"This is a long-term strategy for business expansion in the Eastern Europe sector," said the label manufacturer's managing director Ian Wright (pictured). "We are going to pursue sites in Russia and perhaps other locations as well."

The Polish facility will produce work for direct-sell cosmetics company Avon, which also has a manufacturing facility in Poland. Harlands expects there to be a "two-way flow" of work between the UK and Poland.

"We aim to produce 75% of our work for Avon in Poland by the first quarter of 2007," said Wright, who will be heading the new plant with his UK operations director Raymond Young and a Polish production manager Miroslaw Smagiel.

Part of the Clondalkin Group, Harlands' 2,000sqm facility has taken space from its sister company Boxes Prestige's existing factory in Lublin, south-east of Warsaw.

The project is at "stage one" at the moment and Wright expects it to be in full production by mid-October, employing 20 staff by the end of the year.

The site will house three Dutch-built MPS 330mm narrow web screen/flexo combination presses, the first of which will be installed on 1 October.

The servo-driven nine-colour and foiling machines will run alongside a raft of label finishing kit.

Harlands of Hull
- 68 UK staff
- 78m turnover
- Moved to 2,790sqm purpose-built UK factory in 2001
- Bought in MBO in 2003
- Bought by Clondalkin in June this year

Story by Darryl Danielli