First Look: Industry News & Analysis

Is an offer in the offing for Quadrant?

Swiss semifinished composite parts supplier Quadrant (Zurich), which also includes a large European injection molding business unit, reports it has declined a request from Cheyne Special Situations Fund LP and private equity firm BC Partners, both based in London, to grant an exclusive pre-offer due diligence in advance of a possible public offer for all outstanding Quadrant shares. Subject to satisfactory due diligence, a possible price range of CHF 300 to CHF 330 per share was mentioned, far above the then-quoted price of about CHF176.80. Due diligence was said to be a condition for a significant part of the financing of the transaction.

On Wednesday, August 29, Quadrant’s board of directors declined the pre-offer due diligence request of the two applicants. The board says a highly leveraged takeover and subsequent privatization of the publicly traded Quadrant would jeopardize the further pursuit of the board’s growth strategy. Further, the board is convinced that the publicly available information on Quadrant is sufficient for a possible public offer in the mentioned price range. Quadrant would not comment further.

Quadrant is one of the world’s largest suppliers of semifinished composite parts, and currently has locations in 18 countries, more than 2400 employees, and annual sales exceeding CHF 800 million ($665 million).

Hasco sold to Berndorf

Berndorf, an Austrian firm manufacturing steel belts and chains, in late August acquired 74.9% of Hasco (Lüdenscheid, Germany), which is a manufacturer of mold components and hot runners, for an undisclosed sum. A 21.1% stake in Hasco remains in the hands of the Hasenclever family. Hasco employs about 1100 and is represented in 40 countries. The firm’s 2007 sales will hit roughly €1.590 billion with positive profitability, says the firm.

Franz Viehböck is the new managing director, coming to the firm from Berndorf Band, the largest plant at the Berndorf site in lower Austria.

In Brief

Brahe to Bayer

Bayer MaterialScience (Leverkusen, Germany) will acquire PUR systems house Brahe A.S. (Cerekvice, Czech Republic, near the Polish border). It will be integrated into the BaySystems network under the name BaySystems CentralEurope. Brahe was previously owned by T.P. Holding. Financial details were not released.

HT Troplast sold

Investment banks Carlyle Group and Advent International sold window profile and siding processor HT Troplast (Troisdorf, Germany) to an investment group in the Middle East, Arcapita Bank BCS (Manama, Bahrain), for an undisclosed sum.

Rohm and Haas JV

Rohm and Haas (Philadelphia, PA) and Weihai Jinhong Polymer (Weihai, China) have formally opened their joint venture, Jinhong Rohm and Haas Chemical (JinHaas), to produce methacrylate butadiene styrene (MBS), acrylic impact modifiers, and acrylic processing aids for distribution in China and other emerging markets.

Adding Unitemp service

Taking advantage of the closure earlier this year of German hot runner manufacturer Unitemp, hot runner manufacturer HRSflow (San Polo di Piave, Italy) has hired former Unitemp employees for its technical and sales departments. The new employees enable HRSflow to service Unitemp hot runners in the field.

Strong Turkish showing

According to the latest figures from the Turkish plastics association, (PAGEV; Istanbul), the country’s processing capacity is growing annually at 15% and is expected to convert 13 million tonnes of resin by 2014.

GE Plastics, now Sabic, buys Exatec…

GE Plastics (Pittsfield, MA), now renamed Sabic Innovative Plastics, last month acquired Bayer’s 50% stake in the two polycarbonate suppliers’ Exatec (Wixom, MI) PC glazing joint venture. Transaction details were not disclosed. Exatec was formed by GEP and Bayer MaterialScience (Leverkusen, Germany) in 1998. Its PC coating system meets legal requirements for long-term (10 years) window clarity and scratch resistance. Exatec’s technology includes a plasma coating applied as part of a continuous, online process to mold transparent PC window panels; the plasma coating delivers the scratch resistance.

The transaction came just before Sabic completed its purchase of GE Plastics. Just days before acquiring Bayer’s Exatec stake, GEP announced it had acquired the equity interest of Mitsui Chemicals and Nagase in GE Plastics Japan Ltd. (GEPJ), giving GEP 100% control. GEPJ’s Chiba facility, located within Mitsui’s Ichihara plant, will be closed. Nagase remains a sales representative and distributor for GE Plastics in China and Southeast Asia. GE Plastics was renamed Sabic Innovative Plastics last month.

For its part, Bayer says it plans to pursue its own independent development of PC automotive glazing. Günter Hilken, head of the PC business unit at Bayer MaterialScience, said, “In the next few years, Bayer MaterialScience anticipates fast growth in the potential applications for polycarbonate, particularly in the market for large panorama roofs.” Mercedes already installs PC windows in the roof module of its GL class cars, and in the vehicles of its Smart subsidiary.

…as Bayer expands PC compounding

In related news, Bayer says it will expand its global PC compounding network with a new logistics center for Makrolon-brand PC and PC blends in Krefeld-Uerdingen, Germany. At that site a new logistics center is being constructed for storing, mixing, and packing Makrolon and the PC blends Bayblend and Makroblend. The new logistics facilities are being built in the immediate vicinity of the Makrolon compounding plant.

Bayer MaterialScience also will build a compounding facility in southern China for Makrolon and PC blends. In addition, construction of a compounding center is planned at a new site in New Delhi for the end of 2008. Existing compounding facilities are in Krefeld-Uerdingen; Filago, Italy; Newark, OH; Shanghai; and Map Ta Phut, Thailand.

Haitian takes over Zhafir operation

Haitian Intl. Holdings Ltd. (Cayman Islands), the holding company behind the world’s most prolific injection molding machine manufacturer, Haitian (Ningbo, China), acquired a 91% interest in Zhafir Plastics Machinery GmbH (Ebermannsdorf, Germany), a company it helped form in 2006 that is expected to soon start assembly of high-end, all-electric injection molding machinery. The firm will exhibit at the K Show in October (Stand 15A57). The purchase set Haitian back by €6,569,440.

According to a mandatory stock exchange report filed by Haitian, Zhang Jianming and Zhang Jianfeng, both executive directors at Haitian as well as founders, sold their respective 60% and 20% shares in Zhafir to Haitian. Helmar Franz, managing director of Zhafir, sold 11% of his stake and continues to hold 9%. Zhang Jianming is also Haitian’s CEO.

Franz is the former CEO at Demag Plastics Group; he left DPG in March 2005, and in January 2006 joined the board of directors at Ningbo Haitian. Haitian is paying for the Zhafir purchase with the help of a €6.57 million loan from Zhang Jianming. The official buyer of Zhafir is Sunnew Investments Ltd., a 100% subsidiary of Haitian based in the British Virgin Islands.

According to Haitian, the acquisition will give it better access to German molding machinery technology. Zhafir has started construction of a facility in Germany to assemble its machines.

Coating most everything, and uniformly, too

A new pilot coating line at the Ludwigshafen plant of plastics supplier BASF is based on the Steron process developed by entrepreneur inventor Philipp Schaefer, co-founder of Helcor Leder-Tec (Helen, Germany), a leather design firm. The process coats a wide range of carriers including fleece fabrics, woven fabrics, and leather, as well as wood or plastics. The result: Different materials bear an optically uniform design. Finishes can be glossy or matte, smooth or rough, and are said to be economical even for small volumes, as matrix materials can be routinely changed.

Steron coating starts with an aqueous formulation of pigmented polyurethanes sprayed upon a silicon matrix. Most of the water evaporates, leaving a thin membrane with microfine pores. While still on the matrix, the membrane is then adhered to the carrier and the finished product lifted from the matrix.

Crown buys into Gienkee plastics center in Shanghai

Underwater pelletizing system supplier Crown Machine Division Inc. (Addison, IL) has opened a new sales office in Shanghai—Crown China Ltd.—to exploit overall plastics growth in China using its patented technology to focus on hard-to-process materials like thermoplastic elastomers, thermoplastic polyurethane, and rigid polyvinyl chloride.

In addition, Crown foresees potential partners and joint ventures with Chinese extrusion companies interested in entering the North American market. The office will be part of the Gienkee Plas Center, which serves as a ’mini-mall’ of sorts for plastics suppliers, with tenants including Demag Plastics Group, EAS, Haitian, Spirex, Matsui, Männer, Avalon, Frigel, Wittmann, and Star.

Rotomolding replaces concrete

Wastewater control systems manufacturer Fresh Creek Technologies (Cedar Grove, NJ) has introduced the rotationally molded Trashmaster plastic housing to replace concrete versions in stormwater management systems. Rotomolding processor Meese Orbitron Dunne Co. (MOD; Madison, IN) forms the housings. A single rotomolded HDPE housing replaces a concrete vault, concrete cover, and stainless steel doors. The new housing costs as much as 50% less to produce than a comparable unit in concrete, weighs 400% less, and can be installed in a day using onsite equipment versus up to a week using heavy lifting equipment. MOD preassembles the unit with pipe couplings, framing, and other internals and ships it directly to the job site ready to install.

In related news, MOD has purchased a Leonardo automated rotomolding machine from Persico SpA (Nembro, Italy), becoming the first North American firm to do so. The machine will be installed and ready to run by January 2008 at MOD’s Madison, IN plant. MOD President Bob Dunne said the company decided on the machine on the basis of anticipated growth and the competitive trends facing rotomolding, which is seeing increasing pressure in some applications and sectors from processes like blowmolding and twin-sheet thermoforming.

500th Alpha raffled at K

At K 2007, Cincinnati Extrusion (Vienna, Austria) will raffle off its 500th Alpha extruder. A Düsseldorf notary will supervise the drawing.

The Alpha range of standardized extruders was launched by the firm at K 2001. Recently processors were given the option of ordering the machines online at www.my-alpha.com.

To participate in the drawing, entry forms can be requested from Cincinnati Extrusion via e-mail ([email protected]) or downloaded from the Internet at www.my-alpha.com. The entry deadline for email or postal entries is October 18, 2007. Forms can also be submitted at the firm’s K show stand (16D22-4) from October 24-28. The drawing will take place at 3 pm on October 30, 2007 at the Cincinnati stand.

SAP partners for PEEK film

Solvay Advanced Polymers (SAP; Alpharetta, GA), which launched polyetheretherketone (PEEK) grades in 2006 as part of a reorganization of its advanced materials portfolio, will now supply the high-temperature thermoplastic in film form through an agreement with film extrusion processor Ajedium Film Group (Newark, DE). Initially, Ajedium will extrude SAP’s Ketaspire PEEK and Avaspire modified PEEK in films that are 2 to 20-mm thick and up to 48 inches wide. Later in 2007, Ajedium will begin offering films as thin as 5 µm. The processor, which specializes in high-performance materials, already extrudes a variety of SAP sulfones, including Radel A polyether sulfone, Radel R polyphenylsulfone, and Udel polysulfone.

Fellow PEEK supplier Victrex (Thornton Cleveleys, England) manufactures its own PEEK-film product, called Aptiv, from a dedicated facility at its headquarters, offering four grades in thicknesses from 6 to 750 µm, with a standard width of 610 mm and custom rolls to 1500 mm. Film-stock rolls can be slit down to 45 mm (see MPW July 2007 First Look for initial report).

SAP added PEEK to its portfolio via the May 2006 purchase of Gharda Chemical’s polymers business in India. That 60-acre location included a 500-tonnes/yr PEEK production unit scheduled to come online in Q1 2008. That line could be doubled to 1000 tonnes/yr, depending on demand.

DuPont expands Asia PA compounding

DuPont Engineering Polymers (Wilmington, DE) has completed an expansion of compounding capacity for its range of Zytel nylon 6 and 66 resins in Ulsan, Korea. The expansion adds 20,000 tonnes/yr of new capacity and comes in response to rapid regional demand growth for reinforced nylon resins, especially from the automotive industry. Glass- or mineral-reinforced nylon resins meet demanding needs in automotive underhood applications such as air-intake manifolds, cylinder head covers, and many diverse applications in the electronics and electrical equipment markets.

In recent years, DuPont Engineering Polymers has made several investments in the region. These include plans to build a new polymer plant to produce DuPont Zytel HTN high-performance polyamide and DuPont Vespel parts and shapes in Singapore. The company has also invested in the DuPont Research and Development Center in Shanghai, China and the DuPont Automotive Center in Nagoya, Japan.

Lite-On gobbles Perlos

Taiwanese optoelectronics supplier Lite-On has made a ?277 million bid to acquire all of publicly traded Perlos (Espoo, Finland), a leader in molding and assembly of cellphone components. The offer, almost a 41% jump over Perlos’ closing price before it was made, has the approval of Perlos’ leading shareholders.

Perlos earlier this year closed its last two facilities in Finland and has laid off about 1100 workers in that time frame. A plant in Ft. Worth, TX also was closed, with work there shifted to a site in Mexico.

Lite-On’s move almost mirrors that of one of its top competitors, Foxconn, which in 2003 acquired Eimo, another Finnish processor of cellphone housings.

Crownbrook Debco adds Nicos to plastics-recycling portfolio

As part of its bid to become a national force in plastics recycling, Crownbrook Debco has acquired size-reduction and separation firm Nicos Polymers and Grinding Inc. (Nazareth, PA), including its 180,000-ft2 facility, which employs 88. Crownbrook Debco, which is backed by Crownbrook Capital, made Debco Plastics Inc. (Freeport, NY) its first acquisition. Nicos works with post-industrial scrap, partnering with large and small manufacturers and retailers for full-stream recycling services, including logistics, grinding, pulverizing, blending, and substrate separation. Debco’s core competency is in compounding and pelletizing a variety of resins, and it has reclaimed several resins including thermoplastic polyolefin (TPO), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), and polystyrene (PS). The company returns the resins to a reprocessible state. In addition, Debco provides fiber removal from garden hoses, roofing membranes, and other supported fabrics.

Rohm and Haas creates Korean flat-panel film JV

As part of its efforts to create a flat-panel display business, Rohm and Haas Co. (Philadelphia) has started a joint venture with Korean firm SKC Inc. (Seoul), wherein SKC will spin off its display technologies business into a separate unit owned 51% by Rohm and Haas. Rohm and Haas previously purchased the process chemicals and optical display films business of Eastman Kodak.

Sales for the joint venture are forecast to be $300 million in its first year, with Rohm and Haas investing $190 million. Products will include specialty display films for LCD and plasma displays, as well as pigment dispersions, TFT photoresists, and color filter chrome patterning. According to the Freedonia Group (Cleveland, OH), global demand for electronic display materials will grow 12% annually through 2008, as cathode ray tube (CRT) monitors and televisions are increasingly replaced with flat panels.

New PET supply for North America

PET supplier M&G Group (Tortona, Italy) is expanding PET production in the U.S. with an 800,000-tonnes/yr plant to be built at a still-undisclosed location. The company claims that PTA feedstock supplies have already been secured, enabling startup of the facility in the first half of 2009 with an output of 650,000 tonnes/yr. In other news from the company, it plans to debottleneck both its West Virginia and Mexico plants to expand cumulative capacity of both sites by about 200,000 tonnes/yr.

Big BOPP line bound for Nigeria

The largest biaxially oriented polypropylene (BOPP) line in Africa is to be delivered by tenter frame builder Brückner (Siegsdorf, Germany) to Nigerian film producer Tempo Paper Pulp and Packaging (Abeokuta). The 8.2m-wide BOPP line has an annual output of more than 30,000 tonnes. Brückner already has smaller lines in operation in South Africa and Egypt.

Pictured are Seun Obasanjo, board member Tempo Paper Pulp & Packaging (center); with Rainer Sahl, general manager Brückner Middle East (left), and Johann Kreilinger, Brückner’s senior sales manager (right).

Indian film giant plans Mexican foray

Noida, India-based Uflex Ltd. plans to invest $100 million in a polyester film facility in Mexico with capacity of over 26,000 tonnes/yr. The facility will be completed by the end of 2008 and includes a metallizer for producing barrier films. An 8.7m-wide line will be capable of producing 9-50-µm film. Uflex’s facilities in India include three 7.2m-wide polyester film lines capable of producing 60,000 tonnes/year of film in thicknesses of 9-50 µm. It also operates two 7.2m-wide BOPP lines producing more than 36,000 tonnes/year of film, and one 2.5m-wide line manufactures 6000 tonnes/year of CPP film. There are also three metallizers, each 2.5m wide, with a total capacity of 18,000 tonnes/year suitable for high-barrier metallizing with plasma treatment.

Uflex also manufactures in Dubai, where it currently operates a 7.2m-wide polyester film line and 2.5m-wide metallizer. Commissioning of a second polyester film line is underway and will boost total polyester film capacity there to more than 45,000 tonnes/year.

[ On the record ]

“Paper packaging is likely to benefit from the environmental drive. Much of this material is not compostable (it is polymer-coated or laminated) but it looks traditional and rustic.” Simon Balderson, co-founder and director, packaging processor Siran Ltd., Telford, England.

“With the exception of Germany and the UK, Western Europe will continue to lag behind the U.S. [in RFID use on flexible packaging] due to delays in establishing legal standards for commercial use of radio waves. The European Commission has recently postponed the decision whether to introduce regulations covering RFID into 2008.” John Thompson, marketing manager, business unit film and fiber, polymer producer Borealis, Vienna, Austria.

“Is China’s price important to you? Absolutely, it impacts your price, but is it really important to you when you’re going to pick up the phone and make your next resin purchase?“ Bill Bowie, RTi on knowing your “minimarket” of local plastics suppliers and distributors, versus the macro market, which has tangential impact.

“Executed correctly, offshore manufacturing works best if you have done your homework and have robust business controls in place.” Mark Holman, Sr. VP operations, at Arena Solutions, a product lifecycle management (PLM) system supplier.