Drum blow molder U.S. Coexcell Inc. plans to add a third large-part blow molding machine at its Maumee, Ohio, production plant in midyear.
The privately held company experienced a 40 percent jump in sales last year and it expects significant growth again in 2006. U.S. Coexcell President and Chairman Bob Huebner did not provide sales figures in a telephone interview. But he noted that one reason for the expansion is the company's penetration of markets for electronic chemicals.
U.S. Coexcell has developed its own technology to make high-purity drums with low particle counts demanded for electronic chemicals and pharmaceuticals. Huebner said the know-how encompasses materials, proprietary blow molding processes and other hardware-based techniques such as special air filtration. The company does statistical analysis to certify the drums' purity specifications before shipping.
Huebner said his firm will buy a monolayer blow molder this year to handle some of the jobs its two multilayer machines are running. This will free up the multilayer blow molders for more specialized work.
Machine time in Maumee also will be freed up through an arrangement with a blow molder in Italy, Huebner explained. Bergamaschi Plastica srl of Rozanno, Italy, has agreed to blow mold U.S. Coexcell's nestable 55-gallon drum for food and citrus processors. U.S. Coexcell had been molding the patented N55 drums in Maumee and exporting them to Europe.
Huebner said his firm, as one of the smaller players, targets niche drum applications. Among secondary services it offers for its high density polyethylene drums are custom coloring and decorating. The drums range from 30-55 gallons.
``We are more service oriented,'' he said. ``We want to do value-added work.''
Huebner and Vice President and General Manager Harley Cramer founded U.S. Coexcell in 1993. They are its majority owners.
