Cereplast Expands Bio-Plastic Production With A New, Half-Billion Pound Capacity Indiana Facility
Hawthorne, CA - Cereplast, Inc., manufacturer of proprietary bio-based, sustainable plastics, announced recently the location of a new facility that will add half a billion pounds a year to Cereplast's bio-plastic resin production capacity when the site is fully developed by early 2010. Operations will start at the site in January of 2008
Within weeks, a logistics processing center will begin operations, allowing the company to better serve clients in the Midwest and the East Coast. Cereplast will begin hiring managers, supervisors, extrusion operators, warehouse specialists and maintenance technicians in early 2008. When the site reaches full capacity in early 2010, it will employ up to 200 full-time staff and be the world's largest bio-plastic resin production facility.
Production will start in an existing industrial building that is situated in Seymour, Ind. on more than 12 acres. Cereplast is planning to have additional buildings completed by early 2009. Rail service will help accommodate the enormous quantities of raw materials and finished goods that will move through the complex.
"After a long search we decided to settle down in Indiana for this project, in the heart of the Midwest, where we have easy access to our raw materials allowing us to reduce the carbon footprint of our operations by reducing transportation lines," said Frederic Scheer, CEO and President of Cereplast. The new facility complements Cereplast's current manufacturing operation in Hawthorne, Calif., which it will continue to operate.
"Cereplast is exactly the kind of business that we're most interested in attracting. A unique company like this that has market-changing possibilities and the potential for rapid growth is a big win for Indiana," said Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels.
"As our industry grows, we find the need for flexible manufacturing solutions that allow us to meet both the current and future demand for bio-plastics," said Scheer. "The new Indiana facility allows us to expand capacity immediately, and will enable us to keep pace with future growth. We have seen a very positive response to the introduction of the Cereplast Hybrids Resins and we believe they will become mainstream plastics."
Interest in the company's newest product line, including Biopropolyene the world's first sustainable polypropylene, has been high. Biopropylene replaces 50 percent or more of the petroleum-based content of conventional plastic resins with renewable resources such as cornstarch, tapioca or other starches.
"Companies are attracted to the fact that the resins have nearly the same physical characteristics and price points as traditional polyolefins while plastics manufacturers immediately appreciate that they can process the bio-based resins on conventional equipment," Scheer said, adding that "because the bio-based resins contain less petroleum products, they are less susceptible to volatility in oil prices and this stability and transparency of future pricing has also proven very attractive to our customers."
The company's other product family, Cereplast Compostables resins, are nearly 100 percent bio-based, and are fully biodegradable and compostable meeting BPI (Biodegradable Products Institute) standards for compostability (ASTM 6400 D99 and ASTM 6868), and European Bioplastics standards (EN 13432).
SOURCE: Cereplast, Inc.