European processor Polimoon A/S has agreed to purchase French packaging and technical parts molder Plastohm SA for 40 million euros ($51 million) in the largest deal of Polimoon's seven-year history.
Oslo, Norway-based Polimoon said Plastohm, which makes consumer packaging along with components and subassemblies for the electrical and automotive sectors, is an ideal fit. Polimoon also has a significant presence in those markets, and the deal complements its spread geographically, it said.
Plastohm of Villefranche-sur-Saône, France, had 2005 sales of more than 105 million euros ($133 million) and has 1,000 employees. It molds electrical and automotive parts in Germany, Britain, Slovakia, Tunisia and France. In addition, it has units in Italy and France molding packaging such as pots, bottles and tubes for the health-care, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals sectors.
Plastohm specializes in small assemblies and parts for car seats and vehicle interiors.
``Plastohm is a major acquisition for Polimoon. It will further strengthen our position in Europe, east and west. [Our] combined sales will be in excess of 500 million euros ($635 million) annually, giving us the size to act more confidently in a challenging market,'' said Polimoon President and Chief Executive Officer Arne Vraalsen.
Polimoon expects to complete the acquisition by Sept. 6.
Plastohm's molding plants are located in France at Villefranche-sur-Saône, Ladoix, Charlieu, L'Aigle, Bellignat and Geovresset, with a tool shop in Sorino and research and development in Lyon. Other facilities are in Newcastle-on-Tyne, England; Milan, Italy; and Munich, Germany.
Polimoon has 29 plants, mostly making packaging, in 13 European countries. The packaging units are in Norway, Belgium, Poland, Denmark, Finland, England, Italy, Germany and France. Component plants are in Estonia, Finland, Czech Republic, the Netherlands and France.
In 2005, Plastohm said it had 250 injection presses and 60 blow molding machines. Updated machinery data was not available.
Elsewhere, Polimoon has been reorganizing its packaging blow molding operation in Beccles, England, to cut costs, reflecting recent difficult business conditions. The company planned to cut 20 jobs, although it also plans to add 12 later this summer when it completes a 173,000-square-foot warehouse.
One factor in Polimoon's plan to streamline the Beccles plant and move into niche products was the result of one customer's move to in-house blow molding.
Britvic Soft Drinks Ltd. of Chelmsford, England, is switching production of larger 2- and 4-liter bottles for its Robinsons squash drinks to its plant in Norwich, England. The PET bottles, replacing outsourced PVC ones, will be phased in gradually in the second half of 2006.
Britvic's move will result in a net drop in annual sales of about £5 million ($9 million) for Polimoon, it said.
Britvic expanded its PET bottle blowing capacity in the past five years based on SIG Corpoplast Blomax blow molding machines.
In 2004, it was running four Blomax 12 and two Blomax 16 machines at the Norwich plant, and two Blomax 12 machines at its Rugby, England, bottling facility.
In March, Britvic installed another blow molding line in Norwich to handle the larger Robinsons bottles.