20 bottles a second: How Coca-Cola's new R365m Midrand line ramps up Powerade, Bonaqua output

News24

2 days ago

Coca-Cola Beverages Africa (CCBA) has invested R365 million in a new line at its Midrand plant to produce 72 000 bottles an hour and supply South Africa, Eswatini, and Lesotho with its Bonaqua water and Powerade energy drinks.
The group's newly launched Powerade Springboks Edition will also be produced at the new plant, which is six times as fast as its old Wadeville plant, which up until now has produced Bonaqua products for South Africa. It is also nearly four times quicker than its Pretoria West facility, which had supplied Powerade.
Speaking to News24 on the sidelines of the new hydration line's official launch on Friday, Moses Lubisi, manufacturing and technical director at Coca-Cola Beverages South Africa, said the Pretoria West plant had older technology that produced about 19 000 bottles an hour, while Wadeville, which produced Bonaqua Pump, delivered 12 000 bottles an hour.
In Wadeville, too, the technology was becoming outdated.
Now, the two lines will be replaced with one 'supercharged' line in Midrand that is significantly more efficient.
Nick Wilson/ News24
He said the 72 000 bottles produced on the new line equated to 1 200 bottles every minute.
Breaking it down even further, this meant that 20 bottles were 'zipping through the filling machine every second'.
'That's fast by anybody's standards, and we are proud to bring this under Coke's banner right here in Midrand.'
He said the investment represented a 'major step' forward in the group's ability to meet growing consumer demand and 'create shared value across the local value chain'.
Supplied/ Coca-Cola Beverages Africa
'This technology reaffirms the Coca-Cola Company's commitment and approach to manufacture locally, distribute locally, and, where possible, to source locally.'
CCBA said in a statement that the production line would produce Bonaqua Pump Still in the 750ml pack and Powerade in the 500ml pack sizes with an 'innovative sports bottle cap', as well as the Bonaqua Still in 330ml and 500ml packs.
Supplied/ Coca-Cola Beverages SA
The smaller pack sizes for Bonaqua Pump Still formed part of the group's plan to focus on expanding the hydration category.
CCBA, which operates in 15 African countries, said it was the eighth-largest Coca-Cola bottler in the world by revenue, and the largest in Africa, accounting for more than 40% of all Coca-Cola's ready-to-drink beverages sold in Africa by volume. CCBA's shareholders include The Coca-Cola Company with 66.5% and Gutsche Family Investments with 33.5%.
SA is the largest market in the CCBA group and home to 13 manufacturing plants across six provinces, with more than 7 000 employees.