Nypro adds paint line for auto, electronics
CLINTON, MASS. - Nypro Inc. opened an automated painting line at its Marietta, Ga., facility to expand its decorating capabilities, especially for automotive and communication components.
``We are seeing growth for decorative-type applications and hope to do more,'' said spokesman Al Cotton.
He said that the actual cost is not being released, but it is a multimillion-dollar painting system. It was built inside a 10,000-square-foot white room at the 88,000-square-foot facility.
The system includes three painting booths with three six-axis articulating robots, two paint kitchens with precision mixing, three flash infrared ovens, one convection cure oven, a preheat tunnel, de-static equipment at a cleaning station, and a high-efficiency filtering system.
The new paint line is designed for flat-pallet painting of such items as automotive components and spindle painting of cell phones and personal digital assistants.
Clinton-based Nypro employs 186 at the Marietta site, which also does injection molding, insert molding, laser etching, pad printing and assembly.
Pacor Inc. expands for in-house molding
CINNAMINSON, N.J. - Pacor Inc. is adding equipment and enlarging its Bordertown, N.J., building by 23,000 square feet to offer in-house injection molding.
The firm, a fabricator and distributor of insulation products, has offered injection molding of some products for about 10 years but has farmed out the work.
Planning for the addition already has been approved, according to Drew Wildonger, sales engineer for Pacor's original equipment manufacturing division. Work is to be complete by the first or second quarter of 2005. The division will install two injection molding machines, each with 350 tons of clamping force.
Wildonger pointed to rising material costs as one reason Pacor is adding molding to its mix.
Pacor also does vacuum forming. It plans to use injection molding for runs of at least 30,000 pieces and is looking at markets that include heating and cooling systems, as well as thermal, electrical, plumbing and household applications.
The 75-year-old firm is based in Cinnaminson.
Alside parent AMI gains new investors
CUYAHOGA FALLS, OHIO - Associated Materials Inc. has a new infusion of cash from New York investment firm Investcorp.
Associated Materials, parent company of profile extruder Alside Inc. of Cuyahoga Falls, announced the $150 million recapitalization Dec. 6. Investcorp and co-investors will gain a 50 percent indirect equity ownership interest. Private equity firm Harvest Partners Inc., also of New York, will keep a 50 percent interest with co-investor Weston Presidio Capital. Each side will have a 50 percent voting interest in a newly formed indirect parent company, AMH Holdings Inc., according to a news release.
Mike Caporale, AMI president and chief executive officer, also was named chairman of AMH Holdings. Investcorp officials said they were attracted to AMI's multibrand strategy. Cuyahoga Falls-based AMI sees significant opportunity for growth, ``particularly in the large and fragmented window market,'' said Christopher Stadler, head of Investcorp North America.
AMI reported sales of $820.3 million for the first nine months of 2004.
Even Germans using PET bottles for beer
ZAVENTEM, BELGIUM - Germany, still a bastion of glass-bottled beer, has seen another assault on its tradition, with InBev's switch to PET for its Beck's Gold premium beer.
Leuven, Belgium-based InBev, formerly Interbrew and now the world's biggest brewer by volume, has adopted a 10-ounce PET multilayer AmGuard bottle from Amcor PET Packaging Europe/Asia for the beer in Germany.
The Beck's Gold bottle is molded using preforms from Amcor's PET barrier development center in Brecht, Belgium. The container uses Amcor PET's Bind-Ox oxygen-scavenging material, which has allowed other beers to achieve an average shelf life of more than six months, according to Amcor PET.
An Amcor PET spokesman at the company's European headquarters in Zaventem reported strong growth for PET containers in a number of East European countries for applications including beer, carbonated soft drinks, dairy products and some fruit juices.
Winpak may license shrink-bag expertise
WINNIPEG, MANITOBA-Winpak Ltd. plans to extend its barrier packaging to include shrink bags.
Winnipeg-based Winpak said it will test-market technology from Asahi Kasei Life and Living Corp. of Tokyo among North American meat and poultry packers.
The bags use ethylene vinyl alcohol, polyethylene and polyvinylidene chloride layers.
The technology will extend Winpak's stake in modified-atmosphere packaging. Finalizing the pact with Asahi will depend on results of the market test.