Million-dollar upgrade for Reliv plant.
supplements has announced a $1 million investment to upgrade the
company's manufacturing plant.
The upgrade project includes a new high-speed rotary filler, which is expected to double the facility's throughput. In addition, Reliv will install automated packaging equipment - such as a case erector, a case packer and a palletizer.
The project will increase the plant's production capacity - helping Reliv meet strong and growing demand for its products, the firm said in a statement this week.
David Barnes, vice president of technical affairs and manufacturing operations said: "From 2002 to 2003, our production volumes increased by more than 45 per cent."
"By increasing our throughput, this new equipment will allow us to continue to meet customer demand for our products for the foreseeable future. It will also enhance our already-stringent quality control capabilities."
Reliv expects to install the equipment in July 2004. Barnes said that Reliv distributors and customers would not be affected by the change-over, because the company would continue to fill orders from its warehouse inventory during the installation and ramp-up period.
Reliv which also operates in Australia and the Phillippines, saw sales in the US jump in 2003 as it expanded its network of distributors.
For the first six months of 2003, net sales surged to $36.4 million, an increase of 22 per cent compared to the first half of 2002. Net income for the period stood at $1.89 million, up 74 per cent the previous year.
The St Louis-based firm, which also makes its own range of soy-based products, recently received a five-year licence to conduct direct selling in Malaysia. Sales are expected to start in October, and lead to expansion throughout Asia in the rapidly growing supplement markets in the Asia Pacific.
