Slovenia's Steklarna Hrastnik shifts focus to glass packaging

By spring Steklarna Hrastnik expects to close down its lighting glass production unit entirely and focus on the development of the packaging glass programme, it said in a statement late last week.

Steklarna Hrastnik explained that the lighting glass business is no longer profitable with demand down since the 2008 crisis. The company also faces sharp price competition promoted by cheap products from the Chinese market.

"We were intensely looking for ways to increase profitability and the scale of operations. Cooperation with well-known designers also failed to meet the expectations that would economically justify the continued existence of the programme," Andrej Bozic, president of the glass division, is quoted saying.

Conversely, the market of special glass packaging and perfume and cosmetic packaging has proven to be an opportunity for expansion, as demand has steadily increased in recent years, Steklarna Hrastnik said.

All employees from the lighting glass production unit will be offered reassignment within the company, Peter Cas, the general director, noted.

"We will offer them conditions of employment that will be comparable with the current, if not better," he added.

Despite its reorganisation, Steklarna Hrastnik noted it will preserve the tradition of manual glass production.

($=0.8478 euro)