Milacron Holdings Corp. reported strong business in aftermarket parts and melt delivery and control systems — hot runners, mold bases and components and process control systems — but lower sales for plastics machinery.
CEO Tom Goeke said that reflects difficulty in the overall primary equipment market.
"We're holding our own but the whole market worldwide is down," Goeke told analysts, discussing Milacron's second-quarter financial results, released on July 27.
Companywide sales were flat in the second quarter, at $309.2 million, from $308.1 million in the first quarter of 2016. Net income was 10.1 million, down from 12.9 million in the year-ago period.
Goeke said the automotive market remains strong, boosting business of melt delivery products. New car and truck models drive the consumables business, and Milacron is gaining market share, especially in hot runners, he said.
"We haven't seen pullback, but the opportunity seems for us pretty healthy given the progress we've made in terms of new customers, [and] new applications," he said.
The melt delivery and control systems unit generated second-quarter sales of $112.4 million, an increase of 11.8 percent over $100.5 million in the second quarter of 2016. Milacron has doubled hot runner production capacity at its plant in Kunshan, China.
In the machinery segment, the aftermarket business had its highest quarter to date, Goeke told analysts. "We also ended the quarter with a healthy backlog of retrofits and refurbishments," he said. "We feel very good with our aftermarket performance."
Overall in machinery, second-quarter sales declined 7 percent, to $166.3 million, from $179 million in the year-ago second quarter.
Milacron reported that new orders increased 3.3 percent over the year-ago second quarter, to $334.9 million. For the first six months, new orders are up 7.4 percent.