HCP Packaging Group has announced the appointment of Thomas Gibtner, as general manager for Rusi Cosmetic GmbH & Co. KG Germany. Gibtner will be responsible for all aspects of the HCP-Rusi operation to ensure supply of quality cosmetic packaging at a high service level to their global customers, managed and supported by HCP’s global sales and marketing organization.
 
Gibtner joined Rusi on July 2, 2018 and reports directly to Eddy Wu, group president & CEO, HCP Packaging. Gibtner is an industry veteran with many years of experience in the beauty sector, working in both formulation and packaging. He joins HCP from Schwan-Stabilo Cosmetics, where most recently he was vice president Formula & Packaging Development.
 
Rusi: 10 new fully electric injection machines
 
Prior to that Gibtner held senior technical and product development roles at Artdeco and BCMK, Germany. Klaus Sindel, whose family founded Rusi in 1976, will continue until the end of 2018 as a senior advisor supporting the expansion program in Bechhofen, Germany, as well as assisting Gibtner during this transition. HCP’s commitment to strategically invest in manufacturing in Europe is on track with the first phase of the expansion program for Bechhofen on schedule to deliver increased production capacity by October 2018. The investment program includes the construction of two new production buildings designed to be energy efficient via a temperature-controlled environment. The installation of 10 new fully electric injection machines will deliver an immediate 25% increase in molding capacity. Other benefits include new screen-printing decoration equipment that will increase output by over 10 million units and new mascara brush machine that will increase output by 5 million units per annum respectively.
 
—From Beauty Packaging’s European correspondent, Jean-Yves Bourgeois 
 
 
PHOTO: Thomas Gibtner