What you'll learn in this episode of the Machinery Minutes podcast:
- Hoffer Plastics and Rocheleau Tool & Die, both third-generation family-owned plastics businesses, are thriving and remain committed to staying independent and honoring their heritage.
- The historic HPM brand, known for injection molding machines, has been officially retired by Yizumi, the Chinese firm that acquired its assets in 2011.
- Blow molding machinery maker Bekum America Corp. has nine new apprentices in its four-year training program — the largest class since the program began in 1994.
Transcript
Hello, welcome to PMM Insight, a Plastics Machinery & Manufacturing podcast. I am your host, Ron Shinn, editor of PMM.
This is an episode of Machinery Minutes, where at the beginning of each week I share with you three things you need to know in about three minutes. You can read the complete stories on plasticsmachinerymanufacturing.com.
Let’s get started.
Story No. 1: Two companies – injection molder Hoffer Plastics and blow molding machinery builder Rocheleau Tool & Die – are family owned, third-generation businesses that are thriving. Neither would ever consider selling.
Steven Rocheleau, president of the company his grandfather started in 1938, is quick to say he would turn down an offer to sell for $1 billion.
Rocheleau told Senior Staff Reporter Karen Hanna that, “When you travel and you’re somewhere in Central America or Mexico or the Caribbean, and you walk in and they ‘re like ‘Hey, your name’s the same as the machine name.’ And then somebody will tell you ‘Thank you. I’ve worked with your grandfather, and the machine has made me a living, and my kids went to college because of the money we made running your machine.’ ”
Gretchen Hoffer Farb, co-CEO of Hoffer Plastics, said that as a family-owned business, “We can make decisions that may not make economical sense but make good sense within our values.”
This is a fascinating story and I hope you will read it on plasticsmachinerymanufacturing.com. Headline is, “Family companies stay true to their roots.”
Story No. 2: The HPM brand, which has been fading away for a long time, has finally disappeared.
HPM began in central Ohio in 1877 manufacturing presses for making apple cider, started building injection molding machines in 1987 and shut down in 2009. Chinese machinery manufacturer Yizumi acquired all of HPM’s intellectual property in 2011 and six years later started selling Yizumi-HPM branded molding machines in North America.
Yizumi announced last week that the line has been rebranded as Yizumi to match the company’s global identity.
Headline is “Yizumi announces rebranding in North America.”
Story No. 3: Bekum America Corp. welcomed nine apprentices into its four-year training program, the largest group ever to start.
The Williamston, Mich., blow molding machinery builder started its program in 1994. The current class comes from high schools, community colleges and the military.
Headline is “Bekum America welcomes 9 apprentices.”
Those are my Top 3 items for this week. We have a new list every Monday.
I hope you have enjoyed this episode of Machinery Minutes. You can always find our podcasts and the latest information about the worldwide plastics industry on our website, www.plasticsmachinerymanufacfturing.com and on social media.
Remember to subscribe to the PMM Insight podcast on your favorite podcast app and tell a friend or colleague if you think they would enjoy the show. This podcast was produced by Plastics Machinery & Manufacturing, an Endeavor Business Media brand.
Ron Shinn | Editor
Editor Ron Shinn is a co-founder of Plastics Machinery & Manufacturing and has been covering the plastics industry for more than 35 years. He leads the editorial team, directs coverage and sets the editorial calendar. He also writes features, including the Talking Points column and On the Factory Floor, and covers recycling and sustainability for PMM and Plastics Recycling.
