Castle Mark teams up with U.S. designers
CHICAGO (June 26, 5:45 p.m. EDT) -- Chinese custom molder Castle Mark Enterprises Ltd. already makes office furniture for some of the leading names in the business. Now the company is out to make a name for itself.
CCL investing $25 million in Asian expansions
TORONTO (June 23, 12:45 p.m. EDT) -- Canadian packaging supplier CCL Industries Inc. plans to build four new plants, in China, India, Thailand and Vietnam, and will expand facilities in China and Japan.
Linpac opens PVC film plant in China
CHANGZHOU, CHINA (June 19, 8:20 a.m. EDT) — Linpac Group’s packaging division has opened its first plant in China, to make PVC stretch film for food packaging. The Changzhou facility opened this month with two extrusion lines for large-scale production for food manufacturers, suppliers and retailers. It will employ 60.
India´s Polyplex eyeing North America
BANGKOK, THAILAND (June 18, 4:45 p.m. EDT) -- Polyplex Group, the world’s fourth-largest maker of thin PET film, may set up its first production in North America, likely in Mexico.
Malaysia molder pushing exports
SHAN ALAM, MALAYSIA (June 16, 10:55 a.m. EDT) -- Hicom-Teck See Manufacturing Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Malaysia’s largest maker of precision injection molded auto parts, hopes that work it began this year exporting parts to Spain and Germany will help it crack the large-volume European and American markets.
Lee Huat adds all-electrics, design unit
SINGAPORE (June 16, 10:50 a.m. EDT) -- Malaysian molder Lee Huat Plastics Industries Sdn. Bhd. is investing in electric presses and creating a subsidiary focused on industrial design, in a bid to move into more sophisticated manufacturing and make itself more competitive against low-wage countries.
Singapore extruder opens cast film plant
SINGAPORE (June 16, 10:45 a.m. EDT) -- Singaporean film extruder and bag maker Golden Swan Industries & Trading Pte. Ltd. has set up its second plant there, for making cast film, in part to take advantage of export opportunities with Singapore’s many tariff-free trade agreements.
Univac expands mold offerings
SINGAPORE (June 16, 10:40 a.m. EDT) -- Molder and mold maker Univac Precision Engineering Pte. Ltd. of Singapore has taken a license in SpinStack multicomponent mold-making technology from Gram Technology ApS of Birkerød, Denmark. Univac wants to use the Gram technology to expand the tools it builds for exporting, for the medical and health-care and caps and closures markets.
Singapore touts its technology advances
SINGAPORE (June 16, 10:35 a.m. EDT) -- Singapore is focusing on technology and innovation to upgrade its chemical industry production into engineering polymers, performance chemicals and advanced materials, said S. Iswaran, minister of State for Trade and Industry. That approach is designed to counter competitive pressure, especially from petrochemical industries in the Middle East, India and China, he said at the Asia Petrochemical Industry conference, held May 27-28 in Singapore.
India makes gains in exports
SINGAPORE (June 16, 9:30 a.m. EDT) -- The Indian plastics industry’s 2007-08 product and machinery exports are estimated to have reached US$4.1 billion, up from $3.1 billion a year earlier, a Plastindia Foundation report said. India has increased its plastics exports to main markets significantly, except the U.S. and United Arab Emirates.
Kautex increasing production in Asia
SINGAPORE (June 16, 9:25 a.m. EDT) -- Kautex Maschinenbau GmbH has sold its first six-layer coextrusion machine in India to a firm that will make automobile fuel tanks there next year. Managing Director Andreas Lichtenauer called the sale a breakthrough in the Indian market for the Bonn, Germany-based company, which has been in China for nearly a decade with a plant in Shunde.
Southeast Asian nations gather at summits
SINGAPORE (June 16, 9:20 a.m. EDT) -- Southeast Asia’s export-led plastics industries are facing many challenges, from rising raw material costs and slowing economies in major markets to homegrown challenges like volatile currencies, political instability and increasing environmental pressures.
Clariant expands Southeast Asia operations
GUANGZHOU, CHINA (June 16, 9:15 a.m. EDT) -- Clariant Masterbatches has expanded its operations in Southeast Asia, doubling its manufacturing footprint in Thailand with a new regional headquarters there and adding capacity in Indonesia. It’s also set to open its largest masterbatch facility in China, in the southern city of Guangzhou.
Rhodia building R&D site in Shanghai
SHANGHAI (June 9, 11:25 a.m. EDT) -- Reinforcing the company’s research and development capabilities in Asia, Rhodia SA of Courbevoie, France, has launched construction of a Shanghai R&D facility.
Lisi chief gets aid from American friends
SHANGHAI (June 9, 10:15 a.m. EDT) -- When 27-year-old Li Lixin bought his first injection press with money borrowed from friends, he didn’t know the 538-square-foot molding shop was going to become a 1 billion-yuan (US$144 million) business.
