It’s just business: manufacturing moves from ORBIS Corp., Sumco, and SpectronRX

The business of manufacturing never stops. Industrial companies merge, invest and strategically expand to keep competitive, even under adverse business conditions. Read on for more details on five such recent business actions made by industrial and manufacturing companies, including medical technology consolidation, the expansion of a radiopharmaceutical facility and new developments at a startup dedicated to rapid production of defense and aerospace parts.

Acquisition: GCM, a manufacturer of medical technology components and assemblies, announced February 2 that it had acquired Kettmann Machining, for undisclosed terms. Kettmann manufactures precision-machined plastic and metal parts for the medical technology industry. According to a joint statement, the purchase will add Kettmann’s 40,000-square-foot factory in San Jose, California to GCM’s existing facility in Silicon Valley. Seamus Meagher, GCM’s CEO, said in the statement the companies align strategically, and the purchase will improve his company’s standing as a “premier manufacturing partner to the MedTech industry.

Expansion: Isembard, a UK manufacturing startup manufacturing parts for the defense and aerospace industries, announced February 2 it would build a new 25,000-square-foot plant in the Dallas-Fort Worth area of Texas. According to a company statement, the factory will run on the company’s proprietary operating system for managing manufacturing workflows, which it franchises to other manufacturers and machine shop owners. In a statement, the London, U.K.-based company’s U.S. Expansion Lead, Justin Baucum, noted the region is one of the most strategically located manufacturing regions in the United States.

Acquisition: ORBIS Corporation, a company that manufactures reusable packaging, announced February 2 it had acquired Robinson Industries, a thermoforming company. According to a statement, the acquisition adds Robinson’s two Coleman, Michigan factories to Orbis’ portfolio as well as its 100 employees. Norm Kukuk, President of Orbis Corporation, said in a statement the acquisition would drive strong cultural alignment and accelerate the company’s design innovation.

Acquisition: Sumco, a division of Industrial Manufacturing Group, has purchased National Integrated Industries Inc. Carter, Morse & Goodrich, NII’s financial advisor, announced the sale January 23. NII operates as two divisions: American Plastic Products, which runs a custom injection molding business for industrial clients; and American Electro Products, an electroplating firm. The purchase brings both halves of NII under the aegis of Sumco Group, an electroplating company that specializes in tin, nickel, copper, silver and gold finishing.

Expansion: SpectronRX announced an expansion of its Grissom Aeroplex factory complex near Peru, Indiana. According to PharmaTechNews, the radiopharmaceutical company added 14 acres and a new 150,000-square-foot production plant to the campus, which is now 34 acres with 200,000 square feet of pharmaceutical-ready manufacturing. In a statement, SpectronRX CEO John Zehner said that demand for radioligand therapy and other radiopharmaceutical is rising rapidly.