Plastic Innovations & Tooling Inc., a processor of large vacuum formed parts, has acquired thermoform tooling supplier Mima Products Inc. for more than $1 million.
In a July 2 interview, PITI President Glenn Rowe said the May 10 deal creates cost savings the firm can pass along to customers.
``We were outsourcing all of our tooling to do our thermoforming,'' Rowe said. ``[Mima has] a lot of business on the tooling side, and we had a lot of production with aluminum tooling.''
Rowe purchased a 22 percent interest in Mima, while his partner and previous owner of PITI, John Zomer, bought 78 percent. Zomer will be chief executive officer of the combined companies.
PITI specializes in large thermoformed parts made on a 12-by-26-foot, single-station, cut-sheet thermoforming press. The company serves marine, automotive and waste end markets, Rowe said. Mima's aluminum tooling production serves automotive dunnage, marine, recreational and waste markets as well.
Mima gained recognition throughout the industry for supplying the precision tooling for 2,500 thermoformed Porta-John outdoor toilets during Woodstock '99 in Rome, N.Y.
Mima's 18,000-square-foot plant in Coleman, Mich., eventually will add another 20,000 square feet, Rowe said. When that happens, all operations of the 30- to 35-employee company will be combined in Coleman.
PITI's 15,000-square-foot plant is just eight miles away in Clare, Mich., Rowe said.
``We will keep the companies two separate entities,'' Rowe said, noting that administration for both companies will be handled out of one office, the new Coleman headquarters. ``The savings we realize by utilizing administration for both companies will be passed on to the customer.''
The large cut-sheet machine, one three-station rotary and three single-station thermoforming machines currently in production at the Clare facility will be installed in Coleman once space is made by the expansion, Rowe said. The company is negotiating to buy additional equipment, which Rowe expects to be installed by the end of the year.
Rowe has high hopes for the company's financial performance, although he has tempered them a bit because of the economic downturn. He expects the first year to yield sales of $4 million but said growth will hinge on the nation's overall economic health. Mima reported sales last year of 2 million, and PITI generated sales of $832,000.
``We project 20 percent growth over the next two to three years, but I'm not sure if that's realistic,'' Rowe said. ``Realistically, we're looking for 12-15 percent growth.''