Indian extruder maker Steer Engineering Pvt. Ltd. is expanding in the Americas by appointing two agents there, saying that it sees growth opportunities in key markets including Mexico and Brazil.
“Both countries have large bases of automotive and petrochemical multinationals and our presence would add more volumes to the Steer Americas sales,” said Mike Millsaps, chief operating officer for the company's Steer America unit in Uniontown, Ohio.
Houston-based JM Lord International LLC would serve most of the Latin American markets, while the Brazilian agent Uniflon, based in São Paolo, would represent Steer in that country.
Currently, Steer's presence in the two countries is limited and it regards the markets as underserved. The new agents would market its co-rotating twin-screw platform, specialized components and other technology in plastics and polymers.
Steer, based in Bangalore, also plans road shows in São Paulo and Mexico City in October or November for branding.
In Brazil, the company said the 2016 Olympics will boost demand for infrastructure, while in Mexico, it said reforms in the energy sector could be beneficial to manufacturing and open trade opportunities for the plastics industry.
Millsaps said the company has long-term plans for some kind of operation in the region: “The import duties are high in Brazil and an assembly plant with a local vendor base for components is also on the radar.”
The company said it hopes in the next three years to double its sales volumes in the Americas from its current 10 percent. It also said it hopes to expand in the United States, where it said the larger part of its sales are east of the Mississippi River, and it claims to have 15 percent of the U.S. market.