Hotpack Packaging Industries, producer and wholesaler of disposable food packaging materials in the UAE, has embarked on a major expansion and will recruit around 270 employees in the GCC for its new upcoming facilities.

Speaking to Emirates 24l7, Abdul Jabbar PB, Managing Director of Hotpack Packaging Industries, said the company will open two more manufacturing facilities in the UAE and Qatar next year. Abu Dhabi facility is expected to open by the end of next year while the Doha, Qatar, factory will be operational in the middle of 2014.

“We currently have 150 employees in newly-opened Dubai Investment Park (DIP) facility which will be expanded in due course. Because we’re adding machines one-by-one and month-by-month, we’ll be hiring based on that. So the facility will have 250 to 300 employees in two-year time. Few machine are already operational at DIP and the others are commissioning and being installed.

“For the Abu Dhabi facility, we plan to have 75 to 80 people and 40 employees for Qatar. The hiring process for these facilities will start three months before the opening of the facilities,” said Abdul Jabbar. He said the company will invest Dh100 million Abu Dhabi facility and Dh40 million in the Doha facility.

“In Saudi Arabia, we’ve planned distribution facility only but if there is a scope we can start manufacturing in the Kingdom,” he added.

Abdul Jabbar anticipates that the company’s total turnover will reach Dh1 billion by 2015 and expect 15-20 per cent growth, outpacing the projected industry growth of 10 per cent. “We’re beating industry growth because of our better service and competitiveness.”

He said UAE’s disposables market is estimated at Dh2 billion and Dh6 billion for the whole of the GCC.

The Dubai-headquartered Hotpack Packaging Industries is part of Majid Plastics Group. It has an annual turnover of Dh500 million.

The group’s newly-opened DIP facility is spanned over 350,000 square feet built at a cost of over Dh100 million.