NEWS BRIEFS (March 01, 2008)

Bankrupt auto parts manufacturer Collins & Aikman Canada Inc. has announced that it is closing its Guelph, Ont. plastic parts manufacturing plant, putting roughly 500 people out of work. The closing date has not been announced.

German injection molding machine manufacturer Arburg is opening its own Mexican subsidiary Arburg S. A. de C. V. to continue the successful work of its trading partner IPLYH. Four IPLYH employees, including three service technicians and a salesperson, have been transferred to Arburg. Guillermo Fasterline will head up the new subsidiary.

Akron, Ohio-based resin manufacturer and compounder A. Schulman, Inc. has announced plans to shut down a manufacturing facility in St. Thomas, Ont. The move is part of the company’s continued efforts to improve the productivity of its North American operations.

According to the company, the St. Thomas facility primarily produces engineered plastic resin for the automotive market. In recent weeks, the company had noted its intentions to cut costs, citing the pressures of high oil prices and sluggish automotive sales.

Korea-based Yudo has renewed its agreement with J-Tech HotRunner Inc., Caledon Village, Ont., to represent Yudo’s hot runner systems in Canada.

Mississauga, Ont.-based Cott Corporation has announced that it has signed a lease financing agreement for blow molding and water bottling equipment manufactured by Sidel Group. GE Commercial Finance will provide US$31.4 million in financing for water bottling equipment, and lease it to Cott for an eight-year term.

Calgary, Alta.-based Nova Chemicals Corporation announced that it had had a “record breaking” fiscal year. The company reported a net income of US$126 million in Q4 2007, compared to a net income of US$97 million in Q3 2007 and a net loss of US$781 million for Q4 2006.

Cash from operations for the quarter totaled US$205 million, allowing the company to reduce its net debt by US$105 million. For the year, Nova reported net income of US$347 million for 2007, compared to a net loss of US$703 million for 2006.

General Motors of Canada (GM) announced plans to open a $120 million automotive training centre at the University of Ontario’s Institute of Technology, in Oshawa, Ont.

Funded by donations, GM’s Automotive Centre of Excellence will serve as a link between automotive engineers, auto suppliers and Canadian universities. When completed, GM said, the centre will house state-of-the-art research and development tools in the areas of vehicle dynamics, noise and vibration, thermal climatic wind tunnel, structural durability testing and the ability to accommodate future automotive fuels like hydrogen.

Petrochemical supplier Petromont&Co. LP will cease polyethylene and ethylene production in Quebec on April 30 and lay off approximately 325 employees.

The company says a number of factors is forcing it to shut, including a strong Canadian dollar as well as an inability to obtain source petroleum-based feedstock at a competitive price. The 325 employees scheduled to be laid off work at the company’s plants in Varennes, Que. and Montreal.

Petromont is co-owned by DowChemicalCanada and the investment arm of the Quebec government, The Societe generale de financement du Quebec.