Plastics machinery continued its U.S. upswing in 2015, spurred on by NPE.
Milacron Holdings Corp. and Davis-Standard LLC were the two most active players in business deals. Milacron went public on the New York Stock Exchange, got a 10-year tax credit from its home state of Ohio and pledged to invest $11 million in facilities there, bought screw and barrel firm Canterbury Engineering and Genca, the maker of crosshead dies.
Oh, and Milacron moved its headquarters to the Cincinnati suburb of Blue Ash.
Over in New England, Davis-Standard named company veteran Jim Murphy as president and CEO. The company made a major acquisition, of Gloucester Engineering Co. Also, Davis moved its accumulator-head blow molding machine manufacturing from New Jersey to its Black Clawson factory in upstate New York.
The plastics industry lost some well-known people — and one who was notorious — as they passed away this year: Dewey Rainville; Paul N. Colby; and Michael Ladney.
Rainville was a force in blow molding machinery and auxiliary equipment. Colby, of Spirex fame, helped build the screw-and-barrel industry. Ladney, the Lord Voldemort of gas-assisted molding, he was the notorious one.
Globalization also continued in machinery, as big players boosted investments in India, China … and the United States.
Technology. People. Financial news, including from some public companies such as Milacron and Barnes Group Inc.
For a look at major events of 2015, read on:
NOVEMBER 2014
In a deal between two Italian blow molding equipment maker Sipa SpA acquired the injection stretch blow molding machine line of Automa SpA.
DECEMBER 2014
Machinery pioneer and innovator Dewey Rainville, a pioneer in auxiliary equipment and blow molding, died Dec. 9.
Moretto SpA, the Italian maker of dryers and other auxiliary equipment, opened its first U.S. operation, in Columbus, Ohio.
MARCH