RHINELANDER, WIS. - American Plastics Co. plans to add a sevenlayer extrusion line next year at its Rhinelander facility. American Plastics has not chosen a supplier yet, said John Clark, chief executive officer for sister company C&H Packaging Co. of Merrill, Wis.
It wants the seven-layer line to ``give us flexibility for new resin combinations,'' Clark said in a telephone interview. American Plastics now has five-layer extrusion capability and plans to double its manufacturing space in Rhinelander.
Clark said C&H Packaging, also undergoing an expansion, celebrates its 10th anniversary this month. C&H has grown an average of 15 percent a year in its history and has annual sales of about $25 million.
The firm serves primarily small and medium-size manufacturers. Its products include PET laminates, zipper pouches, lidding films and meat packaging.
Clark, American Plastics' President Jack Haug, and Mike Hansen founded C&H. They also established American Plastics in 1992.
ALPHARETTA, GA. - Hoover Group Inc. is adding capacity at one of its blow molding plants because of a new product line.
The Alpharetta-based company has two blow molding machines at its 200,000-square-foot Mount Vernon, Ohio, plant. One of the machines, purchased last year, has not yet run at full capacity. However, it will be fully utilized by the beginning of next year. Hoover Group is investing $2.5 million to $3 million to bring it up to speed and to handle additional products.
The new product line is a composite intermediate bulk container for an unspecified German company. Hoover is the U.S. licensee for the container. The firm plans to put the line into production by the second quarter next year and add about 10-12 employees at the highly automated plant.
Hoover may consider bids late next year for an additional blow molding machine at the plant. The company expects to spend $3 million to $4 million.
The company also has an 80,000-square-foot plant in Anniston, Ala., with one blow molding machine.
Hoover makes high density polyethylene industrial and commercial packaging for chemical makers, food processors, lubricant manufacturers and petroleum companies. It had sales of $50 million last year.
CHICAGO - Larry Michelson, Pan-Am Plastics owner and president, has retired and sold his Chicago-based blow molding company to Mark Shabadash. The company was subsequently renamed Pan-Am Diversified Plastics. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The 40,000-square-foot plant did not experience any restructuring, according to Mark Sher, plant manager.
Last year, the company reported sales of $2.37 million with 36 employees and eight blow molding machines. Pan-Am Diversified Plastics has estimated its sales at $2 million since February, and has 46 employees and 11 machines.
Pan-Am molds products for the food, motor oil, household, personal care, toy, packaging and industrial and agricultural chemical industries.
COLUMBUS, OHIO - American Plastics Extruding Inc. has moved to a new Columbus location.
This month the profiles extruder completed its move to a 35,000-square-foot plant on 3 acres an investment of $1 million, including renovation costs, said President Robert G. Smith.
The company's lease at its former site expires in December, so it bought an existing building that will accommodate 10 extrusion lines, he said recently by telephone. It currently operates eight extruders and employs 22 full-time workers.
With 11/2 acres on which to expand, APE hopes to make use of the space. Since Smith and his partner, Robert C. Sutton, bought the firm in September 1994, they say they have boosted its customer base by 50 percent. One new customer brings with it a six- to 10-year project that has APE extruding acrylic lenses to be used in lighted signs at Texaco Inc. gas stations. By late next year, APE expects to be ISO 9002 certified, Smith said.
The company extrudes mainly profiles and a small amount of tubing, using polystyrene, PVC, ABS, polycarbonate and acrylic, for Midwest customers that include General Motors Corp. and Rubbermaid Inc. For 1996 it expects sales of $2.1 million, a 25 percent increase over last year, he said.
St. Louis-based Alucobond Technologies Inc. has changed its name to Alusuisse Composites Inc. The company manufactures plastic, aluminum-plastics and other composite products for architectural applications and for specialty applications such as exhibits and displays. Alusuisse Composites is part of Alusuisse-Lonza Group of Zurich, Switzerland.