Backdated to July 1, 2000, SIG Schweizerische Industriegesellschaft Holding AG (CH-8212 Neuhausen) has taken over the filling machine manufacturer Hamba Maschinenfabrik Hans A. Müller GmbH & Co. KG (Im Krumegg, D-66539 Neunkirchen) for around EUR 15m. Following the takeover of Krupp Kunststofftechnik GmbH (D-45413 Essen) in the Spring – see Plasteurope.com 09, 2000 – the new SIG Plastics division has thus expanded to become a system supplier for aseptic PET lines. In particular, the affiliated SIG Corpoplast (D-22145 Hamburg) has drawn level with its two major competitors, Sidel and Krones.

Hamba was founded in 1939 and has been involved in the building of filling and sealing machines since 1963. It has enjoyed major success especially on the milk market and, according to internal statistics, more than 5,000 Hamba filling machines are currently in operation in this sector. Based on its long experience, the company recently developed a successful range of multi-line PET bottling machines. In 1999, Hamba had a workforce of 300 and posted sales of EUR 29m.