WestRock to build box plant in Wisconsin

Atlanta-based paper and packaging company WestRock Co. has revealed plans to build a new corrugated box plant in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin, in an effort to “meet growing demand” from its customers in the Great Lakes region and will close its existing plant in north Chicago.

Construction on the new 550,000-square-foot facility is estimated to cost $140 million and is expected to be partially offset by property sales. In a news release announcing the investment, WestRock says construction will begin sometime this year, and the company tells Recycling Today it is contingent on the weather thawing out, hoping it can begin construction in the second quarter of this year and finish in 2025.

WestRock did not disclose the facility’s estimated production capacity.

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“Investing in a new state-of-the-art corrugated converting facility elevates our production capabilities and better supports our end-market strategy and margin improvement targets,” WestRock CEO David B. Sewell says. “We are pleased to expand our presence in an area of critical demand like the Great Lakes and are confident that by implementing production initiatives such as these, we will continue to solidify WestRock’s position as a supplier of choice.”

According to WestRock, the Pleasant Prairie site is expected to support reduced manufacturing costs and waste to improve its overall manufacturing cost profile, as well as boost sustainability through reduced energy consumption and new technology and feature advanced automation provide real-time data to reduce unplanned downtime.

It will serve retail, distribution, processed food, industrial and protein business end markets, among others, in the Great Lakes region.

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However, in the wake of the Pleasant Prairie announcement, WestRock also confirmed it will close facilities in Seattle and Lexington, North Carolina, impacting more than 200 jobs.

The company officially notified the state of Washington Employment Security Department of the Seattle box plant’s permanent closure—which affects 87 employees—filing a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) notice Jan. 19. Corrugated box production from the 120,000-square-foot Seattle plant will shift to WestRock’s new box plant in Longview, Washington, which opened in November. The closure will begin in March and be completed in May.

WestRock also will close a facility in Lexington that produces healthcare packaging, affecting 153 employees, and operations are expected to cease mid-May. The company filed a WARN notice Jan. 17 to the state of North Carolina.