A plastics recycler in Michigan is investing millions of dollars in an expansion project that's expected to create nearly three dozen new jobs.
Western Michigan Compounding LLC of Greenville, Mich., already recycles more than 100 million pounds of plastics each year.
The company, which primarily serves the automotive industry, currently has more than 70 workers, according to economic development agencies working with the company on the expansion.
"Our company continues to see impressive growth, and we are excited for what this expansion will mean for WMC's future," Vice President Ashley Everin said in a statement.
WMC will add more than 41,000 square feet for production along with 3,600 square feet of office space through the $6 million project.
"WMC has found its niche in the City of Greenville," said Kathy Jo VanderLaan, business development coordinator of Montcalm County for The Right Place Inc., an economic development group, in a statement. "In 2015, they extended their recycling efforts by purchasing the 400,000-square-foot former Electrolux warehouse and turning it into a growing plastic reclamation operation."
The company handles a wide variety of resins, including polypropylene, ABS, nylon and polycarbonate. In-house operations include sorting, grinding, washing, compounding and pelletizing.
Products include filled/reinforced, proprietary and custom compounds as well as toll compounding, the company indicated in a compounding survey for Plastics News. Other products are blends, alloys as well as recycled resins.
WMC, founded in 2005, will receive a $150,000 performance-based grant from the Michigan Business Development Program, according to the state Economic Development Corp.
The company decided to expand at its existing facility over competing sites in Indiana and Kentucky, the state said. Greenville also is considering a 50 percent property tax break to support the project.