ACH sells fuel tank business to Inergy
DEARBORN, MICH. — Automotive Components Holdings LLC will sell its fuel tank business to Inergy Automotive Systems in a deal that will also close its Milan, Mich., plant within three years.
Inergy plans to build a new plant in southeast Michigan to house its business, ACH owner Ford Motor Co. said in a May 18 news release. Officials from Inergy, part of Compagnie Plastic Omnium of Levallois, France, did not have any immediate comment on the announcement. The auto supplier already operates a blow molding plant for fuel tanks in nearby Adrian, Mich.
The deal is slated to close by June 1. The companies did not disclose a purchase price.
The Milan plant is one of five currently owned by ACH, created by Dearborn-based Ford in 2005 when Ford took over some of its former parts plants after spinning off its one-time in-house supplier Visteon Corp. The group has sold or closed most of the sites, but has continued to operate and even invest in injection molding operations in Saline, Mich., and Sandusky, Ohio, which make vital interior and lighting products.
GM taps old Saturn site for plastic parts
DETROIT — General Motors Co. is taking advantage of its in-house plastics operations in Spring Hill, Tenn., tapping into its capacity to make parts for the next generation of the Chevrolet Corvette and two other car models.
Detroit-based GM originally built the plastics operations in Spring Hill to injection mold and paint doors for its Saturn brand, but has continued to find uses for the facility since halting Saturn production in 2007.
The unit turned out more than 940,000 parts for the Chevrolet Traverse crossover vehicle in 2010 and nearly 42,000 service parts for Saturn vehicles that remain on the road.
In early May, the company told workers it will add 13 jobs to the plastics unit as it adds work molding parts such as bumper fascia for the next-generation Corvette, which is assembled at Bowling Green, Ky. It will add another nine jobs later to make parts for the Traverse and its sister vehicle, the GMC Acadia, when it gets a freshened exterior, a GM spokeswoman said.
Long Beach enacts ban on plastic bags
LONG BEACH, CALIF. — Long Beach has become the eighth community to enact a plastic bag ban this year, bringing the number of bans in the United States to 22.
In addition, two communities, Washington, D.C., and Montgomery County, Md. — which passed its ban earlier this month — each have a 5-cent tax on plastic and paper carryout bags.
The Long Beach ban on plastic, compostable plastic, and degradable plastic bags was passed unanimously May 17. It will go into effect Aug. 1 for grocery stores and pharmacies with at least 10,000 square feet of space or annual sales of $2 million or more.
That's one month after a similar ban on single-use carryout bags will go into effect for unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County. The law also places a 10-cent tax for each paper carryout bag handed out by retailers.
Starting Jan. 1, the Long Beach ban will additionally apply to grocers and pharmacies with under 10,000 square feet of space, as well as convenience stores, delis and farmers' markets. There is an exemption from the ban for plastic produce and product bags.
Technimark expansion to add 30 jobs
ASHEBORO, N.C. — Injection molder Technimark Inc. will add 30 jobs in the next four years as part of a $20 million expansion project at its plant and headquarters in Asheboro.
Officials with Technimark and the state of North Carolina announced the expansion in a May 19 news release. The state's One North Carolina Fund is supplying a $60,000 grant for the project.
The expansion will add “30 skilled professionals and capital equipment to handle the requirements of new customers,” according to the release. Technimark officials couldn't be reached to provide more details.
Technimark currently employs almost 650 in Asheboro. The firm operates 10 plants worldwide at sites in the U.S., Germany, China and two locations in Mexico.
Technimark ranked 22nd in Plastics News' most recent ranking of North American injection molders with related annual sales of $223 million. Globally, the firm employs more than 1,700 and operates more than 200 injection presses.