Haitian opens new China plant for Zhafir Plastics Machinery brand

Ningbo, China-based injection molding machine maker Haitian International Holdings Ltd. has opened a new facility for its Zhafir Plastics Machinery Co. Ltd. subsidiary in Chunxiao, a suburb of Ningbo.

Officially opened on May 18, the 120,000-square-meter facility took 15 months to build. Haitian says that about 400 employees will be employed there, building as many as 5,000 Zhafir I/M machines per year, primarily for the Asian market.

The plant includes departments for R&D, a technology and application centre, machine testing, metal processing, and sheet-metal processing, and for a paint shop and machine assembly. Production will focus first on the Venus series and the new Zeres series, Haitian said. Other models will gradually be added to the portfolio.

For the European market, Zhafir machines are assembled and customized in Ebermannsdorf, Germany. Haitian also plans to make further expansions of capacity in Germany.

Haitian is represented in Canada by Shadow Automation Inc. (Uxbridge, Ont.), and Lutek Plastic Equipment Inc. (Dorval, Que.).