July 3rd proved to be a beautiful day in Dresden. Perhaps a tad warm, the temperature hitting 30° C (86° F) by 11 a.m. But the 500-plus guests and employees didn’t mind the heat, a festival tent providing shade and refreshments. Moreover, it was a Friday, and the weather was a good omen for the weekend.

But more importantly, it’s not every day one gets to celebrate a monumental occasion such as the inauguration of a state-of-the-art manufacturing/assembly complex and office building.

In welcoming all to the completion of the first phase involving a €30-million expansion and modernization plan, Markus Rustler, president and ceo of Theegarden-Pactec, knew he was ushering in “a new era” for the company.

"For Theegarten-Pactec, the new building is the foundation needed to continue building high-tech machines for our customers and secure long-term growth," he explained. "The new building has also resulted in the creation of around 50 new jobs. We are delighted that the first construction phase is now complete, thus setting another milestone in the company's history, which goes back over 80 years."

After brief remarks by Dresden’s mayor, Dirk Hilbert, as well as executives from Vollack, the architectural and construction firm responsible for the project, guests were taken on “intensive tours” of the new facilities, including offices, the cafeteria, the parts manufacturing hall and the assembly hall.

The completed construction consists of an office building with production and warehouse areas, staff amenities and technology facilities as well as a car park with 170 parking spaces. The offices provide space for various usages such as research and development, design, customer service and sales.

Workplace improvements such as an employee cafeteria, which featured a terrace located in an interior courtyard, didn’t go unnoticed. Work stations for mechanical production and varnishing in the manufacturing building shone with newness. A number of production-related offices featuring a gallery that was situated adjacent to the manufacturing building reflected the open design.

Eventually — once phase 2 and 3 are completed, which will entail demolition of the old office and assembly buildings as well as construction of a new warehouse building, followed by another extension for the manufacturing hall and demolition of the old storage building — the new Theegarten-Pactec campus will encompass 50,000 sq. meters. All work should be completed by 2017.

The new construction adheres to the latest energy-saving standards mandated by the European Union and features LED lighting technology as well as special cooling systems in the manufacturing area.

"Thanks to careful planning, this mammoth project has so far not impacted on our daily operations, the design and manufacture of packaging systems," said Rustler. The moving of both office and manufacturing from the old building, which took place in June, went smoothly, he added.

The new manufacturing halls, which are 23 meters wide, almost double the previous width of the old assembly halls, thus allowing the company to set up entire assembly lines. As a result, this will improve debugging of the equipment, thereby speeding up factory assessment tests, Rustler explained. It will also quicken installation of the lines at the customer’s plant.

 “All of this will help save costs for the customer as well as us,” he points out.

Of the €33 million invested, about €22 million involves construction and the remainder encompasses purchases for new tooling machinery, furniture and other work-related inventory.

“The new facility not only improves work flow throughout the factory, saving time and money, but it also improves the working environment for our employees," Rustler says.

  Appropriately, the entrance foyer to the office building houses a historical display that shows visitors Theegarden-Pactec packaging machines through the decades, going back more than 80 years. It serves as a great reminder of the past as the company looks toward the future.