PETpla.net Insider 04 / 2011

PET news 6 PET planet insider Vol. 12 No. 04/11 www.petpla.net Silgan acquires Graham Packaging Silgan Holdings Inc., a supplier of rigid consumer goods packaging products, announced that it has entered into a definitive merger agreement to acquire Graham Packaging Company Inc., a global supplier of value-added rigid plastic containers for the food, spe- cialty beverage and consumer products markets. The combined company has annual sales of over $6.2 billion, and its over 17,000 employees will operate 180 manufacturing facilities in 19 countries. Following the transaction, Silgan is expecting to achieve com- bined revenues of approximately $4.6 billion.Following the acquisition, on a pro forma basis Silgan expects to generate approximately $500 million in free cash flow, or approximately $5 per share, in the first full year of operations. Silgan expects to realize operational cost synergies of $50 million by the third year following the combination. The acquisition is currently expected to close in the third quarter of 2011, subject to the approval of the transaction by Silgan’s shareholders and Graham’s shareholders, receipt of applicable regulatory approvals and the satisfaction of customary closing conditions. www.silgan.com Plastic Technologies and Cetea partnership for training Plastic Technologies, Inc. (PTI), which engages in PET design, development and engineering services, partnered with Brazil’s Centro de Tecnologia de Embal- agem (Cetea) to produce a three-day training course entitled PET Packaging for Hot- and Aseptic Filling of Sensitive Beverages, held during April 2011. Cetea is a State of São Paulo packaging technology research insti- tution, which is part of Ital, the Food Technology Institute. The course, which featured modules on PET Technology, Hot-Fill and Aseptic Technology, and PET Recycling and Sustainability, was held at Ital’s headquarters in Campi- nas. A training agreement between PTI and Cetea was signed in 2010. www.cetea.ital.cp.gov.br www.plasticstechnologies.com Invista reports improved performance in 2010 Invista Resins & Fibers GmbH has reported improved sales volumes and increased market share in special- ity segments, following its 2009 restructuring and imple- mentation of its new business strategy. The company’s Polymer & Resins business strategy involves a diversi- fied product portfolio and new developments. In 2010, the business launched low-melt Type 7001 resin and Oxyclear barrier resin products, and continued to supply Polyshield resin. In the first quarter of 2011, the Poly- mer & Resins business undertook a complete overhaul of one of its polymer production lines, which had been temporarily shut down. The third quarter is scheduled to see a comprehensive overhaul of Invista’s DMT plant in Gersthofen. www.polymers.invista.com Full FDA approval for Gneuss PET recycling Gneuss Kunststofftechnik GmbH has received unre- stricted FDA approval for food packaging products of all types (classes C – G) for its extrusion process, follow- ing last year’s receipt of a Letter of Non Objection for a complete PET recycling system including an SSP system. The company’s MRS extruder, its devolatilising system and the Rotary Melt Filtrations system are approved for the processing of up to 100% unwashed PET bottle flakes for food contact containers, without any pre- or post-extrusion treatment of the material, including drying, drying under vacuum, crystallizing etc. The company says that the approval is because of the devolatilising performance of the MRS extruder. It uses a very large polymer melt sur- face area in the multiple rotation section of the extruder, together with a rapid melt exchange and optimised venting. Gneuss has sold more than 20 extruders since its market launch, less than four years ago. www.gneuss.com New Sidel training lab in Italy From January 28, Sidel has a new training lab at its Parma site, which extends classroom and hands-on train- ing services for customers and Group experts on its range of standard or aseptic fillers, all the way through to end-of- line equipment. The centre holds nearly 200 multilingual sessions for more than 1,000 customer-trainees each year. The site already offers classrooms, theoretical learning and a ‘virtual reality’ room. The new lab is equipped with the latest generation of standard or aseptic sub-assemblies for hands-on operations. One room houses two automa- tion training stations, including a Fanuc robot model for the training of robot operators and maintenance technicians, and a teaching carrousel and test tables for the configura- tion of filler and mixer sub-assemblies. A second room is dedicated to training on Sensofill FMa and FMm aseptic fillers, as well as aseptic instruments and components. The third space is given over to different types of filling technolo- gies and valves. Sidel is also investing in the expansion of its Beijing Training Centre, which is scheduled to open in the second half of 2011. www.sidel.com