K live: Dutch machinery maker Stork spreads its wings to larger market

Düsseldorf, Germany — Stork Plastics Machinery BV is spreading its wings wide and soaring into markets beyond northern Europe.

The Dutch injection molding machinery maker has "traditionally been a very quiet company," said Benjamin Sutch, managing partner of Chudleigh Sutch UK Ltd., Stork's distributor for North and South America. The mainstay of its business has been in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany and Poland, he said.

But the Hengelo, Netherlands-based company is gaining momentum — and financial support under new ownership — to increase its market wingspan.

Just weeks before the K show kicked off, Stork announced that industrial systems supplier Hydratec Industries NV had acquired a 75 percent majority interest in the company. Hydratec also acquired Rollepaal Holding BV, an extruder maker in Dedemsvaart, Netherlands.

Stork's previous owner, Dutch private equity firm Wadinko NV, retains a 25 percent stake in the business. But with Hydratec, the machinery company gets a new infusion of capital, investment and energy, he said.

"For Stork, it's the best of both worlds: It's continuity in ownership, with some fresh blood to add some energy to the future investment in the company," Sutch said in an interview at K.

In the last few years, there has been a concerted effort to expand the brand — finding new sales partners such as Etchingham, England-based Chudleigh Sutch, which has a global footprint in China, Australia and the United States, among other areas.

"They now have agents and distributors throughout Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand," Sutch said, adding that a new sales director for the Spanish and Portuguese market has also recently been hired.

Stork looks to sell between 75-100 machines a year on average, Sutch said. And in the last three years, there have been many more of its machines floating outside of Europe: about 45 in the Americas and 10-plus in Southeast Asia, he added.

"You're seeing Stork start to spread its wings a little bit, which is obviously very exciting news and interesting to the American market to know that Stork is coming to town," he said.

Stork's focus has been on injection molding machines that are "big, fast, strong and rugged," said Wim Brinkman, sales manager for Stork.

The company specializes in toggle clamping machines for the packaging market, with tonnages ranging from 150-2,000 metric tons.

Brinkman said all of its presses are toggle because, for packaging applications, "toggle is just the fastest way to do it."

"We go for the strongest thing you can buy to make the machines indestructible," he said.

The company does build full-electric machines, up to about 1,000 tonnes of clamping force. But because the packaging industry requires so much power and force in the molding applications, most of Stork's machines are hybrid.

Competitors in the market include Canada's Husky Injection Molding Systems Ltd., Italy's BMB SpA and Switzerland's Netstal-Machinen AG — though the Netstal brand is now housed under the KraussMaffei name.

"This is where Stork retains some of its advantages," Sutch said. "It is a smaller company. It isn't an Arburg or an Engel. We're not looking to make thousands of presses [a year]. We're looking to make 100 absolutely fantastic presses."

At its K booth, Stork is touting a "Let's Go Dutch" theme with fellow Holland manufacturer Brink Group BV, which makes injection molds and automated systems for the packaging industry.

"The reason why we work with Stork is we're both Dutch and Stork has, for us, really dedicated machines," said Max Zinnemers, Brink's international sales manager.

He echoed Brinkman's description of the equipment, referring to the Stork presses as "firm, strong and sturdy."

On display at the booth, the company is demonstrating food container applications on two Food-Line injection molding machines.

Stork's full-electric, 440-tonne press is producing a 1.5-liter square cheese container in a two-cavity mold. The cycle time is 3.9 seconds including the in-mold labeling and take out. The container is made of polypropylene material from Sabic. The label also carries the invisible Holy Grail mark used for waste separation in support of the circular economy.

The larger press on display is a 700-tonne hybrid with a full-electric clamping movement. The machine is producing a 250-gram square container in an eight-cavity mold. The cycle time is also 3.9 seconds, with in-mold labeling, camera control of the invisible QR code and takeout. The container is made of Sabic's polypropylene.