Anaheim, Calif. — Injection molding machine distributor Borche North America Inc. is acquiring a 39,000-square-foot facility for its U.S. headquarters and the first Cloud Net Service center outside China. Borche NA is paying $6 million to complete the transaction.
President Hans Chen said Borche will move within Ontario, Calif., during the summer from rented quarters to the new site. The service center will be operational by September.
Currently, Borche NA stocks an inventory of hydraulic machines of 80-500 tons and related spare parts with a value of about $3 million. More space and additional units and parts will increase that value to $5 million in the new location, Chen said in a Feb. 7 interview during the UBM Advanced Manufacturing Expo in Anaheim.
Borche NA plans by April to add electric hybrid models to its U.S. inventory and intends to import larger hydraulics of 550-1,300 tons in the future.
Borche NA sold more than 100 machines in the U.S. last year and is "looking for 50 percent growth during 2018," Chen said.
At the Anaheim event, Borche NA said that Peter Heidrich has joined as a sales representative sharing the California market with Skip Humphrey. In addition, Todd Weir now represents the Borche NA line in Arizona.
During 2017, Borche NA doubled its number of sales representatives, Chen said.
The Cloud Net Service concept started in China with a 2016 government funding of about $4 million to Borche NA parent firm Borch Machinery Co. Ltd. of the Zengcheng district of Guangzhou, China. Borch Machinery was the only one in the plastics machinery business to receive a grant, Chen said.
After Borche NA gets the new Ontario center in operation for all its U.S. machine installations, the plan is to link the technology to service centers in Dallas, soon in Nashville, Tenn., and eventually in a location to be selected in Michigan or Ontario, Canada.
Borche NA will exhibit in booth S35001 during NPE2018, May 7-11 in Orlando, Fla..
