NEWS
Plastchim takes over
Manucor Plastchim-T of Bulgaria has acquired Manucor of Italy.
It says the acquisition will help it to establish a strong supply chain platform across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Manucor, founded in 1987, is a BOPP manufacturer. The acquisition will
take existing joint manu- facturing capacity up to 200 000 tonnes/year. “This gives Plastchim-T
matured capabilities and expertise in BOPP, self-adhesive and wrap- around tapes and labels,” said Beyan Faik, CEO of Plastchim-T. Plastchim-T produces BOPP and CPP films. �
https://plastchim-t.com/en/
Simona announces fall in 2023 sales and profits
Germany-based Simona says that sales and profits both declined in 2023, due mainly to an “anaemic global economy”. Group revenue fell nearly 16% to €600 million (US$645m), while profitabil- ity (EBIT) declined by 2% to nearly €53m (US$57m). Sales in the EMEA region fell by 19% compared to the previous year, and by more than 13% in the Americas – despite a rise in its aircraft interiors business. Plastic sheet accounts for the bulk of this division. In Asia-Pacific, business improved by nearly 7%, due to solid perfor- mance in China and India. Other than the ‘mobility’ division – which covers products used in train and
keep sales prices stable over the course of the year,” said Matthias Schönberg, CEO of Simona. “While this contributed to profitability, it had an adverse effect on overall volume – and therefore on revenue.” Simona anticipates sales
Above: Schoenberg: “In 2023, we managed to keep sales prices stable over the course of the year”
aircraft interiors and saw sales increase by 10% to nearly €78m (US$84m) – the company’s other businesses declined. “In 2023, we managed to
growth of around 5% in 2024, with a revenue of €620-640m (US$666-688m) – despite seeing a sales decline in the first quarter of this year. In the quarter, sales fell nearly 12% to around €146m (US$157m), while EBIT fell nearly 29% to around €9m (US$10m). The company attributed this to a change in the product mix, lower sales prices and pressure on margins. �
www.simona.de
LG Chem adds switchable glazing film
LG Chem has entered the automotive switchable glazing film (SGF) market. It will supply SGFs to
sunroof systems manufac- turer Webasto, which will use the films to build roof systems with integrated high-tech glass. SGFs control the amount
of light and heat passing through them by respond- ing to electrical signals. Mainly used in automotive sunroof glass, they are characterised by their opacity under normal conditions – but transpar- ency when voltage is applied. LG says they are “expected to generate
6
hundreds of billions of Won over the next few years”. LG Chem says it owns
more than 200 SGF-related patents through its liquid crystal, adhesive materials, precision coating and pattern-formation technol- ogy expertise. It has SGF manufacturing facilities that
FILM & SHEET EXTRUSION | May 2024
can be applied up to 3 million automobiles annually. In future, it aims to develop products that can be applied to windshields and side windows. In addition, it plans to explore other materials for the display industry, such as transparent antenna films
Left: LG Chem will supply switchable glazing film (SGF) to Webasto of Germany
and adhesives for the automotive industry. “Based on our expertise in
electronic materials such as OLED displays and semicon- ductors, we will create new customer value,” said Hak Cheol Shin, CEO of LG Chem. �
www.lgchem.com
www.filmandsheet.com
IMAGE: LG CHEM
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