MP visits British can making plant

British Member of Parliament Mark Lancaster recently visited Rexam Beverage Can’s Milton Keynes plant to gain an insight into can making first hand.

The plant visit allowed Mr Lancaster, who is the MP for Milton Keynes North, the opportunity to gain a better understanding of both the workings of the plant itself and Rexam as a company.

He also learnt about the beverage can, particularly the fact that the can is 100% recyclable. Mr Lancaster was also introduced to Rexam’s Fusion aluminium bottle, which can be used as an alternative to glass in clubs, an issue around which he is very interested.

Ian Clayton (pictured right), Milton Keynes plant manager, conducted the plant tour, and was pleased to welcome Mr Lancaster. “It was great to have the opportunity to show Mark Lancaster, our local MP, around the plant. We are very proud of what we do here, and I was pleased to showcase what we achieve everyday in the factory, and how we help to make Rexam a commercial success. Mr Lancaster was particularly interested in learning that there is a large and successful engineering manufacturing facility in Milton Keynes, which adds a unique dimension to the area.”

Included in the visit was a tour of the factory floor, during which Mr Lancaster was able to follow the numerous high-speed processes involved in making a can. He was able to follow the can from a rolled sheet of aluminium through shaping, washing and branding to the finished can ready to be filled. The MP was also shown the factory’s wall to wall facility, which allows the cans to be sent along a conveyor belt to a customer’s factory next door where it is filled and sent for sale, saving on transport emissions and costs.

Mark Lancaster MP said: “I am always keen to champion Milton Keynes as a manufacturing hub and Rexam is the embodiment of that. I was fascinated to learn about the firm, which produces such a high proportion of the country’s cans and is also looking to the future with innovative new products and plans. It was also heartening to read, just after my visit, that the company saw a 19% rise in first-half profits – a great achievement in the current financial climate and something all the staff should be very proud of.”

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