Member Focus: Hexcel Composites prepare for the Plastic Packaging Tax
Hexcel Composites Ltd, a loyal member with Beyondly for both packaging compliance and data management, came to us looking for support with the new Plastic Packaging Tax introduced by HMRC in April 2022. They selected Beyondly’s consultancy to conduct a detailed Plastic Tax Impact Assessment, to review their plastic packaging activities and confirm their liability.
The opportunity
Hexcel Composites Ltd is a global leader in advanced composites technology, a leading producer of carbon fibre reinforcements and resin systems, and the world leader in honeycomb manufacturing for the commercial aerospace industry, with over 70 years’ experience and 23 manufacturing sites. The company is committed to protecting our planet, with a dedication to reducing emissions through renewable energy procurement, recycling and re-use. They have been a Clean Air Winner, and have been recognised for their outstanding culture of safety and sustainability. With projects to reduce both greenhouse gas emissions’ intensity and waste going to landfill by 30% by 2030, it was essential that they tackled the new tax responsibly and contributed towards incentivising the use of recycled material in the production of plastic packaging. As a current Comply Direct packaging compliance scheme member, Hexcel Composites were confident that our in-house specialists would successfully guide them through this tax, and use it as an opportunity to bring real value to their business.
The solution
To produce an effective and meaningful impact assessment, Beyondly:
- Held an initial consultation video call with Hexcel Composites to discuss their plastic packaging activities in detail and fully understand their business.
- Delivered a report detailing our plastic tax calculator results and confirming their exact liability
- Detailed the requirements to comply with HMRC data portal submission, records to keep and evidence trail for exemption claims
- Offered clear recommendations to develop export data to ensure claims and deferrals are supported
- Offered due diligence advice with regards to UK suppliers
- Helped the wider team get to grips with the tax in a round table discussion and developed their knowledge
- Identified key impacts of both the direct and indirect costs of the tax to help Hexcel Composites prepare and manage their plastic tax liability
- Offered recommendations for opportunities to defer and mitigate the tax; ultimately saving money
- Opened up the opportunity for a recycled content project, now underway, to investigate the potential use of recycled content
The results
Following the benefits Hexcel Composites gained from the impact assessment, they felt confident ahead of reporting to HMRC in July 2022, with impactful cost saving opportunities and the chance to make positive sustainability changes to their packaging in terms of recycled content.
The EHS Manager at Hexcel Composites following the project said:
“Having worked with Beyondly for a number of years, they have always been easy to work with and take the headache out of compliance. Our most recent involvement with the plastic packaging tax enabled us to quickly understand our liabilities and ensure we met the requirements from HMRC. The team are professional and great to work with."
If you would like to support regarding the Plastic Packaging Tax, get in touch with us on solutions@beyond.ly