KDP Ireland Celebrates Opening of International Operations Hub in Newbridge
KDP Ireland celebrated the opening of its International Operations hub in Newbridge, Co. Kildare today. The facility is the centre of Keurig Dr Pepper’s global supply chain and manufactures beverage concentrate, a critical component to many of North America’s largest and most popular beverage brands including Dr Pepper, Canada Dry and Sunkist.
The state-of-the-art facility is more than 300,000 square feet and operates as the Company’s second manufacturing plant for beverage concentrate and the first outside of North America. The current team of 80 employees holds a variety of roles, including operations, quality assurance, engineering, planning, and research and development. KDP Ireland plans to expand its team with 20 new roles to be filled by year’s end.
Together with the Company’s supply chain teams in Canada and Mexico, the Ireland facility is responsible for sourcing raw materials and ingredients from around the world and serves as a centre of excellence for beverage concentrate production. The Newbridge International Operations hub allows for the Company to optimise global manufacturing operations and gain and deploy best practices across its international supply chain. Further, it supports supply chain resilience by providing access to the robust European market to secure materials and capabilities needed for the beverage concentrate manufacturing process.
Speaking at the celebration today, David Lainchbury, Chief Procurement Officer & SVP International Operations at KDP Ireland, said: “Today is a proud moment for us. It is a culmination of two years of overcoming extraordinary challenges to officially open the doors to this centre of excellence. We are very thankful to our team, our design and construction suppliers and our community neighbours who have all played an integral role in setting us up for success.”
Welcoming KDP to Ireland, Martin Shanahan, IDA Ireland CEO added: “The decision by Keurig Dr Pepper to open an International Operations Hub in Newbridge, Co. Kildare is very welcome. It endorses Ireland’s reputation as a global location for manufacturing and supply chain excellence. I would like to wish the team well with this operation and I welcome the company’s commitment to adding more roles this year.”
Speaking at the official opening today Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon remarked, “I am delighted to participate in today’s event to celebrate the opening of KDP Ireland and wish the organization a long and successful future in Newbridge.”
KDP Ireland is focused on giving back to the local communities in which it operates and, since 2019, the Newbridge team has identified and partnered with several not-for-profit organisations to help raise funds through various events ranging from charity swims to clean-up days. The team also closely supports the St. Marks School that provides exceptional education to students with mild learning disabilities.