Nelipak Corporation has broken ground on its new, state-of-the-art production facility in Costa Rica Green Valley in Grecia, Alajuela. The groundbreaking ceremony represents the company’s continued investment in the Central American country and its commitment to supporting the growing medical device manufacturing ecosystem in that region.

Slated to open in mid-2026, the 60,000 square-foot Class-A industrial facility will significantly expand Nelipak’s regional capacity and capabilities, according to the company. The new site will be ISO 13485 certified and include ISO-7 cleanroom manufacturing space designed to meet quality and safety standards for sterile-barrier healthcare packaging.

“We are thrilled to celebrate the start of construction on our newest facility in Costa Rica,” Nelipak CEO Pat Chambliss said. “This investment underscores our long-term commitment to our customers in Latin America and the Caribbean, and reflects our strategy to provide global excellence with strong local support.”

The facility is being built in collaboration with Portafolio Inmobiliario, a Costa Rican real estate developer, and is tailored to Nelipak’s operational and sustainability requirements.

“We are pleased to welcome this multinational company to the Costa Rica Green Valley project. The beginning of its construction marks an important step in consolidating our project as an ideal ecosystem for leading global companies. We are proud to be part of Nelipak’s growth in Costa Rica and to continue driving projects that combine innovation, sustainability, and world-class development,” Portafolio Inmobiliario Executive Director Alfredo Volio stated.

“We enthusiastically celebrate Nelipak’s new investment and the inauguration of its modern production center in Grecia. This expansion reaffirms the company’s confidence in Costa Rica as a strategic platform for its specialized packaging solutions in the life sciences sector. With this investment, the value chain of key sectors such as medical devices and the pharmaceutical industry is strengthened, consolidating Costa Rica as a reliable partner for the production of high-value solutions. We congratulate Nelipak for its commitment to innovation, the creation of quality employment, and the promotion of sustainable growth for the benefit of our country and the region,” Minister of Foreign Trade Manuel Tovar commented.

Nelipak has operated in Costa Rica since its acquisition of ATE in 2012, serving medical device manufacturers with thermoformed trays, die-cut mounting cards, and other custom packaging products. The new facility will broaden production capabilities to include thin- and heavy-gauge thermoforming, die-cut pouch cards, and inserts. It will also offer enhanced warehousing and distribution space for Nelipak’s flexible packaging product lines and allow for future expansion as customer needs evolve.

“The expansion of Nelipak in Costa Rica contributes to strengthening our value chain and consolidating the country as a hub for the manufacturing of medical devices and other high value-added industries. According to the latest Free Trade Zone Report, local purchases in the country reached $5.621 billion, which demonstrates how these investments boost our exports while energizing Costa Rica’s ecosystem. The growth of companies like Nelipak reinforces this synergy and confirms Costa Rica’s appeal for strategic sectors that demand quality, reliability, and innovation,” said Laura López, CEO of the Trade and Investment Promotion Agency of Costa Rica (PROCOMER).

Nelipak provides healthcare packaging solutions including rigid and flexible sterile-barrier packaging for medical device, diagnostic, pharmaceutical drug delivery, and other demanding applications. Nelipak offers in-house design, prototyping, tooling, simulation, validation, laboratory, and other value-added services as well as a line of tray sealing equipment. With 1,400 employees and 11 sites globally, including six sites in North America (U.S., Costa Rica, Puerto Rico) and five sites in Europe (Ireland, Netherlands, U.K.), Nelipak delivers quality, service, and customer experience through cleanroom manufacturing.