Packaging company Woolcool says many more jobs could be created in the town as it celebrated the opening of its first factory on Stone Business Park.
Woolcool’s development of a unique woollen packaging system has already revolutionised food packaging and led to the creation of 25 jobs on Stone Business Park. That figure is predicted to double by the end of 2015, but a move into pharmaceutical packaging is forecast to spark major growth and the need for space for up to 100 staff within two years.
And with Woolcool insulation keeping packages cool for twice as long as polystyrene, thousands of lives could be saved across the world. The World Health Organisation has reported that up to 50 per cent of vaccines perish during transportation across the globe. But Woolcool is proven to keep medicines at the optimum 2-8⁰C temperature for twice the WHO recommended timeframe.
Council and business leaders joined Woolcool staff for the opening of the Stone factory on Friday 3rd July.
Explaining the vision for Woolcool at the opening event, Managing Director Keith Spilsbury said: “Extensive and rigorous research and development has proven that Woolcool saves lives. Woolcool LifeGuardian is the vehicle which will safely deliver the vaccines around the world.
“We are Staffordshire people and wanted to develop in Staffordshire. We plan to stay here and build phase two in this county.”
The current Beacon Road factory measures 16,000 sq. ft. and Mr. Spilsbury estimates phase two will require a space of up to 100,000 sq. ft. He thanked Stafford Borough Council Leader Patrick Farrington and Deputy Leader Mike Smith for attending the opening event.
They were joined by representatives of Make It Stoke and Staffordshire, the Staffordshire Chambers of Commerce and staff from JET (Jobs Enterprise and Training) who supported Woolcool in the recruitment of workers for the Stone factory.
A special guest at the opening was John Thorley OBE, Honorary President of the Campaign for Wool, a global project initiated by HRH The Prince of Wales.
“I am thrilled to be here today and I’d like to thank Woolcool on behalf of the whole industry,” said Mr. Thorley. “Woolcool is bringing a welcome new dimension to the wool industry by making good use of the coarser wools from hill sheep that have traditionally been regarded as waste material. The innovative new insulated packaging system from Woolcool, LifeGuardian, uses this ‘waste material’ to ensure the safe delivery of temperature sensitive vaccines – helping save lives globally and bringing a very real benefit to the British sheep farmer.”
