NEWS


Orion’s first ETP output


US-based compounding newcomer Orion Perfor- mance Compounds has started production of engineered plastics compounds at its new facility at Lugoff in South Carolina. The company says


market demands for high-quality products combined with service and speed has driven the creation of the company and will differentiate it from competing business- es. It aims to offer sample lead times of two weeks and production lead times of four weeks.


Orion will manufacture


formulations from renew- able, biobased, or rein- forced resins offering properties such as flame retardancy, electrical or thermal conductivity, lubrication or custom colour.


Its first nine customers


operate in healthcare, fibres, industrial and consumer markets. � www.orioncompounding.com


VDMA figures show machinery order decline


Germany’s plastics and rubber machinery sector saw price-adjusted sales grow 10% during 2022 to reach close to €8.6bn but saw incoming orders decline 13% during 2022 and by 33% in Q1 of this year, according to the industry’s trade association VDMA. According to Ulrich


Reifenhäuser, Chairman of the VDMA Plastics and Rubber Machinery Associa- tion, 2022 growth resulted from the combination of full order books and the easing of pandemic-related supply chain difficulties. As order books are still reasonably full, he said the association forecasts comparatively good sales for the industry for 2023.


However, the weakening


order situation means it takes a more cautious view of the industry’s 2024 performance. “We lost new orders last


year, with a price-adjusted minus of 13%, and in the first quarter of 2023 even more significantly at minus


German plastics and rubber machinery production data 2013-2022 Source: VDMA


33%. That probably means fewer orders on the books that can be processed and converted into sales in 2024,” said Thorsten Kühmann, Managing Director of the association. VDMA said there is little


hope that demand will pick up again in the short term. The global economic climate with low growth, high inflation and corre- spondingly high interest rates is unsettling investors, it said.


It said decarbonisation and defossilisation meg-


Axiom expands facility in Mexico


Automotive injection moulding group Axiom is developing its site in Mexico. The $12m, 24,390 m² expansion will create capacity for the existing plant to focus on manufacturing, while a second building will provide warehouse space. In addition to doubling manufactur- ing space at the site, the company says it hopes the reorganisation will be the catalyst for a projected doubling of revenue in 2024.


8 INJECTION WORLD | July/August 2023


Axiom plans to utilise the extra space by adding eight injection moulding machines ranging from 550 to 2,400 tonnes, which will allow for the addition of 55 tools and 90 different part numbers to its existing database. “We are excited to announce the


expansion of the second factory in Mexico,” said Ananth Pathmanathan, Vice President of Operations Axiom Group. “Expanding our manufacturing


footprint further allows us to provide the best possible service and technical support for our valued clients.” Axiom operates five manufacturing facilities in Canada and the US, as well as Mexico, and it says more are planned. In 2022, the group updated its brand and corporate structure, to better serve the automotive manufac- turing industry as it grows. �www.axiomgroup.ca


www.injectionworld.com


atrends have led the plastics industry into a transforma- tion process towards a circular economy. “But reducing carbon emissions or even establishing carbon-neutral production requires investment and restructuring,” said VDMA. “This is currently countered by the planning uncertainty experienced by many companies and customer groups, particularly where issues of energy supply and the corresponding costs are concerned.” � www.vdma.org


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