MHT
New plant opened in Germany / PET mould success story / Double-digit growth rate
At the end of September, MHT Mold and Hotrunner Technology AG (D-65239 Hochheim; www.mht-ag.de) held the official opening ceremony for its new and highly advanced facility in Hochheim / Germany. The recent newcomer to the market with a special focus on moulds for the production of PET preforms and hot runner technology invested roughly EUR 8m in the facility. The company expects a repeat performance of last year´s double-digit growth in sales. In 2001, the mould and hot runner expert had a turnover of EUR 17m.
MHT´s ascent in the market is a success story in its own right. After their redundancy from the former Husky-Spritzgieß-Systeme in 1996, a handful of experts founded the new company. At present, the company employs more than 100 people, 17 of which are working in Grevenmacher / Luxembourg. The company´s second facility started production last year and focuses on the construction and international sales of PET moulds. The new 12,000 m2 production site at Hochheim offers a floorspace of 3,000 m2 and 800 m2 of office space. The production site is equipped with advanced machinery with a special focus on DNC operation. At a press conference, chairperson of the managerial board Werner Plass emphasised that the direct link between construction, planning and production is prerequisite for an economically viable manufacture of PET moulds and hot runner systems in the face of tightening schedules.
The substantially expanded pilot plant is equipped with two new injection moulding machines by Krauss-Maffei and Netstal, allowing MHT to sample PET moulds manufactured or retrofitted in the facility under production conditions for the first time. Referring to these two injection moulding specialists as partner companies, MHT is implying that both companies are suppliers of complete preform production lines with MHT moulds. For smaller moulds, the company is working with Arburg. The largest PET mould to date is comprised of 144 cavities and was first demonstrated at the K´2001 exhibition in Düsseldorf / Germany. The system is suitable for the production of 50,000 preforms per hour. The mould has recently been fitted to a Netstal injection moulding machine operated by a US preform producer in Arizona.
With its innovative strength, MHT is also focusing on niche markets. 72-cavity moulds used in the production of polypropylene corks for wine bottles achieve a mould availability of 99.6%. According to MHT, these injection moulded corks are being produced on two to three lines in Europe already. Another example is the recently constructed 24-cavity mould for spray heads. The part geometries consisting of free-form surfaces with undercuts require sliding carriages inside the mould. This is the decisive construction difference setting MHT´s product aside from other PET moulds.
For the coming year, MHT´s PET mould division is also expecting above-average growth rates. The testing phase for PET beer bottles has now started in Europe. PET used for wide-neck containers is also on the increase in the area of non-beverage applications. Moreover, PET milk bottles will be introduced to the market. Despite the fact that the introduction of a deposit for drinking cans led to controversy in Germany, PET processors are hoping for new developments in the market for PET containers.
• Plasteurope.com Service: Press conference papers with an up-to-date MHT company portrait (English, with illustrations): PIE-No. 45838.
MHT´s ascent in the market is a success story in its own right. After their redundancy from the former Husky-Spritzgieß-Systeme in 1996, a handful of experts founded the new company. At present, the company employs more than 100 people, 17 of which are working in Grevenmacher / Luxembourg. The company´s second facility started production last year and focuses on the construction and international sales of PET moulds. The new 12,000 m2 production site at Hochheim offers a floorspace of 3,000 m2 and 800 m2 of office space. The production site is equipped with advanced machinery with a special focus on DNC operation. At a press conference, chairperson of the managerial board Werner Plass emphasised that the direct link between construction, planning and production is prerequisite for an economically viable manufacture of PET moulds and hot runner systems in the face of tightening schedules.
The substantially expanded pilot plant is equipped with two new injection moulding machines by Krauss-Maffei and Netstal, allowing MHT to sample PET moulds manufactured or retrofitted in the facility under production conditions for the first time. Referring to these two injection moulding specialists as partner companies, MHT is implying that both companies are suppliers of complete preform production lines with MHT moulds. For smaller moulds, the company is working with Arburg. The largest PET mould to date is comprised of 144 cavities and was first demonstrated at the K´2001 exhibition in Düsseldorf / Germany. The system is suitable for the production of 50,000 preforms per hour. The mould has recently been fitted to a Netstal injection moulding machine operated by a US preform producer in Arizona.
With its innovative strength, MHT is also focusing on niche markets. 72-cavity moulds used in the production of polypropylene corks for wine bottles achieve a mould availability of 99.6%. According to MHT, these injection moulded corks are being produced on two to three lines in Europe already. Another example is the recently constructed 24-cavity mould for spray heads. The part geometries consisting of free-form surfaces with undercuts require sliding carriages inside the mould. This is the decisive construction difference setting MHT´s product aside from other PET moulds.
For the coming year, MHT´s PET mould division is also expecting above-average growth rates. The testing phase for PET beer bottles has now started in Europe. PET used for wide-neck containers is also on the increase in the area of non-beverage applications. Moreover, PET milk bottles will be introduced to the market. Despite the fact that the introduction of a deposit for drinking cans led to controversy in Germany, PET processors are hoping for new developments in the market for PET containers.
• Plasteurope.com Service: Press conference papers with an up-to-date MHT company portrait (English, with illustrations): PIE-No. 45838.
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MHT´s new building in Hochheim (Photo: MHT)
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Technical centre with two injection moulding machines (Photo: MHT)
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72 cavity PET mould “HOLI-Mold” (Photo: MHT)
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New and fully automatic preform measuring machine in the quality inspection lab (Photo: MHT)
28.11.2002 Plasteurope.com [15335]
Published on 28.11.2002