Romeoville, Ill.-based Parc Corp. defines itself as an intermediate processor of engineering resin, extending its traditional plastics recycling business to a more vertically integrated model. President Kathy Xuan is on the search for a compounding partner that can help Parc optimize its growing operation in China.
Parc has been a leading player bridging the plastics recycling markets in the United States and China. The global financial crisis took a major toll on both markets, but Parc was quick to respond by adding industry veterans, improving operations management and increasing efficiency. These efforts were rewarded by a record high sales volume in 2009, Xuan told Plastics News in an interview.
The strong post-crisis rebound in the Chinese market, especially in automotive and appliances, has fueled demand for recycled plastics, she said.
“We took full advantage of the growth with our one-stop services, from recycling, sorting and processing, to distribution and sales,” Xuan said.
Parc's facility in Qingdao, China, has built upon its capability of producing reprocessed pellets and broadened product portfolio.
“For instance, we have successfully developed pellet applications from recycled PET/PP films,” Xuan noted, “We supply PP pellets to auto suppliers and we have started to make compounds.”
Parc's Qingdao plant is strategically located near appliance giants Haier Group, Hisense Co. Ltd., and Aucma Electrical Appliances Co. Ltd., as well as automakers including the China National Heavy Duty Truck Group and Beiqi Foton Motor Co. Ltd. Parc has good relations with these customers in fast-growing areas, Xuan added.
However, the relatively small scale of the Qingdao plant — 11 million pounds annually — fails to fully utilize Parc's steady supply of more than 220 million pounds of recycled plastic materials.
Optimistic about the market prospect, Parc is adding 100,000 square feet of manufacturing space at the existing Qingdao plant, bringing the total to 250,000 square feet. Xuan said the expansion will help the company develop its new focus on compounding.
“Being a newcomer in the compounding field, we have a lot to improve in compounding technology and techniques,” she said.
“The Big three [U.S. automakers] are thriving in China, increasingly using global technology and standards in their local production there,” she added. “We hope to help those compounders that already supply to the multinationals in North America to gain a foothold in China.”
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