NEWS
Tekni-Films (Flemington NJ), a Tekni-Plex company, has announced it has completed validation of its PVdC coating line. The high-quality, highclarity coatings have almost no PVdC-coating flow lines. The coating process is designed to produce consistent coating weights and predictable barrier properties. The company manufactures blister films and matching lidding products.
Sartorius AG (Göttingen, Germany), a laboratory and process equipment provider, has become the majority owner of Stedim Biosystems S.A. (Aubagne, France), a biopharmaceutical supplier. Under the agreement, Sartorius is also combining its biotechnology division with Stedim’s business. Sartorius will control the combined company. The overall transaction will be completed by the summer of 2007. The combined company will be named Sartorius Stedim Biotech S.A.
A brand-protection solutions provider has acquired a 116-year-old secured-document printing company with intaglio printing capabilities. Sekuworks (Cincinnati) acquired Northern Bank Note Co. (Countryside, IL) in an effort to broaden its scope of offerings in the securebrand and document-solution market. Sekuworks also recently unveiled a new corporate identity and logo to emphasize its global market presence as well as its commitment to approaching brand fraud as a worldwide problem. The new identity is also part of the company’s launch of its fiveplatform brand protection strategy designed to help brand owners battle counterfeiting, diversion, and fraud. The platforms are security consulting, technologies and information systems, security printing using the company’s Sekuweb technology, mass-serialization and track and trace, and investigation and enforcement.
A producer of specialty packaging for pharmaceutical, vitamin, and other consumer product markets is in the process of receiving certification from the Forestry Stewardship Council. Disc Graphics (Hauppauge, NY) is being certified as an ecologically responsible end-user. Certification by the council acknowledges companies that use supplies and methods that adhere to the principles of sustainability.
International Packaging Systems GmbH (IPS; Crailsheim, Germany) and ServoTech GmbH (Langenburg, Germany) are embarking on a joint venture to engineer turnkey projects for primary and secondary pharmaceutical packaging. The combined team offers planning and implementation services as well as delivery and after-sales service for pharmaceutical production and manufacturing lines.
BST International GmbH (Elmhurst, IL), a manufacturer of web-inspection and guiding systems for printing, converting, and manufacturing, has established a subsidiary in Songjiang, China, called BST International Shanghai Co. Ltd. The subsidiary is being set up to allow the company to operate and grow in the Chinese market. Currently, about one-eighth of the company’s total turnover comes from China. The subsidiary will manufacture country-specific components such as mechanical guiding devices for web-guiding systems and will conduct sales and support activities.
A provider of RFID-based totalasset-management solutions, Savi Technology (Mountain View, CA), is launching a licensing program for its intellectual property (IP) now incorporated into ISO 18185, the standard for electronic cargo seals. The Savi QuickStart e-Seal licensing program includes a reduced licensing fee for orders received by June 30, 2007. The company anticipates that licensing its IP for the tag-to-reader communication requirements in ISO 18185 will accelerate widespread use of e-Seals. ISO 18185 addresses technical and application standards for e-Seals, which ISO describes as nonreusable freight-container seals that provide electronic evidence of tampering or intrusion through container doors. These seals are a class of RFID devices that incorporate a mechanical locking mechanism and an active RFID module to provide wireless alerting and location capabilities. They are designed to be a moresecure alternative to traditional bolt seals, which can be easily breached.
Filmquest Group Inc. has moved its headquarters from St. Charles to Bolingbrook, IL, a southwest suburb of Chicago. The company is a supplier and converter of environmentally friendly plastic films such as PLA, PET, and other substrates. The new headquarters site is one to two acquisitions made by the company this year. It has approximately 125,000 sq ft.
