PETpla.net Insider 10 / 2010

REGIONAL MARKET REPORTS 16 PET planet insider Vol. 11 No. 10/10 www.petpla.net We met : Frédéric Mignot, President Directeur Général The PET converters SGT enjoyed substantial regu- lar volume growth from 1997 to 2006. Ever since then no further growth is to be registered according to Frederic Mignot. But their output has been at or close to capacity. Profits have been stable thanks to higher productivity. How did SGT manage to maintain its profits, in times of market decline (when everybody else in the market is suffering and complaining) we asked ourselves during the visit? Company history in the region The family company wasfounded in the 1950s, making soap. Frederic Mignot is the third generation managing the company. In the process of diversification in 1981 the company launched a new activity in producing PVC mate- rial for water bottles. PVC (the material itself) suffered from extensive environmental pressure and the company became involved in PET in 1997. In 1997 SGT installed the first three Husky systems with 48 cavities and PET preform production was commenced with an immediate result and with a constant and double-figure growth, until sales of bottled water declined as a consequence of governmental action to improve tap water. But SGT can see the requirement for bottled water returning as the big supermarkets are presently commer- cialising their own brands. The losses in famous, large volume brands are thus likely to be compensated. Product and population SGT today is producing preforms internationally of 120 to 130 different designs for water, CSD, edible oil, vinegar, detergents, wine, beer, dairy products… Production is on 50 moulds with numerous conversion kits. The frequent mould changes, estimated at 1,000 per annum with 2 to 5 hours lost each time, represent a chal- Manger PET Europe. Today he is PET Regional Manager France and Iberia. He can see reasons to be optimistic about Husky’s future in France: “We have a win-win situ- ation, for our customers and for us. Light weighting cuts costs for our customers, light weighting grows our mould business. Regardless of the economy, we are continuing to offer creative solutions to help our customers reduce costs.” France is a vast country. Injection moulders are evenly spread over the entire country. In the extreme West on the Atlantic coast we visited Societé Générale des Techniques (SGT). March 17, 2010 Societé Générale des Techniques (SGT) in Nantes “Focus of SGT has been and will always be on multiple products with a large range of preforms i.e. on smaller volumes with lots of shapes and designs, in order to offer a global solution to the customer demand.” Frédéric Mignot, Président Directeur Général, SGT, left, with Eddy Fery, Husky