Tomás López has been and is a direct witness to the evolution of the metal packaging industry. He assures that electric welding was a turning point in a sector whose innovation is infinite. The entrepreneur leads Eviosys with astonishing business figures, compatible with the human factor and sustainability. Investment in solar energy has been one of the strong points this year in the task of decarbonization: panels equivalent to 265,000 trees have been installed.

You have been in the metal packaging industry for a lifetime. The changes in recent decades have been dizzying, and you have been a first-line witness to them. How do you feel about all these changes? Were they imaginable, for example, in the 1970s?
Indeed, nothing to do with today’s reality. In the 1970s, containers were soldered with a lead/tin alloy that would be unfeasible today. At that time, there was little or no concern for the environment (among others). As a curious fact, in those years, the thickness of a can was 0.22 mm and nowadays it can be manufactured in 0.13 mm. To get there, it has taken a lot of research and development.

What has been the most obvious trigger for change, the one that has brought about a real qualitative change in the sector?
At the beginning of the 80’s, “electric welding” appeared, which, in my opinion, was the most radical change in our industry, becoming a “clean” manufacturing. Since then, innovation in our sector has been a constant, both in terms of production and the environment.

Eviosys is a large multinational corporation with a turnover of 590 million euros. How do you reach this level and importance in the sector worldwide?
Eviosys had a turnover of 2.4 billion euros in 2023 (of which 619 million euros in Iberia), 44 factories in 17 countries (Europe, Africa, Asia and the Middle East) and employs around 7,000 people. The company is headquartered in Switzerland. Eviosys is the end result of successive acquisitions/mergers (Carnaud, Metal Box, Crown and Mivisa). In total, about 200 years of history.

In the metal packaging industry, there is a lot of talk about sustainability, about decarbonization. Do you think that all countries AND companies are involved at the same level? Can we find several speeds in this sustainability issue?
The concern is obviously general, but it is true that not all countries and not all companies are moving at the same cruising speed. In our case, we have set ourselves a very ambitious target for 2030, which we will reach in 2026, four years ahead of schedule. We are investing heavily in solar energy (in Spain in the last year we have installed an area equivalent to having planted 265,000 trees), we are replacing incinerators to achieve “0” emissions, we have implemented electric forklifts in our plants.

At the same time, we also put pressure on our raw material suppliers so that their production is also made with “0” emissions as soon as possible.

Efficiency is another key word in manufacturing production of any kind. What are the pillars of efficiency in metal packaging?
Historically, we have reinvested company profits in acquiring the latest technology in our industry. This has translated into greater efficiency (higher speed and better material specifications). In addition, our plants are located in the areas where our products are consumed, thus avoiding large displacements that have a direct impact on costs and also reduce CO2 emissions significantly.

The news of large corporations such as Eviosys is full of data on turnover, income statements, purchases, share sales, and company stock. What is the importance of the human factor among so many figures and macroeconomic data?
The human factor is essential in any company, and even more so in a company the size of Eviosys. We attach great importance to this issue. We know that it is people who build companies and, therefore, our principles are based on respect for people, having implemented for years, policies of inclusion, diversity, equality and transparency with our employees. Without the daily efforts of each of our approximately 7,000 employees, it would not be possible to maintain our company’s leadership in this sector.

Cans have been present in the daily lives of families for more than a century. It is almost impossible to imagine a world without cans, where progress has also arrived with modern, ergonomic and beautiful designs. Is there a lot of research behind the design of a can?
Indeed, when you get to know the world of cans “from the inside”, you discover the amount of technology, work, design and innovation behind a can. Evolution is constant and must continue to be so because there is a lot of room for improvement. Metal packaging is the most sustainable and environmentally friendly of all. Unfortunately, this message has not yet reached all consumers and we have to keep working on it. The can is truly a “safe” in terms of consumer protection and infinitely recyclable.

We have just experienced an important milestone in the life of Eviosys, namely its acquisition by SONOCO, a $3.9 billion transaction. How will this change Eviosys’ business life? Does this new conglomerate have any concrete goals?
Sonoco is a world leader in the manufacture of cardboard containers and packaging, with sales of approximately 7 billion dollars. In the USA they have 7 metal packaging production plants and none in Europe or elsewhere in the world. With the acquisition of Eviosys (number 1 in Europe), they are taking a giant step towards their goal of becoming number 1 worldwide in this sector as well. In principle, nothing changes except the name. Personally, I will remain CEO of the company and we will continue to manage Eviosys as before.

We share the same objective of continuing to grow and strengthen our position in the different markets.

Are there any new investment plans on the horizon for this new joint venture? Is there a concrete roadmap, and can it be disclosed?
As I was saying, Sonoco’s goal is to become the world leader in the manufacture of metal packaging. In that sense, we will continue to be on the lookout for any opportunity that will allow us to reach that goal as soon as possible.

International conflicts have made and continue to make the industry very dizzy, and to what extent can the industry free itself from influences in a globalized world?
In a world as globalized as ours, any conflict affects all sectors.
From the worst, wars, pandemics… to a ship blocking the Suez Canal, everything has an impact. In our case, the fact that we are present in so many countries and markets allows us to be more responsive to a localized problem in a given region.

How do you see the present and the future of the industry? Is the industry prepared to adapt flexibly to this liquid universe where few things remain the same?
For the reasons already mentioned (ecological, sustainable, infinitely recyclable packaging…) I am confident about the future of the sector. We must continue to work to bring to the final consumer the advantages of metal packaging to which everyone resorts, for example, in times of pandemic. This sector has been able to adapt very quickly to all the legislative changes, of which there have been many in recent years. And we will continue to do so, knowing that greater consumption of our packaging will result in a cleaner and more sustainable planet.