Novolex, a manufacturer in the food and beverage packaging sector, has appointed Tamer Abuaita as its chief operating officer (COO), effective immediately.

Based in North Carolina, US, Abuaita will oversee the company’s global operations and report directly to chair and CEO Stan Bikulege.

He succeeds Doug Owenby, who served as interim COO during Novolex’s integration with Pactiv Evergreen and will continue with the company in an advisory capacity.

Bikulege said: “Tamer is a proven leader with a track record of delivering operational excellence at scale.

“His deep expertise across manufacturing, supply chain, logistics, and procurement will be pivotal as we centralise, optimise and accelerate our operations.”

Abuaita brings more than 30 years of international operations experience to his new role.

He most recently served as chief supply chain officer and president of industrial at Stanley Black & Decker.

His background includes senior positions at Nestlé, Kraft Heinz, and SC Johnson.

Abuaita said: “This is an extraordinary opportunity to help shape the future of a company with a proud legacy and immense potential.

“I look forward to working with the team to build a unified, world-class operations platform that will support our employees, exceed our customers’ expectations, and drive sustainable, long-term growth.”

Novolex specialises in packaging solutions for food, beverage, and speciality applications, catering to industries such as foodservice, retail, and industrial.

The company said it is committed to creating sustainable packaging options through ongoing investment in research and development, with manufacturing operations across North America and Europe, supported by two advanced plastic film recycling facilities.

In April this year, Novolex completed its $6.7bn acquisition of Pactiv Evergreen, also headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina.