A new continuous mixer will add 20 million pounds of capacity and create as many as 15 jobs at Gitto Global Corp., a specialty compounder in Lunenburg, Mass.
The mixer will be operational in mid-November and will make Gitto Global's full line of proprietary compounds based on PVC, polyethylene, polypropylene, thermoplastic olefins and other specialty resins, Chairman Charles Gitto Jr. said recently by telephone.
Gitto Global has invested about $2 million in the new line, which will lift the firm's annual capacity to between 80 million and 90 million pounds. Sales for 2003 also are expected to climb to between $90 million and $100 million, Gitto said.
The expansion will give Gitto Global six production lines. The company has about 90 employees, but expects to add 10-15 in the next year, Gitto said.
Gitto Global sells into a number of markets, with wire and cable and medical being the most prominent. Gitto said his firm is the country's largest supplier of flame-retardant PP compounds for industrial battery cases.
Gitto said there is no pending legal action involving Gitto Global and the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection. The two sides had sued each other in late 2000 regarding the firm's compliance with state environmental laws.
Gitto said those lawsuits have been settled, but he declined to offer details. Earlier this year, the Massachusetts DEP granted a mandatory approval to Gitto Global's expansion.
Gitto also disputed a recent news release from the Department of Justice that said Jeffrey Forgues was a Gitto Global employee when he tried to purchase trade secrets from compounder AlphaGary Corp. in late 1998 and early 1999. Forgues recently pleaded guilty to that charge and was sentenced to two months in prison and two years of supervised release.
Forgues worked for Gitto Global for about three months, but was not an employee when he illegally contacted AlphaGary, Gitto said.