ACH unloads former Visteon fuel-tank plant to Plastic Omnium

Plastic Omnium Auto Inergy is acquiring Automotive Components Holdings (ACH) LLC's plastic fuel system/fuel tank manufacturing assets in Milan, MI, with annual capacity for 1.3 million fuel systems. Plastic Omnium Auto Inergy, which is owned by Compagnie Plastic Omnium, now estimates that it will have output in excess of 15 million fuel systems in 2012. ACH was created in 2005 when Visteon transferred 23 facilities to Ford Motor Co., and Plastic Omnium believes this deal will help it create a "global relationship with Ford" that will position it to support Ford's global development plan.

Plastic Omnium Auto Inergy will now have North America plants in Adrian, MI; Anderson, SC; and Ramos, Mexico, primarily supplying General Motors, Hyundai, Nissan, and Chrysler. The company will construct a new facility in Michigan to which the Milan plant's current production will be transferred, with the new operation to be finished in 2013.

In addition to fuel tanks, ACH's Milan plant had also injection molded bumper fascias at one time. When Visteon transferred 23 of its operations to Ford in October 2005, resulting in the creation of ACH, the intent was to prepare most of the acquired businesses for sale.

In June 2010, Plastic Omnium bought out Solvay's 50% stake in Inergy Automotive Systems and took full ownership of the company, which it billed as the world's number one supplier of integrated fuel tank systems. At that time, the joint venture employed 4000 people with 24 manufacturing facilities in 18 countries and 2010 sales or euro 1.1 billion.

On May 10, Compagnie Plastic Omnium business, Plastic Omnium Environment, acquired Rotherm, a Stadtlohn, Germany-based supplier of underground waste containers.