BOYLSTON, MA — To meet the increasing worldwide demand for packaging, Rand-Whitney, an innovator in the packing industry, recently broke ground on a new facility in Boylston, Massachusetts. When complete, the facility will have the capacity to produce 300 million boxes annually.

“We are excited to break ground on the construction of what will be a world-class facility to help us meet the fast-growing demand for packaging,” said Nick Smith, President and CEO of Rand-Whitney, in a statement on the firm’s website. “Boylston is a great location with an amazing work force, and we are happy to continue to invest in manufacturing in Massachusetts where it all began for us some 75 years ago.”

The VHB team initially provided the design and permitting services and will now be delivering construction-phase services for the 61-acre site, inclusive of the 384,000-square-foot facility proposed for Rand-Whitney as well as an additional 307,000-square-foot speculative facility that is still being marketed for a tenant.

“As the pandemic continues to fuel the continued growth of the industrial market, VHB appreciates the opportunity to partner with key clients like Rand-Whitney to offer strategic design and permitting support for their mission-critical developments,” said Brittany Gesner, VHB Senior Project Engineer.

Rand-Whitney has been a leader in the paper and packaging industry in New England for almost 83 years and is a member of The Kraft Group companies. Over the past 17 years, VHB has partnered with The Kraft Group on several developments throughout New England, including a new 45,000-square-foot building for Rand-Whitney’s headquarters in Worcester, Massachusetts, and Patriot Place, a mixed-use center adjacent to Gillette stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.

Gesner was joined by VHB’s Justin Dufresne and Annie Gorman at the groundbreaking, along with representatives from Rand-Whitney, The Kraft Group, Town of Boylston officials, and PROCON, the design-builder for this project.