PETpla.net Insider 05 / 2011

NEWS 8 PET planet insider Vol. 12 No. 05/11 www.petpla.net A new complete closure system supplier with global footprint Husky Injection Molding Systems has announced the inten- tion to acquire the Austrian KTW Group (see PETplanet issue 3, page 7). On the occasion of the inauguration of the new KTW development centre in Waidhofen / Thaya, Austria, Husky and KTW announced their strategy at a press conference. Formal completion of this transaction is expected in May 2011. KTW will play its role in the corporation as a leading manufacturer of injection moulds for plastic container closures. Their facilities include a development centre, a total of three mould manufacturing sites in Austria, Germany and the Czech Republic, with a total of 370 engineers and technicians. KTW thus complements the Husky programme, which includes injection moulding machines, PET preform tools of their own development and manufacture, as well as a complete range of hot runner technology. The KTW-mould technology covers the entire spectrum, from standard closures for beverage bottles to specific closures for “Personal Care” –to packaging, from deter- gent to grocery closures. Founded in 1979, KTW has developed under the leader- ship of the owner families Völker and Ziegler into a manufacturer of injection moulds for plastic closures of all kinds. Beginning with the Austrian parent plant in 1992, the families founded a branch in Chemnitz in the former East Germany and in 1999 in South Bohemia - Jindrichuv Hradec. The company’s specialisa- tion remained focused on closure technology. The KTW Group employs 370 toolmakers and technicians. All three plants have similar facilities based on the same technology and performance standards. Husky and KTW have been working together on projects for more than 14 years - particularly closely in the Asian market for standard closure systems but in recent years increas- ingly on projects for non-standard fasteners. The Husky strategy aims, along with KTW, to offer complete closure systems. KTW will be the worldwide competence centre for closures within Husky - with the associated expansion of capacity meeting new demands. The strategy will focus on the following areas:  For PET bottle production standard closures, the objective is centred upon providing complete solutions (machine, mould, and accessories) from a single source. Such facilities are operated as modules by the beverage industry.  In the area of “non standard” closures – such as the typical “flip-top cap”, global proactive customers engage their suppli- ers to provide stronger accompanying support. This requires the expansion of the service centres, sales offices and also production sites in the growth markets of Asia, Latin America, and in North America.  The trend towards the optimally adapted injection moulding system requires the ever closer integration of the individual – up to now independent - components in the injection mould- ing process and therefore a closing of ranks of the develop- ment departments of the component manufacturers.  Optimisation of investment reflects the trend towards ever shorter project lead times. This requires new and optimised processes, especially in the global interaction with customers. The name and logo of KTW will continue to exist as a trade name. The development of integrated closure produc- tion systems will be intensified. In addition to focusing on the systems business, the business branch “single mould” remains unchanged in the programme. Existing customer relationships will continue to be served. www.husky.ca  www.ktw-group.com Agr International expands process improvement services Agr International’s Process Improvement Con- sulting Service includes a team of professional con- sultants who work directly with process engineers and plant floor personnel to solve problems such as managing challenging lightweight applications and quality issues. Services include process control design; manufacturing process control; experimental design; statistical learning; and the recently-added material testing. The acquisition of West Analyti- cal Laboratories by Agr International has enabled further expansion of the offerings available through the Consulting Service. The company now offers contaminant identification; non-volatile residue content and identification; qualitative identification of polymer and surfactants; glue content of PET, solvent extraction and quantification; ash content; plastic additive profiling; and lube analysis. Tests are performed at Agr’s ISO17025-accredited analyti- cal testing laboratory, in Maumee, Ohio, USA. www.agrintl.com Krones returns to growth in 2010 Krones AG, the beverage filling and packaging tech- nology company, has reported a return to profitability and growth in its financial and sales results for 2010. Consolidated sales were €2,173.3 million in 2010, a rise over the preceding year’s figure of €1,864.9 million (16.5%). Sales outside Europe showed the strongest growth, driven by rising demand in China, the rest of Asia and in South America. Almost 66% of the compa- ny’s 2010 sales were outside Europe. Booked orders at the end of 2010 were €908.7 million (2009: €888.5 mil- lion). Earnings before taxes improved to a total of €70.8 million, following a loss of €39.2 million in the preceding year. After-tax earnings were €50.9 million (2009: minus €34.5 million) and earnings per share were €1.68 euros (preceding year: minus €1.13). As at December 31, 2010, the group had no bank debt and possessed net liquidity of around €147 million, excluding the buyback of approximately 1.4 million of its own shares in 2009. At the end of 2010, the value of these shares was €66 million. The equity ratio was 40.2 % on the balance sheet reporting date. The Executive and Supervisory Boards of Krones AG will propose a dividend of €0.40 per share the 2010 business year to the AGM on June 15,2011; no dividend was paid in respect of 2009. The company has reported order bookings of €628.6 million in the first quarter, up 14.2% on the previous year on a like-for-like basis. Sales were also higher, by 13.7%, at €606.7 million. Earnings before taxes in the first three months of 2011 are higher as well. While noting that today’s markets are characterised by volatility, trend reversal and uncertainty, the company has confidently predicted growth of seven to ten per cent in 2011 and expects profit margins to return to a sustainable level of 7% in all segments. www.krones.com