Compounder Adds Capacity, Capabilities in Rochester

Polymer Resources Ltd., a leading U.S. compounder of high-quality engineering resins with headquarters in Farmington, Conn., has completed the expansion and enhancement of its compounding facility in Rochester, N.Y. The company has significantly upgraded an existing building on its campus to support a 40% increase in overall compounding capacity.

The updated facility also features increased grinding and shredding capacity for recycling plastic waste to support circularity and sustainability. Furthermore, its spacious floorplan, new safety features and amenities are designed to provide a comfortable and efficient work environment for employees, whose numbers are expected to increase by double digits in the coming years.

“The expansion of our Rochester facility is strategic to the robust growth of our compounding capabilities and the expansion of our sustainability initiatives, both of which are increasingly important to customers,” said Scott Anderson, the company’s president and COO. “In addition to continuing to address customer requirements for scalable, reliable resin supply, short lead times and exceptional quality, the updated facility will help us advance sustainability through plastic waste collection and recycling. We are committed to helping our customers reach their production and sustainability goals, as well as meeting our own sustainability goals, and this new facility positions us to achieve those objectives.”

Greater Capacity for Compounding and Recycling

The project, which was completed in just over a year, expanded the footprint of the compounding facility from a total of 35,000 ft², previously divided between two buildings, to 60,000 ft² in one building. This change offers far more space for compounding and grinding operations, storage, a laboratory and offices, and it improves process efficiency and streamlines workflow. Further, the Rochester site offers Polymer Resources an opportunity to add on to the building — up to a total of 100,000 ft² — in  the future. 

“We are committed to helping our customers reach their production and sustainability goals, as well as meeting our own sustainability goals.”

To boost compounding capacity, the company has installed a twin-screw extruder for faster throughput and advanced capabilities. This new equipment increases capacity by 40% and helps enable the efficient production of new and existing products.

A key feature of the facility is a separate, soundproofed, 3250 ft² room for grinding and shredding post-industrial and post-consumer plastic waste for use in Polymer Resources’ sustainable resin grades. Not only does this grinding operation use material from both the Rochester and Farmington sites, but it also accepts parts and waste material from customers and vendors for recycling. This initiative helps to divert plastic from landfills and oceans and extend its useful life. Several end-use agreements between Polymer Resources and its customers are in place to ensure known, reliable sources of recycled content for the company’s sustainable materials portfolio.  

Enhanced Work Environment

To maximize employee safety and comfort, Polymer Resources designed the facility with a powerful air filtration system, a dust collection system for the grinding operation and a modern break room. Greater space between machines also improves workers’ physical safety as they move around the production floor. 

The Rochester plant compounds a wide range of engineering resins, from polyphenylene ether and polystyrene blends (PPX) to various grades of polycarbonate (PC), acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS), polybutylene terephthalate (PBT), PC/ABS and PBT blends. Many of these grades are available unfilled or with different loadings of mineral or glass-fiber reinforcement.

The facility focuses on supplying large amounts of material, including full and partial truckloads (LTL volumes) to customers developing important applications for a variety of industries including the electrical, industrial, non-invasive medical, consumer goods, transportation, and building and construction sectors.