Compac expands into Papamoa site

Compac regional manager Craig Hart with Bay of Plenty MP Todd Muller at the opening of the new compact premises in Papamoa on Monday night.

Compac is expanding in the Bay of Plenty - moving from its Te Puke site to a new premises in Papamoa.

The move comes as the company looks to double its numbers to 34 fulltime staff and double its annual turnover.

The new Papamoa site was opened by Compac shareholders, regional manager Craig Hart, founder Hamish Kennedy and Bay of Plenty MP Todd Muller on Monday night.

Compac regional manager Craig Hart talks to guests at the opening of the new Compac facility in Papamoa.

"The whole thing is about growth. We are trying to get more resource in the market here so it is all about being closer to our customers and being more capable in the space," Mr Hart said. "We will be able to undertake more local manufacturing and design work, specific to the New Zealand kiwifruit industry. We want to bring to market products directly relevant to the way we pack kiwifruit in New Zealand."

From humble beginnings - the company was founded in a garage almost 30 years ago - Compac is now a world leader for fruit sorting with a $130 million annual turn over globally, he said.

"[With the new site] we will be able to provide more service to more people, more readily and be better about what we do."

"The site and wonderful people here are a part of the vision I have had ever since I moved to the Bay of Plenty. I always saw in my mind this opportunity for Compac to be here."

Company founder, Mr Kennedy, said Compac had come along way since 1984 when he was the sole sorter working from a garage.

Today the company employs 600 people globally, supplying solutions for a number of commodities in more than 40 countries.

Manufacturing of Compac solutions now took place in four different regions including New Zealand with Uruguay, Spain and China.

Mr Kennedy said the people working for the company were the key to its success. "I look around all through our factory and look around at our managing team and we really have an amazing group of people who have taken the company to where it is today."

Leading the way in the future of packhouse technology

* Compac quickly grew from the leading provider of kiwifruit sorting equipment to a world class, global business that sets the benchmark for advancements in technology across the produce industry.

* They now employ more than 400 people around the world and provide packhouse solutions for customers in more than 40 countries.

* Compac's technical superiority and market success lies in matching superior engineering and design concepts with the differing needs of our customers around the world.