AN Ennis company has joined the fight against Covid-19 by adapting sections of its production to begin making protective face shields. Cup Print, which normally produces sustainable paper cups, has begun production of PPE.
With their core hospitality and catering sector clients preparing to reopen, the company says there is significant demand for protective face shields, particularly for safeguarding customers and employees that are not protected by Perspex screens or physical distancing barriers.
Cup Print are already producing clear, full face visors for sizeable healthcare contracts and have capacity to expand the offering to both new and existing customers across the EU. They anticipate the face shields to complement ongoing orders for cups produced at their facility in Ennis.
The Irish firm was founded in 2009 by businessman Terry Fox following the financial crisis. It now typically manufactures almost 10 million cups every month for coffee shops and bigger multinational clients.
The company specialise in customised, short-run printing of paper cups for companies to promote their brand and brand values, particularly with their unique certified-as-recyclable and compostable models.
General Manager Terry Fox reflected on the company’s roots and the early signs of recovery seen now. “We started the business in pretty tough economic conditions back in 2008, but it was soon clear that enabling brands to start small and grow their business with us was critical. At the moment the similarities are strikingly similar, with supply chains limited – or new customers simply unable to meet high minimum orders from abroad. Hygiene is also paramount now more than ever obviously, and we expect demand for sustainable disposables such as our reCUPs – and now PPE – to remain high for an extended period”.
The move is part of plans by Finnish company Huhtamaki, which acquired 70% of Cup Print in 2018, to produce a total of eight million masks a week from a number of different plants. Apart from plants in Ennis and Belfast, Huhtamaki are also making the shields at its factories in England, Poland and Russia.