The collaborative packaging project demonstrates how packaging optimization can increase production capacity, improve efficiency and support product availability.

By redesigning both the wine packaging and the machinery used to process it, DS Smith boosted Delhaize’s throughput by 400 packs per hour at its winery in Belgium.

Rather than sourcing the cardboard packaging and machinery separately, they designed and built a dedicated forming machine that is specifically engineered for Delhaize’s bag-in-box packaging format and production requirements. The machine ensures that both the corrugated packaging and machine performance are engineered together rather than separately, resulting in optimum stability and efficiency across the manufacturing process, including improved pack quality and eliminating nearly all interruptions on the production line.

**Wine bottles and carton wine packaging displayed side by side on a table in a packaging facility. (photo: DS Smith)**

The line became more reliable and it required fewer operators with more efficient warehouse capacity

**Hervé Louis, Production & Technical Manager at Delhaize, Belgium. (photo: DS Smith)**

As a result of the new approach, the line became more reliable, required fewer operators and made more efficient use of warehouse capacity. Storage efficiency also improved, with warehouse capacity increasing from 5,000 to 6,000 packs per storage location.

“What sets DS Smith apart is its ability to optimise both packaging and machinery as a single solution,” said Hervé Louis, Production & Technical Manager at Delhaize, Belgium.

“The interaction between those two elements is critical, and by aligning them from the start, we have been able to increase throughput, reduce downtime and make better use of our existing capacity. I am impressed with DS Smith’s service levels“: Hervé Louis, Production & Technical Manager at Delhaize, Belgium

Kim Radelet, Sales Marketing & Innovation Director Central EMEA, at DS Smith. (photo: DS Smith)
Kim Radelet, Sales Marketing & Innovation Director Central EMEA, at DS Smith, added: “This project demonstrates that the greatest opportunities for improvement often lie beyond the packaging itself. By looking at the entire system, from packaging design and materials to machinery performance, storage and operational efficiency, we helped Delhaize unlock 27% more capacity from its existing operation. That is where real value is created: not in optimising individual components, but in improving the performance of the entire value chain“.

Ahold Delhaize’s store formats include Delhaize, Maxi, Albert Heijn, Albert, Food Lion, Gall & Galll, Mega Image, Alpha-Beta, Hannaford, Stop & Shop en The GIANT Company, offering a wide range of traditional supermarkets and online shopping.

DS Smith has a target-led sustainability strategy and is committed to leading an industry-wide transition to the circular economy, while delivering sustainable circular solutions to customers worldwide.