Injection molding machine builders hope for uptick in 2024

Injection molding machinery sales are down in 2023 — cut in half for some — as excess capacity from the pandemic is put to new uses while higher interest rates have delayed some investments.

This year has been significantly slower than 2021 or 2022, according to Martin Baumann, CEO at Rocky Hill, Conn.-based Arburg Inc.

"The COVID-buying binge came to an end. A good number of customers have standard machines on hand or not fully utilized. For that reason, we have seen less movement in standard machines in 2023, although investment in specialized projects and turnkey systems continues," Baumann said. "It should not have come as a surprise that, after two years of record orders, the overall market is taking a bit of a break."

In addition to special projects, trends like reshoring and improving local supply chains give Baumann optimism.

Vanessa Malena, president of Engel North America in York, Pa., agreed.

"Like everybody else in the industry, we see some slowdown overall, but there are also small increases," she said. "Some projects take longer and some decisions are pushed out, but business activity exists. We are encouraged by the trust that business partners put in us. The fact that we could grow our customer base in a challenging market proves we are focusing on the right things."

At Boy Machines Inc. in Exton, Pa., President Marko Koorneef said business has been down 50 percent so far this year but he expects a pickup in the near term.

"The fourth quarter looks to be a good quarter for us," Koorneef said.

Len Hampton, national sales manager at Plustech Inc., the North American base of Sodick Co. Ltd.'s injection molding machinery division, said, "The industry as a whole is down near 40 percent. However, being largely involved in medical devices and electronics has let us see growth in these industries."

Meanwhile, markets for many home goods and yard equipment have contracted, according to Glenn Frohring, an owner of Worcester, Mass.-based Absolute Haitian, which sells injection molding machines made by Haitian Plastics Machinery Ltd. not only in China but also now Mexico and soon Serbia.

Frohring noted that during the pandemic, many people began working from home and used their commuter time — and time for other things like dining out and going to the movies — to clean attics and work in their yards.

"They bought a lot of household goods like storage bins and lawn and garden equipment," Frohring said. "That market was overserved and now the warehouses are full of excess stuff. Our customers are working off inventory slowly but surely."

2023 has been a bumpy year, he added, describing the first three quarters as bad, better and good.

"The first quarter was very slow, and our third quarter was the best," Frohring said.

On the flip side, at Yizumi-HPM Corp. in Iberia, Ohio, Joe Liang, sales director for North America, said sales are up.

"We had a significant increase in sales by 85.9 percent in the first quarter due to some backlog orders from 2022 that were shipped in Q1," he said. "Then we had a very low 7.2 percent increase in Q2 due to the global economic issues. In Q3, we were then back to an increase at 24.5 percent compared to the same period in 2022."

At Sumitomo (SHI) Demag Plastics Machinery, Steven Ross, senior manager of strategic sales and marketing, said a big decline in 2022 leveled out and was fairly flat the first half of the year.

"In late Q2, we did see a bit of an uptick. Fortunately, we experienced a 60 percent increase in the second half of 2023, with continued improvement expected to continue into 2024," Ross said.

Dale Bartholomew, national technical manager for Japan Steel Works America Inc., in Ontario, Calif., described 2023 as "a challenging year with limited growth" due to excess capacity following the big buildup in late 2021 and early 2022.

At Billion Plastics Machinery Inc. in Rochester Hills, Mich., North American Sales Manager Georg Kiesl said the U.S. market retained its positive sales growth trajectory for the machine builder, although demand slowed particularly in the small-tonnage segment.

Meanwhile, at Wittmann USA Inc., in Torrington, Conn., President David Preusse said new orders across product sectors are down 8-15 percent, but a strong backlog has boosted projected year-end shipment revenues to a new record high.

"Our backlog continued to shrink, but an uptick this summer began to increase our backlog again. The particularly healthy lines currently are robots, automation and central material handling systems," Preusse said.

At Batesville, Ind.-based Hillenbrand Inc., sales for the Molding Technology Solutions (MTS) business unit, which includes plastics machinery manufacturer Milacron, dropped 10 percent to $247 million year over year due to lower volume for injection molding and hot-runner equipment.

"While the pipeline of customer inquiries and projects remains solid across our key product categories, the global economic and geopolitical environment continues to pose a challenge to the timing of some customer decisions, and we are entering the year with lower organic backlog levels compared to the record levels we saw entering fiscal 2023," President and CEO Kim Ryan said in a Nov. 16 quarterly call.

On an organic basis, the backlog decreased 9 percent "due to lower orders for large plastic systems, primarily resulting from the continued customer decision delays on several large projects," she added.

So, about how many injection molding machines will be shipped to U.S. plastics processors in 2023? The number is always tricky to estimate, and even more so this year with manufacturers reporting mostly a wide range of double-digit declines.

Plastics News estimates that press producers shipped an estimated 5,000 units in 2021, which was an increase of 25 percent from the 4,000 presses in 2020.

While 2022 started off strong, sales slumped in the second half of last year and have been mostly down ever since.

In 2022, machine builders expected a 10-20 percent drop in units shipped with several citing the midpoint of 15 percent, which was a decrease of 750 molding machines to an estimated 4,250 units for the year.

With 2023 estimates down double-digit numbers again, injection molding machine shipments might not have even reached 3,000 units. If the drop was 30 percent, then shipments would be at 2,975.

The estimate is based on PN interviews and story archives. While the Plastics Industry Association trade group factors in other data about North American machine shipments, that data is only shared with select members.

In August, the Washington-based association reported that shipments of injection molding machinery declined 6.1 percent from the first quarter to the second quarter but experienced a substantial decrease of 23.6 percent when compared with the prior year.

For another data point, in September, Perc Pineda, chief economist with the trade group, said the value of shipments from the U.S. plastics industry increased in 2022, coming in at $548.2 billion, up almost 3 percent compared to 2021. Pineda also pointed to some headwinds challenging the industry in 2023, including higher costs of capital, weaker household spending and excess inventory and capacity.

The trade group's latest statistics say press shipments declined 2.3 percent in the third quarter and were down 8 percent compared with the same quarter a year ago.

Food packaging is always in demand, but a lot of nonfood and more decorative items on store shelves are part of inventory still being worked off. Medical demand is stable to strong, too, for health care delivery products, like wearable insulin pumps, and general products because more people are living to 100.

"The large baby boomer generation coupled to medical innovations, as drug deliverables, has been a strong segment for us," Preusse said.

The medical market has stabilized since the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Arburg's Baumann.

"We do see demand for sophisticated integrated electronics solutions increasing: connectors, power management for mobility applications, integrated medical devices, etc.," he said. "I am excited about these opportunities. In fact, we think demand for these electronic products will double over the next three years."

The residential housing market has been good for Absolute Haitian with molders meeting demand for building products like pipe fittings, Frohring said.

"Housing starts may be down, but there have been enough disasters like tornadoes to increase demand," he added. "We do well in those markets because we have a solid customer base."

Frohring also expects the markets for appliances and home goods to improve as inventory moves — unless the existing capacity is sufficient without machinery investments.

In addition, the automotive market has been improving with new projects, Frohring added.

Sumitomo (SHI) Demag's Ross said the automotive market started to rebound but stalled during strike concerns.

"The electronics market seems to be growing as this technology is being onshored to support EV development and IT infrastructure with the rapid growth of AI and other networking technologies," Ross added.

The automotive and appliance markets have been major drivers of business in 2023 for LS IMM USA. President Peter Gardner said LS has been a strong player in the automotive field among South Korean-related molders in the Southeast, producing parts primarily for the Hyundai and Kia operations in that area.

"Based on those strong application references, LS has penetrated several American automotive molders this year," Gardner said.

LS Mtron's relationship with the founding LG Group, and its experience with appliances and household electronics, also has been driving business. In addition, the machine builder has seen a boost in sales to the logistics packaging markets thanks to one of its best customers, Beverly Hills, Calif.-based US Merchants Financial Group Inc., which expanded its fleet of LS machines in the U.S. to several hundred units.

At Krauss-Maffei Corp. in Florence, Ky., logistics packaging and medical markets have been most active for the company's injection molding business, while customers in the electric battery vehicle market are investing in injection molding and reaction processing equipment, according to President Nolan Strall.

For Sodick presses, Hampton said 2023's strongest end markets are medical devices and consumer electronics with an increase in electric vehicles, especially in battery components.

The custom molding market has been strongest for Nissei America and Yizumi-HPM, with Liang adding demand from the construction market is climbing significantly.

At Billion, Kiesl said cosmetic packaging, especially in the luxury segment, has been keeping the machine builder busy along with customers in Canada.

"We continued our push into the Canadian market and were able to double our sales in 2023. With it, Canada was our strongest growth market in 2023," Kiesl said. "Furthermore, we added mold trial capabilities around our sandwich technology, which allows injecting recycled material into the core of parts while maintaining a perfect surface finish."

Automotive is still down, Hampton said, "but we've found that some of our customers aren't being impacted at all, especially in EV."

Andy Stirn, general manager of advanced systems at Milacron, has found that, too.

"The chip shortages caused challenges, and there [was] uncertainty with the automotive strike. But the positive trend we see is the industry's adoption of electric vehicles," Stirn said.

More charging stations and other infrastructure will be needed, and that will take time, Liang said, but it will be worth it.

"The lightweight requirement is now getting higher, forcing more plastic parts to be applied to vehicles. The electronic vehicle itself requires even more plastic involvement than the traditional gas vehicle," Liang said.

The automotive market is a large portion of KraussMaffei's business, and the machine builder is riding along with its EV evolution.

"The shift to electric vehicles continues, and we've seen customers looking more closely at our advanced solutions that integrate our injection molding, extrusion and reaction processing technology for lighter-weight, higher-performing and lower-cost solutions," Strall said. "One of the unique strengths of KraussMaffei is our product portfolio and our ability to integrate multiple technologies into one solution, so the shift to electric vehicles in the U.S. is one we are more than ready to support."

So is Engel.

"While serving our existing customers manufacturing ICE vehicles or their tiers," Malena said, "Engel has been investing in technology to support the industry's transition to meet the requirements of EV production. This includes lightweight technology or solutions battery manufacturing."

Arburg's customers produce small to midsized components and have an especially strong market presence in insert molding for connectors.

"As vehicles continue to be electrified, more of these smaller technical components will have to be changed. Our outlook is generally positive since new technologies will require new molds and new machines," Baumann said.

JSW also has a long history in supplying equipment to the automotive industry. "We are optimistic for continued growth and a demand for replacement equipment over the next several years," Bartholomew said.

Preusse said, "We can't wait to enjoy the release of so much pent-up demand, when the auto sector finds it way."

Ross said Sumitomo (SHI) Demag will be ready, too.

"Since the strike was settled, we've seen a rebound and talk of new expansions and replacements in 2024," he said. "But midyear, we anticipate a steady recovery in this important U.S. segment. We are listening to the market and its ever-changing demands as production picks up and consumer confidence returns."

Supply chain issues continue to hinder some of the components needed by machine builders, but Strall said KraussMaffei has been mitigating the impacts to customer commitments and deliveries.

Yizumi-HPM has, too, but it's more expensive.

"Yizumi-HPM machines are all built in China, and we have a facility in Ohio stocking parts over $1 million from China. Parts are always not a problem," Liang said. "However, logistics is still a headache, no matter the inland logistic or sea freight; prices dropped but not to the level before COVID-19."

Ross said Sumitomo (SHI) Demag is somewhat of a vertically integrated company. "Much of the core technical products are produced in-house. In addition, similar products are produced in multiple global locations, primarily Japan and Germany. This has led to multiple sources for common products," Ross said.

While lead times are improving, Milacron's Stirn said machine builders are still at the mercy of the longest lead part.

"Deliveries and availability are all far better than the issues we encountered in 2022 and into early 2023," Stirn added. "Labor is the biggest issue we face right now. Some of our partners still have labor shortages, which impacts our ability to deliver products in a timely manner."

At Billion, Kiesl said: "In terms of our supply chain, we are seeing the effects of the global downturn in the business cycle. Electronic component shortages are reduced, and overall prices are stabilizing."

At Nissei America, high interest rates, high labor costs, inflation and labor shortages are of concern to company officials and processors.

Hillenbrand's Ryan said: "What we're hearing from customers is just a slowness in decision-making on their side ... There's a variety of factors that are entering into that, whether it's interest rates or just general concern about resources. There are just a whole variety."

Absolute Haitian's Frohring also said high interest rates are a problem. "Margins are very tight for some of our customers, so lending is an issue," he said. "Maybe they have the money but don't want to spend it on equipment if the interest rates are high."

Ross said rising interest rates, by far, have curtailed capital investments, but Sumitomo (SHI) Demag officials expect them to stabilize "and hopefully will start to pull back in 2024."

Another major impact, especially for Sumitomo's medical customers, was the retraction of the R&D tax credits.

"This delayed several expansions for a few of our customers. With a possible change in government administration, this could be an important policy to watch," Ross said.

Arburg officials think interest rates will remain high throughout most or all of 2024 and that will affect the machinery market.

"I also worry a great deal about the shortage of labor ... both skilled and unskilled," Baumann said. "The negative image on the plastics industry and manufacturing in general means that not enough young people view this as an attractive career choice."

More work also needs to be done advancing material conveying systems, lowering energy consumption and managing regrind.

"As our industry faces more bans, penalties and recycling targets, we believe we can help processors address the changes coming," Preusse said.

Bartholomew sees mostly temporary setbacks that the industry can overcome.

"We believe that although these factors can certainly impact the market negatively in the short term, these are likely only temporary setbacks. Our business model has adjusted to the numerous challenges that we have faced over the past several years, and JSW will remain resilient," Bartholomew said.

In the meantime, Yizumi-HPM, a $3.68 billion company that invested $181 million in R&D in 2022, is also working at a corporate level to improve its brand recognition.

"Most of the customers know about HPM as a stale brand. Customers might know HPM was acquired by a Chinese company called Yizumi but do not recognize who Yizumi is and what Yizumi does," Liang said. "Yizumi is a 20-year-old company with the main business of manufacturing molding equipment, including injection molding, die casting, rubber injection molding machines and automation solutions."

A lot of machine builders had back-to-back record years as far as sales and shipments in 2021 and 2022.

"And it was for all the wrong reasons — due to COVID test kits, diagnostics and antibody testing," Hampton said.

In fact, during the pandemic, molders bought too many machines too fast, Baumann said.

"As the demand for COVID test kits, for example, receded, all those machines became available to run other projects and few new machines were needed," he said.

Sumitomo (SHI) Demag's Ross expects the medical market "to get a bit more back to normal."

"During 2023," Ross said, "most struggled to fill the large number of machines that were purchased to meet COVID-related demands."

The U.S. public health emergency related to COVID-19 ended in May 2023. Still, new machine needs have arisen for some segments of the medical market.

"We are seeing that demand for more traditional medical devices is up again," Baumann said. "For example, all those surgeries that got delayed during COVID are now being scheduled, and this means surgical instrument demand is actually up compared to COVID years."

Baumann also expects a lot of growth for in-vitro diagnostic devices, which had been used for years for pregnancy tests then became commonly used for COVID-19 testing.

"They can be used for the diagnosis of many health conditions and diseases, including HIV, hepatitis, diabetes and flu," Baumann said. "Wearable devices for continuous delivery of drugs for chronic diseases like diabetes, cancer or cardiovascular conditions are another example of an area where we anticipate continued rapid growth."

Machine builders continue to talk with plastics processors about reshoring to the U.S. and nearshoring to other parts of North America.

"The pandemic and the overseas logistics issues have created an increased interest in reshoring," Bartholomew said. "This is even more evident with critically molded parts."

Nissei America President Masahiko Miyajima said: "We get questions from medical molders."

Job announcements related to U.S. reshoring and foreign direct investment (FDI) are expected to come close to 2022's record year, when 343,000 to 365,000 jobs were returned or created, according to the Sarasota, Fla.-based Reshoring Initiative. Federal government incentives, supply chain tightening, proximity to customers and markets, and the skilled workforce are among the top reasons cited.

Data tracked in the first half of 2023 shows 807 cases of reshoring and FDI with 182,000 jobs announced.

When data available through the third quarter is considered, the projection for full year 2023 shows 1,614 cases and 320,000 to 365,000 jobs returned.

The figures don't break 2022's record, but the Reshoring Initiative says even the low end of the range is up 30 percent from a record 2021 and more than 100 percent from 2020.

"Products characterized as plastic did OK with 2 percent of the jobs. I believe there is also a lot of plastic embedded in the EV battery category," said Harry Moser, founder and president of the Reshoring Initiative. Moser also is the former president of machine tool maker GF AgieCharmilles and the 1996 SPE Mold Designer of the Year.

"Reshoring is taking place and will continue to do so across all markets, especially with electronic parts, microchips and battery manufacturing," Strall said.

Overseas battery and EV components typically produced in Asian markets are part of the challenge, Hampton said.

"Because of supply chain issues, big manufacturers are reshoring to avoid global challenges," he added.

The total number of jobs brought back since manufacturing's low in 2010 will be near 2 million by the end of the year with about half the jobs returned in just the last three years.

Since 2021, Moser said, new factors are being considered in addition to manufacturing costs. Reshoring also is driven by geopolitical risk; environmental responsibility, social impact and corporate governance (ESG); and the Section 301 tariffs kept in place by President Joe Biden.

"Customers are realizing that being dependent on China and other countries can hurt your business in the long run," Koorneef said, pointing to medical molders.

Barring any major recessions, Gardner said: "We do think the U.S. market will start growing in the latter half of 2024, with a significant boost from reshoring projects, as customers seek to diversify their supply chains."

But so far, reshoring has been more of a trickle than a tsunami, according to Baumann.

"Reshoring is a thing. Shorter supply lines are a thing. There is uncertainty about the long-term political situation in China, of course, and China's policies even can affect companies manufacturing in other Asian countries," Baumann said. "Look at Apple, for instance. They moved some manufacturing to Vietnam, and China now discourages its citizens from buying Apple products."

The made-in-America label also is becoming a positive marketing advantage for many U.S. companies, which helps boost investment in domestic manufacturing.

"The pandemic definitely gave this trend a boost. But while reshoring is real, I have to admit that it is more of a trickle and not a tsunami," Baumann said.

The Reshoring Initiative promotes and enables the return of business and jobs to the U.S., but if a product is so labor-intensive that it can't be brought here, the group says a move to Mexico can also benefit the American economy.

The wages are lower in Mexico, with manufacturing workers earning about $4 an hour, compared with about $7 an hour in China, where wages have been gaining 10 to 15 percent a year. Wages are about $23 an hour in the U.S., Moser said.

Products coming from Mexico end up with an average 40 percent U.S. content, while in China they have 5 percent U.S. content, the group said.

Other advantages of setting up shop in Mexico rather than China include lead times, better responsiveness to customers, and minimal intellectual property and regulatory compliance risks. "The best market for Haitian this year is Mexico," Frohring said.

The nearshoring pace picked up in 2023, according to the Reshoring Initiative. From 2010 into 2023, 203 cases have led to 69,822 jobs in Mexico (52,911 positions) and Canada (17,631 positions).

At Billion, Kiesl said they have seen an increase of nearshoring projects to Canada and Mexico.

Mexico overtook China as the largest American trading partner at the beginning of 2023. This dynamic began changing in 2018 when the U.S. imposed tariffs on China's goods. Then the pandemic caused supply chain disruptions that altered international trade and investment.

"If you're in China with U.S. customers that you might lose, you'll put your facility in the U.S. or Mexico to strengthen ties and keep the business," Frohring said.

Nearshoring to Mexico is a good development for the machine builder, he added.

"In the U.S., it could be difficult for some customers to come over," Frohring said. "It's a political issue to buy property in the U.S., and there are concerns about too much outside influence and higher scrutiny on the people here."

Haitian will begin to increase the size of the injection molding presses it manufactures in the western Mexican state of Jalisco next year.

LS Mtron South Korea also will establish a new subsidiary, LS IMM Mexico, in 2024 with a headquarters and technical center in Monterrey and a demonstration center in Querétaro.

Related to concerns about the supply chain and geopolitical issues, Gardner said: "We have had many customers tell us they are seeking machinery ... made in USA-friendly countries vs. adversarial countries. This works well for LS, as South Korea is strongly allied with the USA, and we enjoy 0 percent import duties and tariffs, bolstering our attractiveness as a supplier."

Some plastics processors using KraussMaffei machines are adding new presses in response to increases in utilization. But for other machine builders, like Sumitomo (SHI) DeMag, Nissei America and Sodick-Plustech, the breakout of presses sold for new capacity vs. replacement of older equipment is 50-50.

"It's been a fairly even split," Ross said. "Onshoring and new product launches have spurred nice growth in expansion-related products. Also, as energy efficiency and sustainability become important decision factors, we see an uptick in replacement of older hydraulic models."

The scales just tipped for Yizumi-HPM.

"In the past few years, for sure new presses sold for new capacity vs. replacement would be 50-50, or new capacity contributed even higher due to the pandemic of COVID-19," Liang said. "However … we can see this situation is gone. Nowadays more contribution is from replacement."

At Arburg, Baumann said, "We've seen few replacements this year. As explained above, customers have 'COVID machines' in stock or they have some that [have] been reassigned from other projects. Most projects this year have been for new applications or to help drive automation to the next level."

Nissei's Miyajima still considers the adoption of automation to be in a transitional stage.

"There appears to be a reluctance in adopting automation due to high equipment costs. It may change when interest rate falls," he said.

For other machine builders, Bartholomew said, labor shortages continue to motivate injection molders to automate processes and secondary operations as much as possible.

The pandemic was a catalyst, according to Preusse.

"Robots and automation don't get sick or exposures, and now since wage and health care inflation rise rapidly or worker shortages stall output, robots continue to be in a strong demand for new and replacement purchases," he said.

Milacron's Stirn said automation has been a growing trend in plastics processing for some time.

"Our industry continues to see a declining qualified labor pool in the skilled trades through attrition and availability. As a manufacturer, it's a requirement to offer auxiliary equipment that meets the needs of the customers across the plastics processing value chain," Stirn said.

KraussMaffei offers automation for plastics processors to leak test, label, laser mark, feed parts, weld, convey, trim, fold and pelletize.

"There's a need for automation in the industry, but it can be daunting if you've never had to use a robot interfaced with a machine before," Strall said. "We are offering automation to companies that never considered it before, and we're cognizant we have to help them through this learning curve."

Demand for automation is growing fast at Engel, which has been investing in automation centers in North America and Mexico.

"Our customers are taking full advantage of the added capacity," Malena said. "The labor situation remains challenging for many of our customers. Automation has become necessary for companies to keep production running, including more complex automation."

Liang said pickup and drop automation is now in biggest demand at Yizumi-HPM, but parts conveying, assembling and after-processing are getting more popular. "This could reduce the processor's pressure of labor expenses and human mistake," Liang added.

Baumann agreed.

"When molders can't find people, they must automate. That sums it up, and it is a driving force behind automation in North America," he said. "Automation offers additional benefits — increased [overall equipment effectiveness] and better quality are the most obvious — and some molders are taking advantage, but most automation projects today are born out of the fact that customers want to run 24/7 but can only staff one or two shifts."

The shift toward Industry 4.0 — or the digitalization of manufacturing to embrace connectivity, analytics, human-machine interfacing and robotic improvements — is happening slowly.

"While some companies live 'smart factory,' others do not see the benefits compared to the investment necessary," Malena said. "Sometimes, the workforce is not ready."

Although there is a lot of talk about automating, Arburg's Baumann said it isn't in full throttle in North America.

"There are still few injection molders in the U.S. that are fully integrated and data-driven from order to manufacturing," he said.

That's what JSW's Bartholomew is seeing as well.

"There continues to be a strong interest in the technology. However, implementation by the end user has not yet completely taken off," he said.

Miyajima agreed and added that "the widespread adoption of Industry 4.0 may take a while."

LS Mtron's Gardner also sees a lag.

"Everyone is interested in the capabilities, but few are implementing them, due to differences in machine brands, programs, etc.," he said. "As the LS group and founding company LG are actually running production on LS machines, our company has been able to really take Industry 4.0 from a lab concept to the real world. It helps that our family companies are using all LS IMMs, so it is easier to link all machines together."

Right now, digitalization means different things for companies with goals of increasing productivity and product quality being pursued.

"It is usually not an all-or-nothing decision; implementation can be incremental or in just one area," Malena said. "There is also a new generation of leadership taking over that will naturally have a different approach."

It's a time of great change, said Sodick-Plustech's Hampton, adding that "the industry is standardizing to an extent, and with smart factories, the machines themselves are becoming more and more intuitive."

For example, Preusse said, more processors want to collect molding work cell data to take advantage of Industry 4.0 production troubleshooting and predictability.

"Clients are asking us to include OPC-UA [Open Platform Communications Unified Architecture] data collection options and licenses with our injection molding machines, robots and auxiliaries as they move into more digitalization," Preusse said.

Wittmann USA also has landed more multiline projects from processors seeking plug-and-produce options.

"Unique to our 4.0 solution is a hub that offers all equipment in the molding cell a safe place to plug in, recognize the equipment, and store and transfer molding setups," Preusse said. "To have control access to all equipment on the injection molding machine screens makes mold changes quicker and more error-free."

Liang and Kiesl agreed.

"Processors realize the production monitoring system, MES [manufacturing execution system] and other intelligent systems are very helpful to improve productivity, reduce waste of time and maximize the production capacity," Liang said.

After that realization, Kiesl said: "Many molders have been overwhelmed by the complexity of system integrations despite the promise of simple functionalities. Subsequently, we see demand for simplified solutions, which is why we are highlighting the new connectivity options via OPC-UA standards during our NPE presence."

Sumitomo (SHI) Demag's Ross said North America definitely lags behind the EU in terms of networking.

"A large challenge is old infrastructure and an aging fleet that can't readily support modern communication protocols," he said. "There is also still a lot of disparity and uncertainty with exact interface protocols. Even between different manufacturers, the same Euromap interface can vary slightly."

To attract processors, Sodick-Plustech has a new North American headquarters in Elk Grove Village, Ill., where it hosted a grand opening in September.

"We've also invested in a new website, taken the Sodick show on the road with open house and partner showcase events nationwide, have a new trade show booth, and hosted classes with the AIM [American Injection Molding Institute] on-site at our new HQ," Hampton said.

The Engel organization joined U.S., Canadian and Mexican operations under Malena's leadership to better serve North American customers.

LS Mtron hired Paul Caprio as president of sales, along with other industry veterans as regional sales managers, and it bolstered U.S. R&D capabilities with two top Korean engineers based at the Chicago tech center.

The machine builder also established a second tech center at the Atlanta HQ, which joins Chicago as a resource for machine demonstration, mold trials and customer training seminars.

In addition, LS Mtron now is represented by Southeast Polymer Solutions in Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina and Mississippi; B-Automated LLC in northern Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota; and Plastic Equipment Technologies in Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana.

LS Mtron expanded its lineup of hybrid vertical presses from three models to 13 models that range from 35 to 660 tons.

Yizumi-HPM hired Jeffery Brown as a new regional sales manager, and it is putting a spotlight on its research and development.

"Armed with over 300 patents, we're at the industry's forefront, having recently launched our 8,500-metric-ton ultralarge injection molding machine — a symbol of our intensive R&D efforts," Liang said. "This innovation complements our comprehensive suite of high-end systems, spanning multicomponent, all-electric and rapid packaging solutions."

Sumitomo (SHI) DeMag is building on the momentum from 2022 for liquid injection molding of LSR and other materials.

Nissei America released an all-electric injection molding machine series — NEX-V — with an Internet of Things-enabled (TACT5) controller. The new micromolding machine NEX30IV-1EN1 is capable of shot sizes of 1 gram and below.

At Fakuma 2023, Arburg introduced a new hybrid Allrounder 520 H that has Baumann saying that "it is simply the most energy-efficient hydraulic molding machine available to help molders lower their costs and reduce their carbon footprint."

Wittmann USA completed its rooftop solar panel project and is reaping the benefits.

Preusse said, "We just began witnessing our daily solar energy collection payback with a monitoring app. Up to 70 percent of our annual energy bill should be covered by the sun now."

The company also added another production bay to its Torrington operations.

"That gives us more space for automation systems and space to provide more integration, test and runoffs of turnkey molding work cells of injection molding machines, robots, automation and auxiliaries," Preusse said.

Next up will be production offices, a factory conference room and some vertical automated storage systems, he added.

KraussMaffei also is improving its demonstration space in Florence for injection molding, extrusion and reaction processing equipment.

"In addition, we are investing in our localized automation growth strategy, which supports our capability in the U.S. to provide complete process solutions to our customers," Strall said.

Engel North America is investing in a training center for field service technicians and an apprenticeship program in York.

"Having the infrastructure to develop the skills of our team in-house is a vital part of our commitment to factory-trained field service," Malena said. "There is also a growing demand for our aftersales service offerings as we see customers outsourcing maintenance and other tasks due to a shortage of skilled labor."

Arburg also is investing in its technical service team.

"We are looking to expand by about 20 percent to meet increasing demand for customer support," Baumann said. "That is extremely important because we see that molders are having difficulty maintaining that kind of expertise within their own organization. So, increasingly, they look to us instead, and we are making the investment to provide the highest level of support possible. That will be our focus in 2024."

At Billion, a 600-ton twin-shot press was added to the 200-ton twin-shot machine at the company's local partner in Quebec to expand trial capabilities.

Bolton, Ontario-based Husky Injection Molding Systems Ltd. recently opened a new service center in Jeffersonville, Ind., making a strategic investment as the company celebrates its 70th anniversary.

"Our new, state-of-the-art facility in Jeffersonville is more than just a building; it's a testament to our seven decades of commitment to providing unparalleled service to our customers," Tony Black, Husky's president of service, said in a news release.

Sodick-Plustech started an annual trip to the Japan HQ for customers and prospects to see machine-building facilities and be immersed in company values and corporate culture.

"The proof is in the pudding, and this has been a great way to turn a future customer into a current one by taking them to see the operation for themselves," Hampton said. "We know that this experience is the most persuasive demonstration of our quality and capabilities, and are continuing that success here in the states through mold trials and other in-person events."

Many machine builders also have budgeted big for North America's long-awaited triennial trade show.

"At NPE2024, LS will make another significant investment towards our expansion in [the U.S.] with a 13,500-square-foot exhibit," Gardner said, listing exhibit zones for sustainability, automotive, logistics packaging, high cycle, smart factory solutions and LS heritage. The latter zone will have displays related to the history of LG and LS in the development of molding machine technologies for their own use as one of the world's largest molders and the creation of the LS brand of injection molding machines.

At Boy, an investment in machine development will be introduced at NPE.

"Like many companies, our big focus is a large investment in the upcoming NPE show in May. In parallel with this, staffing and infrastructure is being prepared for some of the new products that will be unveiled at NPE and other events through the year," Sumitomo (SHI) Demag's Ross said.

JSW America recently showed off its partnership with Canon with demonstrations at PTXPO.

Miyajima said Nissei America has investment plans but is unable to disclose them right now.

Engel is the first manufacturer of injection molding machines to be awarded an Ecovadis Gold Sustainability rating, and it has been making R&D investments to help processors increase sustainability.

"Examples are the two-stage process that enables processing flakes without repelletizing; various solutions to increase the percentage of recycled material used; and reducing the overall energy efficiency of injection molding cells," Malena said.

Engel also offers digital products and controller software to help increase product quality and reduce rejects when processing recycled content.

"We also have a dedicated team to analyze recyclate for our customers and provide applications technology support for better results," Malena said. "Especially in North America, educating the market and showing that plastics can help achieve sustainability goals when used smartly is essential. Engel sees the responsibility to lead by example."

Malena is a member of the Plastics Industry Association's sustainability board.

"It is time to step up for the industry," she said.

Arburg was recognized, too, with this year's Ecovadis gold award — despite a stricter evaluation system. "This means that Arburg is now among the top 5 percent of the world's most sustainable industrial companies," Baumann said.

To put processors on track for greener operations, machine builders have been focused on energy efficiency and technology to process post-consumer recyclate (PCR) as well as post-industrial recyclate (PIR).

"Our assistance function for the Gestica control system in the form of our new aXw Control Recyclate Pilot can automatically adjust for the viscosity variations that are typical of recycled resins," Baumann said. "It can help ensure that parts fill consistently, making it easier for molders to use recycled resins profitably. Our machines can process PCR as well as PIR."

Sumitomo (SHI) Demag has always been held as a benchmark for energy-efficient equipment, Ross said.

"Engineering does not rest and continues to look for opportunities to add features and change designs to increase energy efficiency as well as reduce material waste," he added.

Machine builders have prominent roles in creating a circular economy, Strall said, calling it both an ecological and an economic imperative to both present and future generations.

"In doing so, we do not only focus on our own actions. Instead, we also see ourselves as paving the way for our customers and suppliers so that they too can achieve their sustainability goals. Our quest for greater sustainability encompasses several dimensions: our employees, our products, our production, our plants, our customers and our company as a whole," Strall said.

Liang pointed to Yizumi-HPM's 300 patents being among the innovations helping tackle plastics industry issues through R&D.

LS Mtron developed two-component machines that are being used for increasing recycled content in parts with inner molding of recycled materials and an outer layer using virgin resins for the second shot.

Wittmann has products and monitoring systems like Imago-brand software that provide energy consumption data.

"Europe has much higher energy costs than in the USA, so our colleagues and customers spend more time studying energy efficiency there to reduce energy consumption," Preusse said. "We suspect as energy and its delivery continues to rise here, more processors will start to take note and increase the priority of energy savings."

Bartholomew said JSW has been working closely to marry various innovative technologies from its industry partners to the unique and flexible control features on its machine to meet sustainability goals.

At Nissei America, Miyajima said the machine builder is continuously developing and innovating biodegradable resin and recycled material processing technologies.

Boy employees encourage business partners to lessen waste, such as energy and scrap.

So does Sodick-Plustech.

"Showing our customers everything their Sodick machine is capable of is crucial to achieving sustainability objectives. This includes optimizing acceleration/deceleration abilities, downsizing runners, reducing cycle times and stable molding," Hampton said. "Understanding the machinery means minimizing material waste and maximizing operational efficiency."

At Milacron, Stirn said the company's coinjection molding technology lets processors control a higher percentage of post-consumer recyclate — up to 50 percent — compared with competitive systems that tend to average around 35 percent.

"Mold-Masters' patented coinjection technology, in combination with the Milacron machine, provides a unique advantage: the capability to achieve the highest PCR percentage, ensuring uniform distribution and complete coverage of PCR resins," Stirn said.

The process of injecting PCR as the filler core layer has the potential to generate significant savings for the molder, Stirn added.

"It reduces the use of virgin material, can maintain cycle times, utilizes components of existing tooling and sometimes even has a lower cost per part," Stirn said. "When regrind is less expensive than virgin material, the result is significant savings and favorable ROI for the manufacturer that offsets the initial investment."

Milacron also builds machines for low-pressure injection molding (LPIM) that uses 100 percent regrind. "The products produced here don't have to look aesthetically pleasing because they get beat up all day long. For instance, plastic pallets," Stirn said. "The lightweighting capabilities of the LPIM also make it appealing."

The recyclability of products is garnering more attention from processors driven by what Bartholomew describes as overall environmental responsibility and awareness. Baumann said the brands, in turn, are being driven by the consumer.

"They want to see that the products they buy use recycled or renewable content as much as possible. Plastics can and must become more circular, and technologies exist to support that effort," Baumann said.

Boy's Koorneef added, "We see more and more companies moving toward zero waste and reduction of materials going to landfills. We try to encourage that and try to offer solutions to help them achieve those goals."

The same goes for Sumitomo (SHI) Demag.

"Even though the U.S. market lags behind the EU and other parts of the world, we are definitely seeing an increased use of PCR and inline recycled materials," Ross said. "We welcome the challenges this can propose."

KraussMaffei has some exciting projects with chemical-based recycling, Strall said, and he sees some new opportunities using natural fibers and composites extruded into pellets that will then be used in the injection molded electric vehicle market.

At Billion, Kiesl said molders serving the construction industry also are faced with recycled-content quotas and consumer demand for sustainability, which has increased demand for machines with "sandwich technology" that allows recycled material to be "hidden" within an outer layer of virgin material.

"This allows for perfect surface finish despite recycled material contents upwards of 50 percent," Kiesl said. "We also see an increased demand for process control measures to deal with the challenges of molding parts with 100 percent recycled material. For example, our EasyControl option, which addresses material batch heterogeneity by same cycle adjustment of injection parameters based on barrel viscosity, has seen its highest demand since its creation."

Liang said materials also need more research and development.

"Nowadays recyclable materials, such as PLA, are still having very low supply availability worldwide. They are limited and expensive," Liang said. "As a machine manufacturer, processing the recyclable material into a product is not high technology at my point of view."

Going into an election year is always challenging, Malena said.

"We encounter indecisiveness and some turmoil — especially when combined with high interest rates. We see solid business activity regardless," she said. "Not everything is all doom and gloom. It may take longer for our customers to make buying decisions, but projects are in the pipeline."

Boy's markets look promising for 2024, and JSW's customers are reporting a more optimistic view for next year compared with 2023, Koorneef and Bartholomew said.

"With next year being an NPE year as well as an election year, JSW has a positive view of 2024," Bartholomew added, also pointing to the second half of 2024.

Hillenbrand officials expect total company sales to increase 16-22 percent in 2024 to $3.28 billion to $3.4 billion. But that's driven by an acquisition and growth in other segments, "partially offset by year-over-year decline in the MTS segment as a result of lower order trends we experienced in 2023," Hillenbrand Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Bob VanHimbergen said.

"While we face a challenging macroenvironment in our MTS segment, we remain laser-focused on driving efficiencies and optimizing costs to help offset the top-line headwinds, and we're confident the MTS segment is well positioned to return to growth and higher levels of profitability once demand recovers," VanHimbergen said.

Sodick's markets for 2024 are looking to be very similar to 2023's, Hampton said, describing them as "steady, stable and secure."

"In the coming year, we're making a larger push for expanding our customer base, particularly among those experiencing challenges with high-end precision molding," Hampton said.

Baumann summed up the outlook for Arburg in three words: back to normal.

Medical will stay strong, Baumann said, adding that "the trend toward electrification will drive the mobility market and by that I mean not just cars but anything that moves under battery power."

Liang expects Yizumi-HPM to grow significantly next year in the automotive, medical and electronic markets.

"Thanks to the electric vehicles development and the purpose of getting all manufacturers back to the U.S., we still expect to have a significant constant grow in terms of sales with overall 20 percent to 25 percent," Liang said.

LS Mtron officials are confident they will gain customers for automotive molding "by leveraging our strong reference accounts and proven applications, and we do see growth for LS in other markets as well," Gardner said.

Strall sees good things, too.

"2024 is poised to be one of our best-performing years at KraussMaffei Corp. ever," he said, adding that automotive is trending upward, in large part due to increased demands for electric vehicles and lightweighting, while medical and packaging should also remain strong.

Preusse isn't so sure about the automotive market.

"We recognize there are lower inventories of cars and trucks, and what was traditionally our plastics industry's biggest sector has stagnated initially for parts, as chips, and perhaps a slow adoption of EVs," he said. "If the current wage and benefit strikes don't drive more car manufacturing away from USA, we should eventually see more rise of car and truck manufacturing."

At Nissei America, Miyajima said many uncertainties make any prediction difficult.

"We are very concerned that the long-standing higher interest rates are slowing down capital investments, having a negative impact on the industries," he said.

Ross said Sumitomo (SHI) Demag officials are preparing for a flat first half of 2024 with hope that NPE and other factors trigger a steady recovery in the second half.

"We expect medical to get a bit more back to normal," Ross added. "During 2023, most struggled to fill the large number of machines that were purchased to meet COVID-related demands. We are seeing an initial rebound in the automotive-related segments."

At Billion, 2023 sales were down globally, but Kiesl said that "thanks to a robust U.S. market, we have been spared from a downturn in 2023. However, we feel that 2024 will see this global slowdown catching up to North America as well."

Absolute Haitian's Frohring is sure about one thing: It won't take much to outdo Q1 2023. Then comes NPE 2024.

"There hasn't been an NPE in six years, and this show is sold out of booth space. That looks promising along with the chance to meet with international visitors. I think the market will be better. I don't know if we will bring it back to last year's level, but it could be," he said.

Another consideration gives Frohring pause.

"The other issue that factors in is surplus equipment," he said. "Plant closures and mergers and acquisitions put a lot of used equipment on the market, and it affects new machine sales."

Still, to prepare for a bigger market, Absolute Haitian has more than 100 injection molding machines in Charleston and 40 more at other facilities.

"That's our strongest new machine inventory," Frohring said.

LS Mtron also has invested in its supply chain and machine inventory to quickly match up to any increased demands for presses, Gardner said.

Baumann is very optimistic about manufacturing in the U.S.

"Most of our customers, while they are operating a bit slower at the moment, share that sentiment. U.S. manufacturing is here to stay," Baumann said. "The biggest challenge in the short term is making manufacturing a desirable career choice for that next generation of kids. This will not happen on its own — we really need to work on it."