Renolit Plans $25 Million Indiana Expansion

PVC film producer American Renolit Corp. is planning a $25 million expansion at its La Porte, Ind., factory.

The company will expand and add equipment in a project slated to start later this year for a late-2018 completion. It expects the expansion will create up to 30 new jobs by 2019.

American Renolit runs a 220,000-square-foot facility in La Porte, which employs about 175. The firm logged sales of about $94 million in 2016, according to Plastics News data. It has invested nearly $100 million in the operation since it bought it from the Solvay Group in 1999 and converted the plant to calendered PVC film from its previous life as a polypropylene roll stock manufacturer.

The firm is making the investment to keep up with growth among existing customers as well as to develop adjacent markets and new applications, according to a news release from the Indiana Economic Development Corp.

"This capacity extension confirms Renolit's leadership in the calendered film market in the U.S.," noted American Renolit President Renaat Demeulemeester in an IEDC news release. He said his company will provide more details on the project in a few weeks.

American Renolit officials indicated in 2014 that an expansion was likely at La Porte in a few years.

IEDC has offered American Renolit up to $275,000 in conditional tax credits based in the company's job creation plans. The city of La Porte will provide additional incentives.

"Their international presence and leadership within the high quality plastic film industry make them a perfect fit for our manufacturing sector and contribute to La Porte's reputation as a place where manufacturing thrives," stated La Porte Mayor Blair Milo in a news release.

American Renolit is a subsidiary of Renolit Group based in Worms, Germany. The group employs about 4,500 at more than 30 production sites around the world. The group's sales last year were 965.6 million euros ($1.10 billion).

Renolit Group in spring launched a new image campaign that emphasizes its close cooperation with its business partners. It said customer surveys showed partnership is valued among customers more than innovation and high quality. The campaign includes new advertising motifs for its market sectors and a film highlighting its cooperation with customers.

Also this past spring, Renolit Group introduced a new backside film for photovoltaic modules. Reflexolar 1500 PO is a coextrusion of specialty polymers based on polypropylene. The group claims the backsheet is recyclable and halogen- and solvent-free. It is aimed to increase module output, resist abrasion and minimize glass warpage. Renolit Group developed the product based on its experience in PP alloy roofing membranes and advanced coextrusions.