Consolidated buys blow molding assets
ATLANTA — Atlanta blow molder Consolidated Container Co. LLC has bought the blow molding assets of West Coast Plastics Inc. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
West Coast Plastics of Santa Fe Springs, Calif., will continue to operate its injection molding business, according to a Jan. 25 news release,
Consolidated President and CEO Jeffrey Greene said the acquisition strengthens his company's ability to serve dairy, beverage and industrial containers customers on the West Coast.
“As with our other recent acquisitions, this transaction is focused on enhancing our role as the leader in rigid packaging for these core [Consolidated] markets,” he said in the release.
Consolidated operates 62 plants including two in Mexico, and a research, development and engineering center in Atlanta.
Consolidated ranked No. 4 among North American blow molders in Plastics News' most recent survey, with 2009 sales of $750 million. The company employs 2,700.
Ex-Dow scientist, 74, faces prison term
MIDLAND, MICH. — A former Dow Chemical Co. scientist has been convicted of selling information on production of Tyrin-brand chlorinated polyethylene to Chinese firms.
Wen Chyu Liu — also known as David Liou — was convicted Feb. 6 by a jury in U.S. District Court in Baton Rouge, La., and now faces up to 15 years in prison. Liu, 74, worked for Midland-based Dow from 1965-92, and conspired to sell the company's trade secrets for an eight-year period between 1995 and 2003.
According to a 2005 indictment, Liu and three other former Dow employees used Dow information to create a proposal that would allow other firms to build and operate their own plants making material identical to Tyrin.
Liu attempted to sell Dow information through his own company, Pacific Richland Products Inc., which he formed in Baton Rouge before leaving Dow. In 1998 and 1999, Liu received payments of more than $375,000 from Chinese companies for the information, according to court documents. Liu made payments of more than $67,000 to former Dow employees during those same two years.
“Dow supports the conviction of [Liu] by a federal jury,” Dow officials said in a Feb. 8 e-mail response to questions. “Dow invests billions in R&D, and the technology that results from that investment has tremendous value.”
Schulman closings to cut jobs overseas
FAIRLAWN, OHIO — A. Schulman Inc. is consolidating its rotational molding powders operations in Italy and Australia.
Officials with Fairlawn-based Schulman said in a Feb. 8 news release that the firm will close its specialty powders plants in Verolanuova, Italy, and Braeside, Australia. Work done in Verolanuova now will be done at a more modern Schulman plant in Gorla Maggiore, Italy. Material produced in Braeside now will be made in Brisbane, Australia. A business office will remain open in Verolanuova.
The closings will eliminate 40-60 jobs.
The Australian move is being made because of a drop in demand from the water-tank market there, as drought conditions changed to flooding and government rebates on the tanks were withdrawn, officials said.
Schulman said the Australian move will be done by August, the end of Schulman's 2011 fiscal year. The move in Italy will be complete by early 2012. Schulman acquired both the Verolanuova and Braeside plants when it purchased ICO Inc. last year.
PTI Engineered launches design unit
MACOMB, MICH. — Injection molder PTI Engineered Plastics Inc. is adding to its background in product development, launching a stand-alone industrial design firm, PTI Design.
PTI, based in Macomb, already has prototyping, tool production and molding and has specialized in working with companies to create and refine new parts. PTI Design will add to those capabilities, the company said in a Feb. 3 news release.
John Budreau is executive director of a team of industrial designers at PTI Design. The group also will work with independent designers.
Together, PTI molding and PTI Design will help customers work through the entire process of creating final parts so they can be processed efficiently, said Mark Rathbone, founder and CEO of PTI Engineered Plastics.