The American Silver Springs Bottled Water Company specialises in bottling natural water. The bottler has been relying on KHS technology for almost 20 years.
21 August 2020
Depending on the production conditions, the maximum output is up to 81,000 bottles per hour. (Image: KHS Group)
Sustainability and a healthy diet are playing an important role for more and more Americans. The Silver Springs Bottled Water Company recognised this trend early on and specialised in bottling natural water. Business is going well - also thanks to state-of-the-art KHS technology. Since almost 20 years the American bottler relies on the technical innovations of the system provider.
The Richmonds from Florida are true pioneers: when Karl and his wife Margaret acquired the Silver Springs Bottled Water Company in Ocala, Florida, which had been founded six years previously, in 1991, the Sale of bottled water in the United States is still an absolute Niche business.
However, at a time when normal consumers in the land of Pepsi and Coke mostly refreshed themselves with sweetened soft drinks, the Richmonds firmly believed in the Future potential the thirst-quencher from nature. The couple's courage was rewarded: although it took until 2016 for water to overtake sugary soft drinks in the USA, the Richmonds experienced several years of success on the way there. Growth rates of 20 per cent and more.
The Richmonds from Florida are real pioneers: with their Silver Springs Bottled Water Company, the Americans have been selling bottled water since 1991. (Image: KHS Group)
Reichen Initially six employees The company now employs several hundred people at four locations along the entire east coast.
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The business lasts the whole Family Karl is on the go: despite his 85 years, his father Karl comes to work every day. Sons Kirk, Keith and Kane share management duties and responsibility for the various production sites. The third generation has also long since entered the water bottling business with grandsons Kiel and Mason. Today they run one of the largest independent bottling plants in the United States.
At RealPure Bottling in Magee, Mississippi, the first of the two TriBlocks with stretch blow molder, labelling module and filler is in place. (Image: KHS Group)
Setting the course for top performance
However, it was not only the Richmonds' instinct for the right product that proved decisive for their success. Market opportunities, but also the Technical vision and the choice Reliable partner.
„For almost 20 years our companies work very closely together,“ describes Mike Brancato, President of KHS USA, the strong relationship. He has maintained a close relationship with the Richmonds since his time at packaging specialist Kisters, which became an important part of the Dortmund-based system provider in 2005. „As long as we've known each other, the Richmonds have always been among the very first to utilise our new technologies. In 2008, for example, they invested in the latest InnoPET BloFill, the stretch blow-moulding filler block from KHS, invested. And in 2017, they were the first to KHS InnoPET TriBlock with a labeller integrated between the stretch blow-moulder and filler.“
In addition to the pioneering spirit already described, this naturally requires a high degree of trust on the part of the customer - and a convincing performance from the line provider.
Kane Richmond, CEO of Silver Springs (Image: KHS Group)
„Of course, we work in a people's business in which mutual trust and long-standing relationships play a central role. But what we also particularly appreciate about KHS is the unconditional will to innovate and the flexibility with which solutions are found when special challenges need to be overcome,“ emphasises Kane Richmond, CEO of Silver Springs.
Sceptical at first, then enthusiastic
The introduction of new technologies often involves special The challenges connected. This also applied to the installation of the first InnoPET TriBlock at the RealPure Bottling Company in Magee, Mississippi, which was acquired by the family.
The new Preglued process prevented by Use of pre-glued labels, that open bottles can come into contact with hotmelt vapours, as with classic labelling.
The operators were initially sceptical about the new system, but were won over by the extremely Stable operation and that a Regular maintenance with the tedious removal of adhesive residues completely eliminated, in the shortest possible time.
A solution that pays off
Of course, Kane Richmond also has the economic indicators such as return on investment and total cost of ownership: „Especially for us as a supplier to the major retail markets, every cent counts when it comes to costs,“ he emphasises. „And for a company that produces around the clock, seven days a week, the focus is on how reliable the system can be operated with minimum effort. In this respect, all our lines from KHS are characterised by eenormously high availability out.“
Of course, this also makes the job of operations manager John Bickerstaff, who is already for 13 years at the RealPure Bottling Company, which was founded in 1917. In addition to the innovative labelling process, he attributes this primarily to the Continuous neck handling of the bottles which protects the lightweight containers from mechanical stress during production.
John Bickerstaff, Production Manager, RealPure Bottling Company (Image: KHS Group)
„With the Preglued technology, we have also developed Ease of maintenance and production reliability achieved top results across the entire line from day one.“ John Bickerstaff,Production Manager, RealPure Bottling Company
Lightweighting records
The Richmonds would also like to achieve pioneer status in terms of Sustainability for themselves. A particular concern for them is the Reduction of the bottle weight and thus the PET used. „With the help of the Bottles & Shapes™ experts from KHS and our preform manufacturer Plastipak, we are able to create a new PET container with almost every new project. Lightweighting record “, says a delighted Kane Richmond. „In Magee, we have been filling 500-millilitre PET bottles with a weight of only 7.8 grams and on the brand new TriBlock in Ocala it is only 7 grams.“
The Richmonds pull all the strings at the Silver Springs site in Ocala in the centre of Florida: they also manage their three other water bottling plants from here. (Image: KHS Group)
Kane acknowledges that the USA has a Recycling rate of only 30 per cent Not a pioneer in the reduction of plastic waste. Parallel to the growing He is certain that the health awareness of his fellow countrymen, who are reaching for their water bottles more and more frequently, is also increasing their sensitivity to sustainability issues.
He even assumes that the recycling rate among buyers of water is already significantly higher than that of sweetened drinks. Kane does what he can in his companies. This extends to recycling his own PET waste, with which he will soon be able to realise a Quota of 100 per cent will achieve.
