DAKRI CARTONS: Continuous Improvement Brings Corrugated Carton Perfection

Creating both standard and custom packaging for businesses in the Indian Ocean region, since 2015 Dakri Cartons’ factory has been relocated in Petite Rivière, Mauritius. A leading specialised corrugated carton manufacturing company on the island, Dakri Cartons also imports and sells biodegradable food packaging products, including packaging boxes made from Kraft paper.

The company specialises in the production of die-cut and regular slotted boxes, with various degrees of print and graphic design, as well as a large proportion of a variety of boxes that are used in the food industry; for example, small perforated die-cut boxes for cherry tomatoes and grapes which are sold in supermarkets, and a variety of boxes like these for various products which were previously packed in plastic bags or plastic boxes. They also produce a variety of cake boxes and pizza boxes. With the seismic shift away from plastics and a market that was historically dominated by polystyrene, Dakri Cartons has seized the opportunity to create alternatives now being sold in Mauritius, Reunion Islands and the Seychelles.

PACKAGING PILLAR

“Dakri Cartons aims to provide you with sturdy and dependable carton packaging for your needs,” states Dakri Cartons. “We use corrugated sheets in our box manufacturing process, a tried-and-tested material which is resilient and malleable, and which has become the benchmark for standard and customised carton boxes.

The company has evolved into a pillar of the carton manufacturing industry in Mauritius.
With its core business in the provision of corrugated cardboard and food packaging, Dakri works with and produces for major international beverage companies and the textiles, alcohol and food industries, especially can packaging for the foremost tuna brands.

“There is not a lot made of cardboard that we cannot manufacture,” Dakri summates.

“Now we are setting our sights on the coastal countries of Africa, wherever there is good access to a port,” he relates. “This is really important to us; as we are a cardboard factory in the middle of the Indian Ocean, the further inland we have to deliver the product, the less competitive we are naturally going to be, with the addition of freight and transport costs.” CEO Nazir Dakri reasons.

“Another of the core strengths of being located on an island like Mauritius: while it is a very small market, it is equally very diverse, and the requirements of each customer are vastly different. We have therefore had to design the factory to be inherently flexible, to be able to make small to medium, as well as large, runs, in any type of format or print variation according to what the client requires.”

SPECIALISED SOLUTIONS

“We do not make standard products, as such; we make custom, specific products branded specially for the customer at hand. Currently we are targeting very specialised businesses, and above all we want to produce the packaging for the wine industry,” Dakri reveals. “Mainly the boxed wines that are used by restaurants and bars.”

Interestingly, Dakri describes that, for Dakri Cartons, the best way to stay ahead of the chasing pack is by focusing on introspection and self-improvement, rather than being overly concerned by what its competitors may be doing around it. “We feel that we have so much to learn and develop ourselves, it is so much more interesting to focus internally, and try make us our own competitor.

“I borrow the mindset I use when doing triathlons: of course, yes, there is competition, but it boils down to how well we have trained and mastered each aspect of, in this case, the business, and every small step has to be better than the previous year. If that work has been done right, and diligently, and techniques and principles and traits have been applied, you cannot be anything other than the best in the field at the end of that year.”

It is an interesting proposition; if the importance is placed merely on overtaking the perceived ‘leader’, and then no more is done to excel, is a business, or an individual athlete, to borrow Dakri’s analogy, not severely limiting its own potential? “This is why we exclusively set our own personal bars, not those based on someone else’s expectations,” Dakri answers.

CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT

Dakri Cartons’s machinery and processes are subject to similarly stringent enhancements. “We make use of cutting-edge machinery, and keep up to date with technology,” Dakri outlines. “To stay in the lead in our industry, we must consistently produce high-quality carton, and we keep standards high by constantly improving our carton production techniques.”

Perhaps naturally, this drive for continued and sustained improvement translates to the opportunities for uplift available to the company’s staff. “We are very employee-centric; we believe firmly in learning and education alongside continuous improvement as core and fundamental for us.

“We often find gaps, particularly on the technical side, with those coming to work for us and we have to fill those gaps ourselves through training and raising the standards, and continually reinforcing these. This has made a huge difference, I have remarked, raising confidence and the willingness to take responsibility and risks, and thus bringing greater reward, while knowing what the limits are and what is too far.”

It has a big effect on employee retention, Dakri confirms, but is double-edged: “It is also extremely useful in weeding out those who do not share the company’s values with regards to growth and continuous improvement,” he says. “Over time, I hope that we will gain a reputation that means that only people who want a career and to progress and grow are wanting to work with us.

“We are introducing the Kaizen principle, a system of continuous improvement, to rally the engagement of all employees. It encourages them to think of how they can improve their working conditions, while also thinking of the positive impact of these changes on their colleagues”, he adds, with the Japanese philosophy of ‘good change’ involving employees at all levels of the company working together to improve the manufacturing process.

Continuous improvement, for Dakri, also relates to Dakri Cartons’ footprint, he reveals. “What I want to do now is take Dakri Cartons international. I would like to set up factories in the better countries in Africa – those that have a demand for the product, and a hunger and entrepreneurship to export. If they are aligned with those elements, we will look to open there.” Reunion Island features highly on Dakri’s wish-list, offering an already-established, stable market and a potential great reduction in lead time.

“Every year, we are continuously improving every aspect of the business, meaning that there is always so much underway here,” Dakri closes; the company’s new print-on-demand service and exciting potential e-commerce entry are just two more of its current ventures. “Penetrating the African market would arguably be the biggest deal, though,” he closes.

“Our three decades of experience and service have earned us the trust of major business leaders in Mauritius, Reunion, and the Indian Ocean region; now we want to take our excellence in a box as far and wide as we can.”