Uniloy Milacron Opens Blow Molding Lab, Unifies Global Market Strategy

Uniloy Milacron, Tecumseh, Mich., has launched two new initiatives. One is the opening this month of a Technical Blow Molding Lab (photo) with about 20,000 ft² devoted to machine and mold trials, product development, and customer training. The lab will have three  machines—two reciprocating-screw models representing different generations of technology and a B&W seven-layer continuous-extrusion shuttle. The machines will be equipped for single-cavity testing of new products. There will also be a classroom and a lab for testing container drop-impact, top-load, heat-resistance, and other dynamic properties.

The other major news from Uniloy Milacron is a renewed push for a unified global sales and marketing strategy to unite its operations in three countries. These include Uniloy North America, which builds reciprocating-screw, injection-blow, and industrial accumulator-head machines, as well as blow molds. Uniloy Milacron srl in Italy builds continuous-extrusion shuttles, injection-blow, and accumulator-head machines, and 3D suction-blow models. Uniloy Milacron Germany GmbH builds B&W shuttle machines. “Our direct-sales organization will no longer be tied to the place of manufacture, but will take the full product and services portfolio to customers in their assigned regions of the world,” says David J. Skala, the new group v.p. for Uniloy Milacron, and a 33-year veteran of Uniloy and DME, another Milacron business unit.

Other new appointments are Tim Tomlin as North American sales manager for Uniloy Milacron, who comes with experience at Sidel and Wentworth Mold; and Eric Hallstrom sales manager for new business development, who has been with Uniloy for two years after stints at DME and Husky. He is currently responsible for the Indian market. Other new area managers are Leo Cesario for Latin America and David McIver for SE Asia.

Skala says one of his goals is to make the U.S. moldmaking and aftermarket services available to the European operations, and also to take advantage of new technology developed by Mold-Masters, the Canadian hot-runner manufacturer recently acquired by Milacron LLC. Uniloy is adapting Mold-Masters’ new multi-layer barrier coinjection nozzles to injection-blow molding, where Skala sees opportunities in medical and pharmaceutical packaging.