Sidel and Nestlé Waters: 50-year collaboration milestone highlights benefits of partnership approach

A significant milestone has been reached by Sidel and Nestlé Waters with a celebration in December 2014 marking 50 years of successful partnership. Sidel is the leading global provider of PET solutions for liquid packaging and Nestlé Waters is the number one bottled water company worldwide.

 Mart Tiismann (left), CEO of Sidel, and Marco Settembri, CEO of Nestlé Waters, at the event to commemorate the 50 year partnership.

As key companies within the beverage industry, Sidel and Nestlé Waters have been instrumental in many significant developments, with Nestlé Waters being one of the first companies to switch from glass to plastic before the revolution in PET made it the preferred choice for bottlers of water throughout the world.

Working together on global brands

Representatives from Nestlé Waters and parent company Nestlé joined Sidel for the commemorative event at Sidel’s plant in Octeville, France. It provided an opportunity to see many of the latest developments from Sidel as part of a tour of the facility, including the first Sidel Matrix™ Combi Hotfill, a Predis™ dry preform decontamination system and two blowers that are soon to be supplied for operation at Nestlé Waters’ sites: the first Sidel Matrix Lab blower which will produce bottles for Vittel, a still natural mineral water which originates from the Vosges region in the east of France, and a Sidel Matrix Combi that will be used in the bottling of the naturally carbonated iconic Perrier brand. Both are among the many brands to benefit from the close partnership between Sidel and Nestlé Waters.

Vittel was first commercialised in plastic bottles in the 1960’s when Sidel supplied the extrusion blow moulders. Since then Sidel has been involved at every stage of the brand’s development, including assisting in the redesign of the distinctive ribbed bottle to move from a square to a round shape, with its dynamic v-shaped patterns on the shoulders, for a brand that is today sold in more than 100 countries worldwide. Sidel worked with Perrier to validate the design of their first ever PET bottle, providing a range of equipment which continues to be used for a brand that is widely exported all around the world.

Building on partnership approach for future success

Much of the success of the relationship is attributed to a partnership approach rather than operating on a simple customer-supplier basis. This is a point acknowledged by David Findlay, Nestlé Waters Executive SVP Operations – “This celebration event is recognition for all the efforts made by Sidel to deeply understand and respond to Nestlé Waters’ challenges and needs. This long standing relationship has helped us to perform and better compete in our business. I have every confidence we have built a great platform to be even more successful in the future.”

The opportunity that this shared history provides as a platform for future successes was recognised by Henri Attias, VP Global Key Accounts at Sidel – “This year marks 50 years of partnership, collaboration and numerous successes in the field of bottled water. For half a century, teams at Nestlé Waters and Sidel have worked together to support the development of the international brand portfolio of Nestlé Waters and ensure operational excellence. And we intend to continue.”

The CEOs of both companies, Mart Tiismann (Sidel) and Marco Settembri (Nestlé Waters), also expressed their ongoing commitment to a partnership with a history built on common goals and many common beliefs. This was captured in a commemorative book produced to celebrate the 50 year milestone which highlighted many of the key projects and developments, as well as pointing to future opportunities. It is a partnership which has already brought about market innovations that have enhanced food safety, pushed the limits of industrial performance and helped protect the planet’s resources with sustainability initiatives. This provides a very solid foundation from which to build and contribute to the future of the beverage industry.

Project Examples

Examples of projects in which the Sidel & Nestlé Waters partnership has brought significant value are available at www.sidel.com/nestle-waters-france and www.sidel.com/erikli-nestle.