Sonoco acquisition adds to plastic container portfolio

Sonoco, which is headquartered in South Carolina, said the acquisition of Clear Pack Co., isexpected to be completed by the end of 2006, pending regulatory approval. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Clear Pack is a privately held manufacturer of thermoformed and extruded plastic materials andcontainers and is based in Franklin Park, Ill. The company produces plastic containers for several consumer product and food service companies, including packaging for single-serve condiments, fresh produce and other food services.

Charles Sullivan, Sonoco's executive vice president, said: "This strategic acquisition significantly expands Sonoco's rigid plastic capabilities and allows us to further provide our customers with an even broader range of plastic packaging and closure solutions."​

Clear Pack has annual sales of about $45m. The company operates a 240,000 square foot manufacturing and warehouse facility in Franklin Park that produces commercial roll stock and thermoformed products.

Clear Pack has 14 high-speed, roll-fed thermoformers capable of running high-impact polystyrene (HIPS), polypropylene (PP), high- density polyethylene (HDPE) and oriented polystyrene (OPS).

The company has five extrusion lines capable of extruding a variety of high-impact polystyrene and polypropylene blends. The company also has co-extrusion capabilities as well as in-line lamination for application of multilayer laminates to meet chemical resistant and barrier requirements.

Sonoco has annual sales of $3.5bn and has about 300 operations in 35 countries.