The Stoelzle Flaconnage plant is on schedule to resume operations by 22nd December, following a major rebuild after a fire halted production in July.
On the evening of Saturday, 12th July 2025, a fire occurred at the Stoelzle Flaconnage facility in Knottingley, England, UK.
Emergency services responded swiftly, and all employees were safely evacuated, with no serious injuries.
The incident caused significant damage to the furnace and key production equipment.
From day one, Stoelzle activated its Business Continuity Plan and began reallocating production across sister facilities in Europe to ensure uninterrupted service to customers.
Group-wide efforts have focused on supporting the recovery of the Knottingley site to enable a return to full-strength operations in December 2025.
The rebuild was led by the local UK team, whose dedication and teamwork brought the plant back to life.
Working across departments and shifts, they restored critical assets and completed the furnace rebuild, IS machine exchange, and civil works within 5 months.
Volumes were reallocated to backup plants in Poland, Austria, and France, covering all customer demand.
To ensure process consistency and quality, those from the UK team specialised in spirits bottles were transferred to these sites to support start-up and on-the-job training.
Supply capability was maintained throughout, with no customer relationships lost.
Orders were delivered within the agreed window and in full; customers received weekly updates to keep lead times and allocations transparent.
Dr August Grupp, CEO of the Stoelzle Glass Group, said: “The rebuild was more than a repair. It showed the spirit of our people and the strength of our organisation.
“Within weeks, our team turned disruption into momentum. With operations resuming in December 2025, we move forward stronger, more connected, and more committed than ever to our customers.”
Rebuild
The rebuild centres on a new advanced furnace from Horn Glass Industries.
Its optimised control and cooling systems improve energy use and environmental performance.
Meanwhile, Bucher Emhart Glass supplied new IS machines, allowing for enhanced process stability, faster job changes, and overall improved efficiency.
Thomas Riss, CEO of Stoelzle Flaconnage, said: “The implementation of the new equipment and technologies significantly increase stability and yield.
“We extend our sincere thanks to the entire Stoelzle team and to all external partner companies involved, such as Horn, Emhart, Forglass, and Havercroft, as well as to the local authorities for their strong and continuous support.”
At the cold end, the inspection area has been refreshed and revalidated.
A mix of new and existing systems remains in operation.
With only minimal fire impact, work focused on targeted upgrades.
The decoration department was likewise only lightly affected.
Equipment remains operational with incremental improvements, while standard processes such as lacquering, screen printing, and hot foil, continue as planned.
Following furnace heat-up and hot commissioning, and the subsequent cold and hot testing, the site remains on track to restart operations on 22.12.2025.
