GRAND RAPIDS, MICH. - Haviland Consumer Products and Action Technology said they jointly will market and manufacture swimming pool and spa tubing; blow molded, coextruded and spiral-wound hose; and extruded profiles. Grand Rapids-based Haviland Consumer Products is a division of Haviland Enterprises Inc., also of Grand Rapids. It distributes industrial and pool chemicals.
Action Technology, a division of Ridgefield, N.J.-based PureTec Corp., is in Rockaway, N.J. It claims to be the largest tubing extruder in North America.
Abbotts in molder-acquisition mode
RADNOR, PA. - Abbotts Organization, a Radnor-based holding firm, plans to acquire three to five injection molding companies to form one firm.
``This is a totally new venture,'' said Jack Wisniewski, president and chief executive officer. ``We're looking to purchase companies in geographically dissimilar areas.''
The company's objective is to form a $200 million firm by acquiring companies with sales of $20 million to $30 million. Wisniewski expects to have two companies with total sales of $40 million to $50 million by year's end.
``The key is a win-win deal - for it to be acceptable to owners so they will want to be part of the management team, and acceptable to the shareholders so they gain more than lose,'' Wisniewski said.
Abbotts Organization believes injection molding is on an upswing, with a good part of the market in the international arena, he said. The company wants to provide subassembly through complete assembly.
The firm will target high-end consumer products, medical, scientific, computer and business machines markets.
Boyd doubling manufacturing space
CERES, CALIF. - Boyd Corp. is expanding its northern California division by moving to a 100,000-square-foot facility in Modesto, Calif., from its Ceres plant.
The new unit, about 5 miles from the Ceres facility, will double the firm's manufacturing space, and Boyd expects its sales to increase threefold.
A company spokeswoman declined to reveal the cost of the project, or to provide details about equipment that will be moved from Ceres or added to the Modesto plant.
Boyd supplies fabricated rubber and plastic components. The firm serves various markets including electronic, medical and aerospace in which conversion sponge, foam and plastics are required.
With total production space now exceeding 300,000 square feet companywide, Boyd also has manufacturing facilities in Portland, Ore.; Chino, Calif.; and Denver. With 75 employees at the leased Ceres plant, Boyd said it may add 25 workers eventually to handle expected sales growth.
Injection molded PE swing recalled
HUDSON, OHIO-Little Tikes Co. is recalling an injection molded swing that could tip forward and flip over while a child is in it.
The company introduced Cozy Highback Swing model 4637 in January and sold about 245,000 units.
The Hudson firm will destroy returned swings and recycle the polyethylene, according to spokeswoman Leslie Mapes. She said the firm received 55 reports on the swing tipping forward but no report about a child being seriously hurt.
Little Tikes will replace returned swings with comparable products, including an earlier, more-expensive swing that includes a T-bar construction. The blue Cozy Highback Swing does not contain a T-bar.
``We will put the older [version] molds back into action,'' Mapes said. She declined to speculate how child spills could occur with the new swing.
``It's difficult to re-create [spills] in our test labs,'' Mapes said in a telephone interview.
Little Tikes and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission recently jointly announced the recall.
Seda finalizes American Safety buy
LOS ANGELES - Seda Specialty Packaging Corp. of Los Angeles has completed its acquisition of American Safety Closure Corp., a Plattsburg, N.Y., closure maker it has been operating as a subsidiary since June 1995.
Seda said in an announcement that it had purchased the final 14 percent of outstanding shares of ASC. The purchase price was undisclosed.
Seda's complete acquisition of the company was stalled in 1995 when a dispute occurred between the California firm and ASC partners, but was resolved in November.
Seda makes tubes and flexible packaging for the personal- care, food and beverage, household and industrial chemical and pharmaceutical industries.