Sirmax Group increases its production capacity

Sirmax Group increases its production capacity by investing 10 million euros in machinery in Europe and the USA
Sirmax consolidates its partnership with Coperion, Maag and Brabender Technologie – market–leading brands for quality and technology

Sirmax Group increases its production capacity with a 10–million–euro investment in high–end machinery. The Cittadella–based Group specializes in the production of polypropylene compounds, engineering plastics, post–consumer compounds, and bio–compounds for different applications. It has now consolidated its partnership with leading high–tech equipment companies Coperion, MAAG and Brabender Technologie.

German brand Coperion is an industry leader in the production of compounders for thermoplastic compounds. Sirmax has been working with Coperion for many years. MAAG Group, a Swiss company with subsidiaries in Germany, Italy, US, China, etc., specializes in the production of melt pumps, pelletizers and filters for thermoplastic materials. Brabender Technologie GmbH & Co. KG develops and manufactures feeding systems for a variety of materials, including polymers, additives, and mineral fillers.

This 10–million–euro investment will lead to a 27,000–ton increase in Sirmax Group’s production capacity, which translates to + 10% in Europe and + 15% in the United States. The new machines will enable Sirmax to meet the market’s increased demand for engineering plastics (ABS, PC, PCABS, PA6 and PA66) and polypropylene compounds, which has grown by 50% and 26% respectively in the first 9 months of 2021.

Six compounders were purchased in total, along with their accompanying components. Three new compounders will boost production at the second production site in Kutno, Poland (built in 2019), and are intended for the consolidation and development of the plant. The infrastructure for the production of TPEs (thermoplastic elastomers) at the second Polish site was further enhanced with the addition of a new automatic bagging system and two new heated silos for technical oil.

The fourth compounder is destined for the US plant in Indiana (Sirmax North America), while the remaining two will be used for Research & Development activities. Of these, one will go to the Group’s headquarters in Cittadella (Padua) and one to the production site in San Vito al Tagliamento (Pordenone), where specific engineering plastics are produced. All six new compounders will be fully operational between February and September 2022.

“We now have a consolidated relationship with Coperion, Maag and Brabender,“ states Sirmax Group’s president and CEO Massimo Pavin. „I am very pleased to continue our collaboration. Their equipment ensures Sirmax is able to produce extremely high–quality materials. Their global presence fits perfectly with Sirmax and supports our multi–country and multi–product strategy.“
Coperion, MAAG and Brabender Technologie compounders and equipment will make for simpler and more effective scale–ups between production lines and R&D. Furthermore, the continuity with these three suppliers makes it possible to share tech upgrades and to carry out implementation tests that can lead to the creation of new products for Sirmax or new machinery for Coperion, MAAG and Brabender Technologie.
“Working with Sirmax Group has been a privilege and a pleasure since it has regularly grown in an engineering plastics environment that demands best in class materials and torque levels in order to produce highest quality compounds at world class productivity levels – adds Peter von Hoffmann, business unit leader at Coperion –, we congratulate the Sirmax team on its strong performance in the past years and look forward to our future successful cooperation”.
“Sirmax Group’s level of technology is very unique, and we are happy and proud to accompany Sirmax on their growth path,” says Ueli Thuerig, President of MAAG Group. “The consolidated partnership with Sirmax Group is an excellent example of how to develop and implement jointly developed innovative solutions in practice – Bruno Dautzenberg, CEO of Brabender Technologie concludes – this is win–win in real„.
This 10–million–euro investment in machinery was made possible thanks to the incredibly positive results recorded by the Group in the first nine months of 2021. Q3 saw a 22% increase in sales volumes compared to the same period in 2020, and a 19% increase compared to the first nine months of 2019, taking the total expected turnover to 450 million euros by the end of the year, up from 315 million in 2020.