Companies in U.S., Taiwan, and South Africa partner to make blow molding machinery

A new partnership that spans three continents will manufacture new fully electric, hybrid, and hydraulic blow molding machines for the North American market.

The partnership involves extrusion blow molding machine maker R&B Plastics Machinery LLC, headquartered in Saline, Mich.; Sika, a custom blow molding machine maker in Taiwan; and Seecor, a technology company based in South Africa.

The new shuttle and accumulator head machines, which will be sold and engineered under the R&B Plastics Machinery brand, will expand the company’s portfolio of blow molding machinery for the consumer packaging, automotive and industrial markets. The launch of the new machinery also marks R&B’s entry into the all-electric blow molding machine segment.

“This partnership will result in the development of a new series of machine platforms that will incorporate R&B technology, engineering and know-how,” R&B Plastics president Fred Piercy said in a statement. “This business arrangement will significantly expand our machine portfolio and enable us to compete with larger rivals, particularly in the all-electric market.”

R&B will combine modern and efficient blow molding technology and marketing approaches to offer the R&B Sika Shuttle line (RBS series) and accumulator machines (RBA series) throughout the North American market. The all-electric machines will consist of shuttle platforms ranging from 350- to 1250-mm long stroke in single- and double-sided machine configurations.

As a partner, Sika will manufacture systems and components that will be shipped to R&B Plastics’s manufacturing facility in Michigan for final assembly and customer trials. Seecor, meanwhile, will provide technology support, including manufacturing guidance and design, primarily at Sika in Taiwan.

Under the new partnership, Piercy said, R&B Plastics has already sold multiple new shuttle machines in the U.S.