Mauser Packaging Solutions acquired Grupo Zapata (Taenza, S.A. de C.V.) in May 2024. But what is Grupo Zapata and how does this acquisition fit into the Mauser portfolio and strategy?
Grupo Zapata was founded in 1926 as a shoe polish paste manufacturer but soon began producing tin cans. By the 1940’s the company had expanded into manufacturing crown corks for the beverage industry and general product can lines for coating and chemical industries. Through the rest of the 1900’s, Grupo Zapata built a legacy for their manufacturing capabilities and a strong local presence in the Mexican markets.
Zapata currently operates five strategically located manufacturing facilities throughout Mexico, serving a predominantly Latin American customer base. Its comprehensive packaging portfolio includes sanitary cans, pails, square cans, aerosol containers, and general line products, available for both domestic distribution and export markets.
The acquisition of Zapata provides Mauser with a strategic geographic footprint in Mexico, increased access and expertise for Mexican markets and customers, and an expansion of the Mauser product portfolio. Alternatively, Mauser provides Zapata the ability to leverage our global presence in customer relationships, access to internal support networks (i.e. safety, engineering, finance) and entry into U.S. markets.
Comprehensive capital and synergy investments by Mauser are helping Zapata to regain business and improve operations for employees, customers and suppliers.
- By implementing Mauser safety procedures and practices, Zapata employees are better protected from harm during the workday. Lagging indicator metrics have improved year over year by 62% for Total Recordable Incident Rate (TRIR) and 49% for Lost Time Incident Rate (LTIR). “Low hanging fruit, such as requiring gloves when working with sheet metal, enabled a significant reduction in incident rates and we expect to see continued improvements as we transform the safety culture in these facilities with things such as weekly toolbox talks, improved tracking of leading indicators, and adherence to our Life Saving Rules. Helping keep these employees safe is of upmost importance to us,” comments Allen Coppolo, NASP, EH&S Director.
- Access to corporate finance, legal, HR and IT teams is helping streamline operations and allows the teams in Mexico to focus on customer relationships and operations.
- Synergies between the Mauser and Zapata engineering teams are driving improvements in operational processes and fostering the exchange of best practices across both Mexico and U.S. facilities. Teams from each side have been visiting one another’s locations, sharing knowledge, and leveraging their collective experience. These efforts have also enabled the organization to repurpose idle equipment, increasing capacity while minimizing capital expenditures.
- Expanded workforce development opportunities provide Zapata employees avenues to grow within their current job roles and realize career growth options within the Mauser organization.
- The relationship with Mauser, as a leader in the U.S. packaging market, offers Zapata an expanded presence in the U.S. food can market which broadens the geographic scope for Zapata and expands Mauser’s product offerings in the U.S.
Bob Bourque, President of North America Small Packaging comments on the integration of Zapata into Mauser saying, “The teams in both the U.S. and Mexico are working hard to support each other and there are a lot of white space opportunities for us to continue to grow. The growth from Zapata continues to progress and the Zapata team is proving to be integral part of helping Mauser expand into new markets. We continue to invest in increased sales volumes growth from Zapata to Mauser, install and activate additional capacity, identify additional streams of work, and capitalize on key opportunities.”
The synergies between Mauser and Zapata enhance our ability to bring unparalleled packaging performance and innovation to the market. The Zapata legacy of quality, service and technical support for customers aligns with Mauser mission to provide high quality, sustainable products and solutions to help our customers grow and provide value for our shareholders.