Silgan Holdings

Silgan Holdings Inc. is an American packaging manufacturer headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut. Founded in 1987 by former Continental Can executives Phil Silver and Greg Horrigan, the company took its name from a combination of the founders’ surnames. Rather than operating as a consumer-facing product brand, Silgan is primarily a business-to-business packaging company whose products are incorporated into goods sold by food, beverage, household, health, beauty, and other consumer-product companies. The company’s principal activities have historically centered on rigid packaging. Its portfolio includes metal food cans, closures, plastic containers, and specialty packaging formats such as plastic thermoformed containers. These products are supplied to branded manufacturers, private-label producers, and other industrial customers. Silgan’s packaging is used for products including canned foods, beverages, personal-care products, household chemicals, and other everyday consumer goods. Its business model depends on manufacturing scale, long-term customer relationships, production efficiency, materials management, and the ability to make or integrate acquisitions in geographically important markets. Silgan expanded rapidly after its formation through acquisitions and customer contracts. Early commercial relationships reportedly included Del Monte and Nestlé, and the company increased its share of the relevant packaging market from approximately 10 percent in 1987 to 36 percent in 1995, according to reporting cited in the company’s encyclopedia coverage. The acquisition-led strategy continued through the 1990s and 2000s, although it also left the company with substantial long-term debt during the late 1990s. Silgan subsequently broadened its European presence, including through the acquisition of the food-can business of Vienna-based Vogel & Noot Holding, completed in 2011. The company has also pursued expansion in plastic packaging. In 2013 it acquired Rexam’s plastic thermoformed food business and completed the acquisition of Portola Packaging. In January 2017, Silgan agreed to acquire WestRock’s home, health and beauty business, extending its position in packaging for personal-care and household applications. These transactions illustrate the company’s recurring strategy of combining organic manufacturing capabilities with acquisitions of complementary product lines and regional operations. Silgan has experienced the cyclical and competitive pressures typical of industrial packaging. Demand weakness in parts of Europe was identified as a challenge during the early 2010s, while labor costs, wages, health benefits, raw-material prices, customer concentration, and integration of acquired businesses have also affected operations. The company has nevertheless been described as consistently profitable by the late 2000s, after the debt pressures associated with its earlier expansion had eased. It operates factories in North America and Europe and, together with subsidiaries, has employed approximately 17,000 people according to the cited reference material. Silgan’s public identity is therefore best understood as that of a diversified packaging manufacturer rather than a retail brand. Its visibility comes mainly through the consumer products packaged in its containers and closures, its relationships with large packaged-goods companies, and its acquisitions across metal and plastic packaging categories.

Silgan Holdings was established in 1987 by Phil Silver and Greg Horrigan, two former executives of Continental Can. The founders pursued a consolidation strategy in the packaging industry, acquiring competing or complementary operations and seeking contracts with major packaged-food companies. Relationships with Del Monte and Nestlé helped support early expansion. Reference material cited in the company’s Wikipedia article indicates that Silgan’s market share rose from about 10 percent in 1987 to 36 percent in 1995. The acquisition program continued into the late 1990s. Silgan acquired a portion of Campbell Soup Company’s packaging operations in 1998 for a reported $150 million. The pace of expansion created financial pressure: the company was reported to have approximately $700 million in long-term debt in September 1997. Silgan later moved into a more stable operating period. By the late 2000s it was described as consistently profitable, and its reported 2009 profit was $131.6 million, a figure said to represent a 7.2 percent increase over 2007. The same reference material noted an improved Fortune 500 ranking. Labor relations were an occasional source of conflict. In 2003, about 100 employees struck after negotiations over wages and health benefits broke down. Further labor action was reported in May 2010. The company also faced employment-discrimination proceedings. In 2009, the EEOC brought a case concerning alleged denial of promotion and reasonable accommodation for an employee with a hand disability. In 2010, an African American employee received a reported $45,000 settlement following EEOC findings concerning discriminatory termination and unequal treatment. Silgan expanded its European food-can presence through the acquisition of the food-can business of Vogel & Noot Holding, headquartered in Vienna. The transaction was completed in March 2011. Vogel & Noot operated 12 food-can manufacturing facilities in Central and Eastern Europe in 2010 and anticipated sales of approximately €250 million for that year. The company also pursued plastic-packaging growth. In 2011 it attempted to acquire Graham Packaging for approximately $1.3 billion, but Reynolds Group Holdings ultimately won the transaction with a reported $1.68 billion offer. In 2013, Silgan acquired Rexam’s plastic thermoformed food business for a reported $248.1 million and completed the acquisition of Portola Packaging in October. The company’s share performance during that period was affected by European demand concerns and then reportedly stabilized after the Portola transaction. In January 2017, Silgan agreed to acquire WestRock’s home, health and beauty business for a reported $1.025 billion. The deal reflected Silgan’s continuing effort to diversify beyond traditional food cans into packaging used for household, personal-care, and health-related products. By the period covered by the reference material, Silgan had manufacturing facilities across North America and Europe and employed approximately 17,000 people within its own and subsidiary operations. Its historical development is characterized by industry consolidation, geographic expansion, a mix of metal and plastic packaging, and recurring acquisition-led portfolio management.

• 2017

  WestRock home, health and beauty agreement

  [1]Silgan Holdingsen.wikipedia.org

  Silgan entered an agreement to acquire WestRock’s home, health and beauty business.

• 2013

  Expansion into thermoformed plastic packaging

  [1]Silgan Holdingsen.wikipedia.org

  Silgan acquired Rexam’s plastic thermoformed food business and completed the Portola Packaging acquisition.

• 2011

  Vogel & Noot food-can transaction completed

  [1]Silgan Holdingsen.wikipedia.org

  Silgan completed its acquisition of Vogel & Noot Holding’s food-can business in March.

• 2011

  Graham Packaging bid

  [1]Silgan Holdingsen.wikipedia.org

  Silgan attempted to acquire Graham Packaging but was outbid by Reynolds Group Holdings.

• 2003

  Employee strike

  [1]Silgan Holdingsen.wikipedia.org

  About 100 employees struck following unsuccessful negotiations over wages and health benefits.

• 1998

  Campbell Soup packaging acquisition

  [1]Silgan Holdingsen.wikipedia.org

  Silgan purchased a portion of a Campbell Soup Company rival operation for a reported $150 million.

• 1995

  Market share reaches reported 36 percent

  [1]Silgan Holdingsen.wikipedia.org

  Cited reporting said Silgan’s market share had increased from approximately 10 percent at founding to 36 percent.

• 1987

  Company founded

  [1]Silgan Holdingsen.wikipedia.org

  Phil Silver and Greg Horrigan founded Silgan Holdings after careers at Continental Can.

A diversified, acquisition-oriented business-to-business packaging manufacturer emphasizing scale, manufacturing capabilities, customer relationships, and complementary metal and plastic packaging platforms.

• Metal packaging

  Metal food cans

  Silgan manufactures rigid metal cans used for packaged foods and related consumer products. Food-can operations have been central to the company since its founding and have supported its relationships with large food manufacturers. The company expanded this platform through acquisitions in North America and Europe, including the Vogel & Noot food-can business.

• Plastic packaging

  Plastic containers

  Silgan produces plastic containers for consumer and household applications. This category forms part of the company’s broader effort to complement its traditional metal-packaging base with lightweight and application-specific plastic formats.

• Packaging components

  Closures

  The company’s packaging portfolio includes closures and related components used to seal consumer-product containers. These products support food, beverage, household, health, and beauty applications and can be supplied alongside other rigid packaging formats.

• Thermoformed packaging · 2013

  Plastic thermoformed food packaging

  Silgan expanded into plastic thermoformed food packaging through its acquisition of Rexam’s plastic thermoformed food business in 2013. Thermoformed formats provide rigid, shape-specific containers for food applications and broaden the company’s manufacturing capabilities beyond metal cans and conventional plastic containers.

• Consumer-care packaging · 2017

  Home, health and beauty packaging

  The home, health and beauty platform acquired from WestRock was intended to strengthen Silgan’s presence in packaging for personal-care, household, and health-related products. It represents a strategic extension from food packaging into other recurring consumer-goods categories.

• 2010

  Race-discrimination settlement

  The EEOC reportedly found that an African American employee had been terminated on racial grounds and subjected to disparate treatment. The employee received a reported $45,000 settlement.

  Source

• 2009

  EEOC disability-discrimination lawsuit

  The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission sued Silgan over allegations that an employee missing three fingers on the left hand was denied promotion and reasonable accommodation.

  Source

Read more

• 2017

  WestRock consumer-care packaging agreementM&A

  Background

  Silgan aimed to broaden its packaging presence in home, health, and beauty markets.

  Action taken

  Silgan entered into an agreement to acquire WestRock’s home, health and beauty business.

  Announced acquisition value. $1.025 billion (January 2017)

  Source

• 2013

  Plastic packaging portfolio expansionM&A

  Background

  Silgan sought to increase its exposure to plastic packaging while European demand conditions remained difficult.

  Action taken

  The company acquired Rexam’s plastic thermoformed food business and completed its acquisition of Portola Packaging.

  Aftermath

  The Portola transaction was followed by reported stabilization and subsequent improvement in Silgan’s share price.

  Rexam plastic thermoformed food business acquisition value. $248.1 million (2013)

  Source

• 2011

  Bid for Graham PackagingM&A

  Background

  Silgan sought to expand its plastic-packaging platform through a proposed acquisition of Graham Packaging.

  Action taken

  Silgan attempted to purchase Graham Packaging for a reported $1.3 billion.

  Aftermath

  Reynolds Group Holdings outbid Silgan with a reported $1.68 billion offer, so Silgan did not acquire the company.

  Proposed acquisition value. $1.3 billion proposed Silgan offer; $1.68 billion competing offer (2011)

  • Reynolds Group Holdings — Reynolds Group Holdings submitted the higher offer and won the transaction.

  Source

1. 1Silgan Holdingsen.wikipedia.org