GE–Plastics officially up for sale

While it may be months before General Electric sells its plastics business unit, word went out to prospective private-equity buyers on Jan. 8 that the venerable resin supplier was available for sale. GE went so far as to stipulate that bidders may not form groups or “clubs,” in an apparent effort to keep the bidding competitive.

First reported in the Wall Street Journal on Jan. 8 and subsequently by the New York Times on Jan. 9, the plastics unit is expected to fetch between $8 billion and $10 billion. Following several months of speculation that GE would sell Plastics, the news comes as little surprise to those in the plastics industry.

As the time of this writing, GE–Plastics and General Electric had declined comment. While the parent company has been shedding its materials units, selling the silicon and quartz business last year for $3.8 billion, it just acquired an oil and gas equipment and services company called Vetco Gray in early January. GE’s CEO Jeffrey Immelt, who was VP and GM at GE–Plastics from 1992-1997, has committed to selling underperforming units while acquiring more oil/gas and healthcare companies. Oil and gas technology is part of GE’s Infrastructure unit, which posted revenues of $42 billion in 2005, vs. Plastics’ $6.6 billion.—MM

Engel’s first Shanghai machine

Engel’s new factory in Shanghai, China is set for its grand opening around the time of the Chinaplas exhibition in May 2007, but its first molding machine, a 900-ton Duo model, shipped to a Korean customer in December 2006. At the groundbreaking ceremony in November 2005, company chairman Peter Neumann said the first machine would ship from the new plant by the end of 2006, and his team got the job done.

Plans call for production of Duo machines up to 1700 tons by early 2008. The full Duo line ranges from 650-5500 tons. Shanghai-made machines, which are clearly aimed at the area’s burgeoning auto business, are built on the same platform as Duos made in St. Valentin, Austria and York, PA.

Production space in Shanghai is initially 86,000 ft², plus an additional 11,000 ft² for administration. Austrian-based Engel has been making its smaller molding machines in Asia since 2001 at its Korean factory, with more than half of that production being exported, mainly to China. Last we asked, that plant was operating at capacity and expansion was being considered.—RN

Micro Shots

Dynisco acquired
After shedding its extrusion business early in 2006, measurement, test, and control technology supplier Dynisco LLC (Franklin, MA) was sold to Roper Industries Inc. (Duluth, GA) by parent company Audax Group for $243 million in December. Roper is organized into five groups—industrial technology, radio frequency technology, scientific and industrial imaging, instrumentation, and energy systems and controls—and has annualized revenues in excess of $1.4 billion. Dynisco will become part of the latter segment.—AC

De-Sta-Co consolidates ops at new facility
Whether or not running more efficiently was its New Year’s resolution, EOAT manufacturer De-Sta-Co is taking steps to achieve it by acquiring a new plant in Auburn Hills, MI. The facility is now the company’s new corporate HQ. Production operations in Birmingham and Madison Heights will transition to the Auburn Hills location in Q1 2007.—AC

New rep for PlastiCert
The Lewiston, MN office of mold designer/developer and custom molder PlastiCert Inc. has formed a sales rep agreement with Giefer Sales Co. of Minneapolis, MN. PlastiCert runs production presses from 30-440 tons.—AC

A sneak peek at Bayer’s MDM booth

If you’re reading this article while standing on the show floor at MDM West in Anaheim, you can check out the Bayer MaterialScience booth (#3111) in person. If you’re not, we’re here to provide you with a glimpse of the healthcare future from a resin supplier that develops more than its share of medical applications.

First up is a micro forceps and scissors tool used in retinal surgery (pictured). Called the Grieshaber Revolution DSP and made by optical giant Alcon (Switzerland), the tool features thin-walled plastic ribs that create a basket around the instrument body and assist in its free rotation. The ribs needed a combination of strength, stiffness, and toughness, which were delivered by Bayer’s Makrolon 2458 polycarbonate. “Its excellent dimensional stability also makes it possible for this delicate injection molded component to be easily demolded and for the forceps or scissors to work reliably,” explains Markus Krieter, medical market manager in the Polycarbonates business unit of BMS.

Also on display will be an adsorber from Fresenius Medical Care (Germany) based on a new technology and called DALI (direct adsorption of lipoproteins). More than 160,000 patients have been treated with DALI since its introduction. The adsorber is filled with a special material that bonds to LDL cholesterol to extract it from the blood. For durability and safety of the adsorber’s housing, designers wanted a plastic with excellent impact resistance and again, Makrolon 2458 proved to be the answer. The material meets the biocompatibility requirements of the FDA-modified ISO 10993-1 tests with human contact time of 30 days or less, has sufficient toughness and stiffness, and readily endures pressurized steam sterilization where temperatures reach 250°F for longer than 20 minutes.

Finally, the booth will showcase a fetal monitor from Philips Medical Systems (Andover, MA) called the Avalon FM30 Intrapartum Monitor (also called a heart sound cardiotocograph). It covers pregnant women from the onset of contractions through the final stages of delivery, and not only monitors the fetus but also the mother’s blood pressure, heart rate, ECG waves, and pulse oximetry. For its external casing, Philips chose Bayer’s Bayblend FR 3010 PC/ABS for its excellent fire-resistant properties and mechanical and thermal durability. In addition, the material provides high resistance to cleaning agents and disinfectants to eliminate stress cracking, fracture, and color changes.

Want to know more about this show? Go to www.mdmwest.com for details.—MM

Wilden’s got a new owner

Continuing its strategy to grow its business by acquiring “technology and market leaders” in pharmaceutical packaging and systems, Gerresheimer Group (Düsseldorf, Germany) recently acquired plastic drug-delivery system supplier Wilden AG (Regensburg, Germany). The purchase is expected to add about a240 million ($310 million) in annual sales to the Group’s total sales, according to Gerresheimer CEO Axel Herberg.

Included in the transaction are Wilden’s medical and technical plastic systems divisions, the latter of which molds parts for the automotive industry. Wilden has eight production plants, four joint ventures, and 2300-plus employees.—AC

PolyOne opens in India

One of the first things a growing custom molder did after acquiring its new PolyOne Corp. (Cleveland, OH) has entered the Indian market, opening a business development in Mumbai. It is aimed at supporting global customers expanding there, as well as at developing new opportunities in that market. PolyOne expects to generate 30% of its revenue from outside North America by 2010. The compounding plant it opened in southern China in 2005 will be expanded. A color compounding plant in Poland is expected to come on stream in Q2 2007, and the company expects to close the acquisition of the compounding assets and operations of Ngai Hing PlastChem Co. Ltd. in China before the middle of 2007.—RN

Cool Stuff: Time for a raise

If you’re thinking your company is making lots of money off you and you deserve a bigger piece of the pie, Gros Executive Recruiters has provided you with a tool to make your case. The Raise Calculator, which Gros introduced at SPE’s FlexPackCon in Orlando, FL in December, helps plastics professionals determine if their compensation is on par with their role in the industry.

It works like this:

• First, enter your annual compensation, your employer’s revenue, and an estimate of your employer’s total payroll as a percentage of revenue. The calculator figures out how much your job should contribute annually toward sales.

• Next, enter information about a project you completed that saved money for your company. The calculator determines if the gain exceeds your current salary and if it does, suggests the amount of your raise. • Once all the numbers have been run, click the “Write letter” button to generate a memo to your boss containing all the appropriate figures to justify your raise.

Ready to give it a try? Go to www.plasticsjobs.com.—AC