Polykemi inaugurates North Carolina facility

Sweden-based Polykemi Group, a global producer of customer-adapted plastic compounds based on both virgin and recycled raw materials, has inaugurated its Gastonia, North Carolina, facility. The facility is the company’s fifth manufacturing unit and marks the third continent on which Polykemi features in-house production.

To celebrate the opening of the Gastonia plant in April, Polykemi invited around 100 guests to a ceremony and festivities. The facility’s 20 employees and their families were invited, along with customers, the company owner, board of directors, management team and other colleagues from Sweden as well as local politicians, property developers and U.S. suppliers.

“Many of us had worked together for a long time to complete the plant,” Polykemi Inc. CEO Johan Hugoson says. “Not only did we finally get to showcase it for customers and suppliers, but also for our colleagues from Sweden who helped us during the project. It was a fantastically successful and enjoyable day.”

According to the company, the Gastonia plant spans about 60,000 square feet and houses offices, stores, workshops, a fully equipped laboratory for testing and quality analysis and two extrusion lines with a total production capacity of 6,500 metric tons. Polykemi adds the plant is now fully operational and will provide the American market with customized plastic granules based on high-quality new and recycled plastic raw materials.

“The Gastonia plant represents a major step toward achieving our global goals by providing the North and South American markets with our materials,” Hugoson says. “And it’s really special that this is happening during Polykemi Inc.’s 10th year, and I wish our founder, Hugo Jönsson, could have been here to see how far we’ve already come on our journey.

“Setting up the new factory has brought us closer to our customers and gives both of us and our customers greater confidence in increased collaboration,” he adds. “We have already seen a major increase in material requests and greater interest in our products, especially those containing high-quality recycled raw materials.”

The family-owned Polykemi Group consists of Polykemi AB, Rondo Plast AB and Scanfill AB, all located in Ystad, Sweden, Polykemi Compounds Kunshan and Chongqing in China and, now, Polykemi Inc. in North Carolina. The group also has a number of sales offices situated around the globe.