Cleveland — In its sixth year of operation, Insight Polymers & Compounding LLC is finding success with sustainable and bio-based compounds.
Kingsport, Tenn.-based Insight recently installed a new extrusion line to make those materials, operations director A.J. Pasquale said Nov. 16 at AMI Plastics World Expos in Cleveland. The firm now operates four twin-screw lines at a 12,000-square-foot site where it employs five.
Pasquale co-founded Insight in 2018 along with Jeremy Lizotte, who serves as the firm's innovation director. Both previously worked for plastics and chemicals giant Eastman Chemical Co. of Kingsport.
"Some people start a new company and bet the farm." Pasquale said. "We had a solid two-year plan. Then COVID hit and we had to make some adjustments, but we've made it through."
Insight now makes materials based on many different resin types for a wide range of end markets. Its product mix includes concentrates based on glycol-modified PET and polylactic acid (PLA) for the additive manufacturing and 3D printing market.
"In additive manufacturing, you can use more exotic materials," Pasquale said.
Most of Insight's customers are in the Southeast U.S., but Pasquale said the firm also has customers in the Northeast U.S. and in California.
As 2023 draws to a close, Pasquale said that Insight "is focused on filling the new line" and on finding new business in such markets as automotive and durables.