Sarah Kominek

BioLife Plasma Services has invested $4 million to expand its Hoover, Ala. testing lab by 1,750 square feet and acquire equipment to recycle biohazardous waste more efficiently.

Cincinnati-based gasket maker Sur-Seal Corp. has acquired Grand Rapids, Mich.-based Kent Manufacturing LLC, expanding its medical clean room and automotive market manufacturing capabilities.

Tubing systems and medical component supplier Plastiflex Group has acquired Smooth-Bor Plastics and signed an agreement to acquire TIK d.o.o., expanding its medical tubing systems capacity in North America, Malaysia and Slovenia.

GreenLabs is collecting waste from Veolia customers to make waste storage bins at its injection molding site in Leominster, Mass.

Potential buyers may include private equity firms and Middle Eastern entities seeking to expand capacity in the west, according to published reports.

Materials suppliers and distributors for the medical plastics market are sticking with sustainability and nearshoring trends as they address demand for PFAS-free, bio-based and monomaterial solutions.

Connectivity and technology took center stage at MD&M West as manufacturers seek out innovative materials for wearable medical devices and flexible printed electronics.

Cinova Medical and Arburg Inc. have announced a partnership to establish a medical technology and training center at Cinova's campus in Phoenix to provide digital molding solutions for the medical device and pharmaceutical industries.

Ultrasonic welding could save medical manufacturers on operating costs and improved energy efficiency through its use of short bursts of energy verses heat presses.

Mack Group's investments meet demand for new projects and for customers looking to re- or near-shore existing production.

The auction's feature items include KraussMaffei and Engel injection molding machines, Wittmann, Engel and KraussMaffei molding automation, various plastic auxiliary equipment, tool room and material handling equipment.

Proto Labs Inc. is expanding its capabilities past its historical prototyping specialty over the next five years to conform to customers' more "traditional" processing and full-service production needs.

Auto supplier Inoac Exterior Systems LLC is beginning layoffs resulting from the eventual closing of its Fremont, Ohio, plant, with a mass reduction of 174 employees.