A new aluminum can making and filling production facility is slated to begin operations in Salt Lake City during the fourth quarter of 2021.
Co-packing facility Vobev will launch with a focus on the popular slim (sleek) can production of 12 oz. (355 mL) and 8.4 oz. (250 mL) in a beverage industry crunched by demand and shortages of aluminum receptacle. Vobev, which will operate on a 1.2 million sq. ft. campus, will possess automated variety pack capabilities, with the ability to offer package sizes ranging from 4-packs to 24-count trays of single or multiple drink offerings.
The focus for Vobev at launch will be on non-alcoholic offerings such as waters, carbonated soft drinks and energy drinks, but general manager Eric Cudnohoske said the company will “fast follow” with alcoholic beverages such as hard seltzers and spirits-based ready-to-drink canned cocktails, which he anticipates it will “take over quite a bit of our business.”
“Based on what we launched probably about four weeks ago here in the Salt Lake Valley, overwhelming response, which we figured, was around that alcoholic sector,” he told Brewbound. “So we have that in queue already and we’re just going to fast forward that so we can service those customers in the very near future.”
Alcoholic beverage packaging and filling will likely begin in the first half of 2022, Cudnohoske said. Beyond hard seltzers and spirits-based RTDs, Vobev will consider adding packaging for traditional beer, non-alcoholic beer, hard kombucha and other offerings once the facility is up and running.
“We definitely have an open mind, and are looking at all the different avenues, be that a kombucha, be that a ready-to-drink coffee, dairy products, we’re looking at all those things that are a little harder to do, but I don’t think are impossible,” Cudnohoske said.
Additionally, Vobev will also explore demand for other can types, from traditional 12 oz. cans to 19.2 oz. single-serves.
“If there’s a need for that, Vobev will definitely take that up,” Cudnohoske said.
The goal is to streamline the beverage manufacturing supply chain for producers, although the company will not offer in-house beverage production. Nevertheless, Vobev’s leadership believes the advantage it brings to the industry is speed, offering a can manufacturing and filling facility that is expected to be five times faster than traditional can manufacturers and fillers and will shorten lead times by about 10 weeks.
Cudnohoske declined to name any of Vobev’s initial clients, but said canned water and sparkling water will be a part of the initial launch. Vobev is being built from scratch with the small- and mid-sized producers in mind, he added.
Other services offered by Vobev will include research and development, recipe creation, packaging design, storage and shipping.
Cudnohoske declined to put a price tag on Vobev’s facility and the facility’s projected capacity.
“The equipment that we have on the aluminum can-making side, the canned-filling side, top-notch, top-of-the-line stuff that everybody else has,” he said. “So we can do a lot of cans initially. Are we going to be able to service the entire industry? No, I mean there’s way too much there’s way too big of a gap, but we’ll be able to put a nice dent in it.”
Vobev expects to hire around 400 workers over the next 18 months, Cudnohoske added.