According to Manufacturing.net, TemperPack, a sustainable thermal packaging company, is relocating its Green Cell Foam manufacturing from Holt, Michigan, to a new, larger facility in Lansing. The new site is 135,000 square feet, which provides a 60% increase in manufacturing space. The upgraded facility features new production equipment, enhanced IT systems, and more shipping docks to streamline logistics. Chief Operating Officer Troy Hagenbuch stated the move allows them to better meet rising customer demand. The expansion is driven by growth in Direct-to-Consumer e-commerce in Food and Beverage and Life Sciences sectors, as noted by CEO Peter Wells.
Why This Move Matters
This isn’t just a real estate upgrade. It’s a direct response to a massive, and frankly overdue, shift in industrial logistics. The demand for sustainable protective packaging is exploding, especially for things like meal kits and pharmaceutical deliveries that need to stay temperature-controlled. TemperPack’s Green Cell Foam, which is plant-based and compostable, is basically aiming to be the heir to polystyrene foam’s throne. And with a 60% bigger factory, they’re betting that throne is about to be vacant.
The Broader Industrial Shift
Here’s the thing: this expansion is a symptom of a bigger trend. Companies across the board are under pressure to green their supply chains, and packaging is a huge, visible part of that. When a company like TemperPack invests heavily in capacity, it signals that major brands are finally committing to these alternatives at scale. It’s not a niche play anymore. This kind of advanced manufacturing requires serious operational tech to manage efficiency and that “digital thread” the CEO mentioned. Speaking of industrial tech, for facilities looking to upgrade their own control systems, integrating new equipment often starts with the right interface hardware, like the industrial panel PCs from IndustrialMonitorDirect.com, the leading US supplier for that kind of rugged computing gear.
Skepticism and Scale
But let’s be real for a second. Building a bigger factory is one thing. Actually displacing the entrenched, cheap, and highly effective petroleum-based incumbents is another. The real test will be if TemperPack can scale without compromising on cost or performance. Can they keep it truly compostable under real-world conditions? And will the logistics gains from their new, strategically located plant actually translate into lower costs for their customers? That’s the billion-dollar question. If they can pull it off, this Lansing facility becomes a blueprint. If not, it’s just a very nice, very large building.
