directly in the market. Between 2001 and 2004, several plants are also built in the USA in Atlanta, Georgia and Houston. Experienced employees from the company take over the development work and carry the ALPLA spirit into the new market. Carmen Lehner, Günther Lehner's sister and a qualified psychologist, takes over the HR management in the USA.
The move to Asia follows in 2004: the first in-house production for Unilever starts in Thailand, followed shortly afterwards by India. Almost 50 years after it was founded, ALPLA opens up the third continent after Europe and America with its products.
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