“We are a U.S. alternative to European suppliers like Illig, Gabler and Kiefel,” he said.

The TSL FT3500 machine forms and trims parts up to 5.91 inches deep in a single station with a forming area of 30.51 inches by 17.72 inches. The machine at TSL’s booth is the first to be made and has been sold to an Asian customer, which will be making 7 ounce polypropylene drinks cups.

TSL already makes trim-in-place, tilting machines, but these are the large FT8000 and FT14000 machines, and are used primarily for dairy packaging like yogurt containers. Customers had been asking for a medium-sized machine to produce cups where light weighting is vital and PP is the chosen material.

“The trend of switching out of polystyrene and amorphous PET is what is helping TSL sell machines,” Naughton said. Starbucks provides an example of this trend, stating that its PP cups are made from 15 percent less plastic.

The sustainability trend has led retailers to demand the move into PP, as they seek out advantages of lower packaging weight and convergence on a single material to help with recycling.

TSL is reporting a better order book in the last three months, after the economic downturn. “We’ve already seen the bottom and we’re getting orders in that means we need to add staff,” Naughton said.

He attributes this improvement to the new opportunities in sustainable packaging and the return of volumes that fell away at the end of 2008. There is a lot of pent-up demand from earlier that is now loosening up as projects get the green light. Most of these orders are for 2010 delivery, but TSL is looking to tie up two orders at NPE that would be for 2009 delivery.

The FT3500 machine at TSL’s booth also shows off the company’s partnering with what Naughton describes as “proven technology companies,” like automation specialist Mould & Matic Solutions GmbH of Micheldorf, Austria.

The thermoformer has a 45 cavity tool made by Heilbronn, Germany-based Marbach Werkzeugbau GmbH and is equipped with a Mould & Matic pick up stacker, which was adapted to the TSL machine. Further options for automatic packing can also be added. TSL is also working on a less automated version for customers who ask for it.