After failing in December to achieve market leadership in PE film through a spectacular hostile take-over bid for British Polythene Industries (BPI, GB-Greenock; www.bpipoly.com) British packaging group Macfarlane (21 Newton Place, GB-Glasgow G3 7PY) has made a strategic about-turn and is withdrawing from PE film altogether. – See Plasteurope.com 2, 2001. The business is being sold to US-based Tyco Plastics Ltd of Boca Raton, Florida, a division of Tyco International (Pembroke, Bermuda; www.tyco.com).

Following a number of prior acquisitions over the past few years, Macfarlane achieved sales of around GBP 60m (EUR 95m) with plastics, accounting for a third of group sales. Macfarlane will retain just a single injection moulding facility in Ireland while parting with the bulk of the business, which covers eight British film plants and around 500 employees. Just before the Macfarlane deal became public, Tyco announced the acquisition of PE film manufacturer World Class Film Corp (78 Fernbrook Street; Yonkers, NY 10705/USA). The US multinational concern, with its more than 180,000 employees worldwide, has so far been best known in Europe for its electrical engineering activities and seems determined to expand further in the film market. According to the US business press, Tyco is preparing to attack market leaders Pliant – formerly Huntsman Packaging (see Plasteurope.com 24, 2000) – and Bemis.