CHICAGO (June 25, 8:15 a.m. EDT) — The auxiliary equipment market has been through the worst, but consolidation will continue.
So said Tom Breslin, president and chief executive officer of ACS Group, based in Wood Dale, Ill.
“We believe that the companies that come up with the best full-service solutions for their customers and fully support their customers will be the ones that prosper in the next five to 10 years in the industry.”
ACS Group's companies have a shock of new products among four booths: AEC Inc. (S1840), Cumberland Engineering (S2638), Economizer USA (S2260) and Sterling Inc. (S1415).
Economizer USA, based out of South Attleboro, Mass., is the newest member of ACS. The firm began offering its products last October in Canada, the United States and Latin America. That company operates from the same 500,000-square-foot facility that houses Cumberland.
Economizer products include loaders, grinders and conveyors, with the goal of sourcing quality products at the best prices, said Rich Cramer, vice president of operations for Economizer and Cumberland Engineering.
For instance, the company is offering granulators at a 20-30 percent lower price point over the leading competition, Cramer said in a June 23 interview.
ACS Group is built around the concept that plastics processors want to be able to buy all their auxiliary equipment from one supplier.
“We really see customers wanting to go to a one-stop shop,” Breslin said. “And those one-stop shops, they really just want to deal with the premier products, the premier brands and get the quality right there.”
And so, for instance, Cumberland is partnering with International Material Control Systems Inc. (Booth S938), of Holland, Mich., whereby Cumberland will distribute IMCS' line of dumpers, mixers, conveyors, bins, tilters and other material-handling equipment, officials said. For Cumberland, the past year has meant a lot of change, too.
ACS Group has brought all of its manufacturing stateside. Since about 1994, Cumberland had sourced some of its products from Italy. But as the euro currency strengthened in comparison to the dollar, it made more sense economically to manufacture from the United States.
