Graham launches new Turkish blowmolding plantGraham launches new Turkish blowmolding plant

Graham Packaging Co. LP (York, PA) has shifted its Turkish bottle processing from Istanbul to a new two-story, 4000-sq-m site in Tuzla. The operation will blowmold polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles for the personal care, household products, and dairy markets in western Turkey. According to a release, Graham said the newly constructed plant, which will employ 60, is larger and surrounded by more modern infrastructure, as well being closer to principal customers in western Turkey.

Graham, which is majority-owned by private-equity behemoth Blackstone, operates 85 processing facilities globally, with annual production topping 20 billion containers. Its 2006 sales totaled $2.52 billion. In its third-quarter earnings report, which was delivered on Nov. 2, Graham showed strong net-sales growth in Europe (20.4%) and South America (25%), with figures down 6.7% in North America. Overall, Graham reported third quarter 2007 operating income of $44.2 million, up $4.2 million from $40.0 million for the same period in 2006.—[email protected]