To handle increased production of its Vera water in PET bottles, AQua Vera has selected a new turnkey packaging line from Sidel. This is the second time the Italian water bottler has collaborated with Sidel at its Castrocielo site, trusting the manufacturer’s expertise and the proven performance of the Sidel Combi installed in 2016.
AQua Vera S.p.A. (AQua Vera) is an Italian household name that specialises in water bottling and, via its subsidiary s.i.con. s.r.l., a manufacturer of preforms and caps. In 2020, the company acquired the well-known brand "Vera" from Nestlé; in Italian, "vera" translates to "real" highlighting the top-quality water bottled.
The water manufacturer has three plants in Italy: the two owned by AQua Vera are based in Castrocielo, in Frosinone, near Rome, and Santo Stefano di Quisquina, in Agrigento, Sicily. The third plant, in San Giorgio in Bosco, Padova, is currently operating via a co-packing contract with Sanpellegrino until its own plant is ready in 2026. AQua Vera’s signature packaging, recognisable by European consumers, won two packaging ‘Oscars’ in 1991 and 1998.
In 2024, AQua Vera chose a completely new turnkey bottling line from Sidel to increase the existing production capacity of its high-quality still water in PET bottles, mainly in 0.5L format as well as 25cl and 1L, which runs up to 20,000 bottles per hour.
Collaborative and reliable partnership
Sidel has built a strong relationship with AQua Vera over the last decade and delivered excellent results on previous projects – a deciding factor in this latest plan.
Mr. Fabrizio Quagliuolo, CEO of AQua Vera, comments: “We appreciate Sidel’s collaborative attitude towards the successful delivery of each of our projects. The teams at Sidel are always on hand to support us, even when we’re facing issues in other areas not directly related to the manufacturer’s equipment.”
At the early stages of this turnkey line project, Sidel designed a solution to maximise production line operability, ergonomics and accessibility required by AQua Vera while also ensuring the best raw material storage and management. It was also important that the final solution optimised the use of precious resources - water, energy and air consumption.
Mr. Quagliuolo adds:“Sidel provided the right design layout with user-friendly operations at its heart, while ensuring it remained cost-effective. Similarly, Sidel has taken overall responsibility for project management of the line to ensure its efficiency and best performance.”
A complete turnkey water line from Sidel
AQua Vera had already installed Sidel’s Combi at its plant in Castrocielo, bringing together blow moulding, filling, and capping machines into a single integrated solution, reducing the overall manufacturing line footprint compared with the former standalone equipment.Mr. Quagliuolo mentions: “We have already witnessed the reliability and improved efficiency of Sidel’s bottling solutions, as the Combi is in use at several of our plants and achieves the highest product quality and food safety standards. We also considered the recommendations from other bottling industry players who trusted Sidel for similar turnkey projects.”
Sidel’s Combi is equipped to manage contact-free filling for AQua Vera’s premium quality water in the most hygienic and safe way, whilst significantly reducing energy consumption compared with previous blower models installed on the line. Similarly, water and chemical usage is also reduced due to its smaller filling enclosure1.
The ‘green’ credentials that underpin the Vera brand are evident in the new line, which features an innovative bundling system with stretch wrapping developed by Sidel. This solution allows for a 50% reduction in plastic use and brings down electricity consumption by 90% compared with traditional packaging methods.
The new complete bottling line will be installed early next year ready to accommodate the high production summer season.
Luigi Camorali, Account Manager for Sidel, concludes: “We worked very hard during the project definition stages to match all our customer’s needs. Furthermore, Sidel’s solutions are suitable for all machines in the line, guaranteeing a significant reduction in the total cost of ownership for the client. It is a privilege to work alongside AQua Vera to bring this project to fruition.”
