Following an expansion of its site in Poland and a new plant in Brazil, compounder Sirmax (Cittadella / Italy; www.sirmax.com) has now set its sights on the US as the next destination on its global expansion course. The company is investing USD 25.6m in a 20,000 t/y PP compounds plant located in Anderson, Indiana, which is scheduled to commence operations in October this year. The fact that Sirmax made the announcement at the recent “North American International Auto Show” (NAIAS) in Detroit probably means output of the facility will be geared mostly to the US automotive industry.

Aside from its compounding activities, Sirmax also acts as a distributor for companies like Borealis, Altuglas, Huntsman and Versalis, among others. The company operates two compounding plants in Italy with capacity for 80,000 t/y. Its international activities date back to 2005, when it founded sales offices in Germany, France and Spain – see Plasteurope.com of 15.12.2005. Two years later, Sirmax commissioned its plant in Poland, which today is capable of producing 50,000 t/y of compounds. The company reportedly posted sales of EUR 160m in 2013 – double the amount of 2005. Together with the start-up of its 15,000 t/y plant in Brazil last year (see Plasteurope.com of 10.06.2014), once operational, the new US facility is expected to lift group sales to EUR 250m by 2016.