Two family-owned mold makers, Accede Mold & Tool Co. Inc. in the United States and Kebo AG in Switzerland, have formed a partnership to provide customers regional service in North America and Europe.
The companies began talking about the arrangement after Kebo approached Accede at NPE2018. Discussions turned into meetings at their facilities in Rochester, N.Y., and Neuhausen am Rheinfall, Switzerland.
Founded in 1981, Accede primarily serves the U.S. consumer packaging, medical and labware markets with tooling and services for high-cavitation two-shot and SpinStack technology. The molds are installed globally for production.
Kebo, which has been in business more than 40 years, manufactures injection molds for high-output plastics products and packaging for the medical, pharmaceutical, laboratory and cosmetic markets. The company focuses on in-house-built hot runner technology integrated into high cavitation and stack molds as well as packaging with thin walls or in-mold labels for customers in Europe, Asia and in North America.
Camille Sackett, Accede's director of business development and engineering support, said the partnership should benefit all customers with personal attention on a global level.
"This arrangement brings the best of both worlds to our customers," Sacket said in a news release. "They capitalize on the quality, attention to detail, and the nimble responsiveness that comes when working with a private family-owned company. Now with our cooperation partnership, our customers also have access to a global support network similarly offered by the large public groups that are in the market. It's a win-win for our customers."
Accede has 63 employees and estimated sales of $13.2 million.