NEWS
PolyOne buys PlastiComp to target LFT potential
PolyOne Corporation has continued its strategy of growth through targeted acquisition by buying US-based PlastiComp, a specialist in long fibre technology (LFT) composite formulations and production. Founded in 2003,
PlastiComp is best known for its Complēt product lines, which include long glass, carbon and hybrid
reinforcements of up to 50% in matrix materials ranging from PP to PEEK. The materi- als are used in a variety of demanding applications in markets including medical, automotive, marine and outdoor equipment. PlastiComp employs
around 50 people at its plant at Winona, Minnesota, and operates six LFT pultrusion lines, two for
carbon and four for glass products. The business and all staff, including founder Stephen Bowen, will become part of PolyOne’s Specialty Engineered Materials segment. “We are very excited to
accelerate commercial and operational investments to further expand this impor- tant composite technology as part of our advanced composites portfolio,” said Robert M Patterson, Chairman, President and CEO of PolyOne. LFT-based materials are
PlastiComp installed its second carbon fibre LFT production line in 2017
increasingly being used in metal replacement and light-weighting projects where they are said to offer higher strength and stiffness, greater design freedom, fatigue endurance, im- proved corrosion and wear resistance, EMI shielding and simple recyclability. �
www.polyone.com �
www.plasticomp.com
NEWS IN BRIEF...
MGI Coutier has rebrand- ed itself as Akwel. The company said that “this unifying identity marks a new drive forward for the group, in line with the dynamic profile of Akwel”. Akwel topped the €1bn mark in sales for the first time in 2017 and now employs nearly 11,000 people across 42 sites in 22 countries. It is in the process of opening two new production sites in Thailand in 2018 and in Bulgaria in 2020, by when sales are predicted to be €1.2bn. �
www.akwel-automotive.com
International Automotive Components (IAC) has appointed Natale Rea as president and interim CEO, replacing Robert S. Miller, who has retired. Rea has been in the business for over 40 years, including six as president of the Auto- motive division at Martinrea International. �
www.iacgroup.com
Westfall goes east with purchase of NPI
Westfall Technik – a recently formed global holding company that is active in plastics for the medical, packaging and consumer goods industries and headed by former Netstal Ameri- ca president and Flextronics executive Rick Shaffer – has bought NPI Medical of Ansonia, Connecticut, in the US. This is Westfall’s first injection moulding operation on the US East Coast. Acquiring NPI will, it is claimed, “enhance the process of improving time to market for the medical device and dispos-
10 INJECTION WORLD | June 2018
able market” while working with seven other Westfall sites on the “prototype to production” concept. NPI Medical’s site covers nearly
5,600 m2 over 9,000 m2
, which could be expanded to . It has both clean room
and white room moulding, primarily for moulding medical devices and disposables. There are 46 injection moulding machines, with 28 to 330 tonnes of clamping force. The company moved to Ansonia in 1999 and focused entirely on medical applications. Modernisation plans are already in place for the moulding and tooling facilities. �
www.westfall-technik.com
www.injectionworld.com
PHOTO: POLYONE
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