Film producers make strategic moves

UNIPLAST BOUGHT BY LARGE U.S. FILM FIRM

Prime-time U.S. film manufacturer Pliant Corp. has bought Uniplast Industries Inc., based in Orillia, ON. Uniplast, which has two plants in Orillia and four in the U.S., had about $150 million in sales last year. The company makes a variety of packaging and industrial films, including multi-layer and stretch films.

According to press reports, Pliant will pay about US$55 million in stock and cash and assume about $40 million in debt when the deal is closed (post press time) in late July. Pliant, with headquarters in Schaumburg, IL, operated formerly as Huntsman Packaging Corp. It changed its name to Pliant in the fall of 2000.

PCL EXPANDS-AGAIN

Oakville, ON-based PCL Packaging has acquired manufacturing equipment and other assets of BPI Packaging Technologies, Inc. of North Dighton, MA. The assets, which include eight blown film lines and bag-making machinery, were obtained pursuant to a public sale and will be utilized within existing PCL facilities and in a new business to be established in the area. The purchase will enable PCL to enter the high density polyethylene bag market, according to PCL chairman and chief executive officer, Bill Swinimer. Until now, PCL has mainly produced low density polyethylene bags. With the purchase PCL obtained the rights to BPI’s patented dispensing technology for making specialty bags primarily used at convenience and department stores. PCL now operates seven plants in North America, three of which are located in Canada