MWV’s Barcelona plant was founded in 1963 by Antonio Puig with a team of 50 employees. In 1987, the plant moved to its current location in Via Trajana, consisting of more than 9,000 square meters of production space. With a team of 240 employees, MWV has continually reinvested in new assets and capabilities for the plant, including a doubling of production capacity in 2012 with the initial Melodie Spray Collection launch. The plant manufactures a range of beauty and personal care packaging solutions including sprayers, dispensers, airless pumps and foamers. It also produces engine and head components for sprayers that are shipped to other MWV sites for local assembly and customization.
Today, the Barcelona plant serves a portfolio of customers including luxury brands such as Puig, Chanel, Interparfums and Burberry and is a “key strategic facility for MWV,” according to Ángel Fernandez-Carbonell, the plant manager.
Fragrance Centre of Excellence
Fragrance sprayers have been key to the success of the Barcelona plant and MWV’s global Beauty & Personal Care business. Recent keystone innovations developed in the facility include the Emotions of Spray Collection, comprised of the original Melodie pump, Melodie Agile and Melodie Forever, plus three new sprayers - Melodie Pure, Melodie Delicate and Maestro Extravagant - that have distinctive spray characteristics allowing brand owners to tailor the spray to the positioning and personality of the fragrance, which should result in a more luxurious perception of the fragrance and increase brand loyalty. With planned production expansion in 2014, all six sprayers of the Emotions of Spray Collection for the European market will be produced in Barcelona, with additional engine and components supplied to plants in other regions around the world for local assembly.
The Barcelona facility also led in the development of MWV’s patented technology, NoC invisible dip tube, a world’s first that brought an end to the era of unsightly dip tubes in the luxury fragrances segment.
Improving productivity
“With a clear focus on the customer, the Barcelona team has significantly improved productivity in the facility over the past two years with the introduction of lean manufacturing practices, enabling the company to be more nimble and responsive to customer needs,” the company claims.
In 2013, the plant passed the ISO 22716:2007 certification audit for cosmetic Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP).
“This anniversary milestone is a reflection of our legacy in the market and the evolution of our Beauty & Personal Care business,” says Sandy Gregory, global fragrance marketing manager. “MWV has continually invested in research and development as well as our manufacturing capabilities to increase production capacity and deliver the industry best solutions for our customers,” she concludes.
